Check out the best of the Spring Championships!

Posted: Thu, 11 May 2017 15:54

Almost 800 secondary school aged pupils took over Loughborough University, as the Leicester-Shire & Rutland School Games Spring Championships rolled into town on Wednesday 5^th April.

Organised by Leicester-Shire & Rutland Sport (LRS), 13 competitions saw 10 different School Sport Partnership areas represented as Schools looked to achieve glory.

Recently named as the best sporting University in the world, Loughborough was the perfect venue to showcase some of the finest school sport talent in Leicestershire, Leicester and Rutland. The world class facilities helped to spur on teams who had the finest equipment and facilities at their disposal.

LRS in partnership with the School Sport & Physical Activity Networks (SSPANs), deliver the Leicester-Shire & Rutland School Games Programme, which is a unique opportunity to motivate and inspire young people to take part in more competitive school sport. It is open to all young people aged 5-18 years, of all abilities and backgrounds from every school.

The start saw the voice of Leicester City's Premier League triumph, BBC Leicester's Ian Stringer, compere the Opening Ceremony. Ian was joined on stage by skateboarding act Team Rubicon, who put on a memorable performance that helped wow the crowd before the Games got underway.

When the Championships started, the action was non-stop as athletes jumped, threw, spiked and ran their way towards the top spots. The 13 competitions were across seven different sports, which provided the opportunity to compete in: Wheelchair Basketball, Learning Disability Basketball, Boccia, Dodgeball, Indoor Rowing, Volleyball and Sportshall Athletics.

Battling it out for the right to call themselves 'County Champions'. the four hours of sport produced the highs and lows that are inevitable. It didn't affect the School Games spirit though, which saw an incredible atmosphere generated throughout both the events and the ceremonies.

104 teams took part throughout the day, equating to 50 different schools being well represented on the biggest stage in local school sport. And in June, even more will have their chance to shine when the School Games Summer Championships is held. The action will switch away from Charnwood for that, with a venue of Uppingham School Sports Centre set to play host to the primary school focused Championships.

School Games Ambassador and Team GB Paralympian Sam Ruddock was on hand throughout the afternoon to pose for pictures and help to inspire the next generation of potential athletes. He was also a part of the Closing Ceremony and the trophy presentations, as winners and Spirit of the Games winners were crowned for each competition.

There is more School Games action to come in the next few months. In addition to the Summer Championships, Super-Series Finals will also take place in Boccia, Go-Ride Cycling, Softball and Tennis.

Loughborough University will again play host to the National School Games from 31^st August-3^rd September. The venue hosted the 2016 Games and will continue to be the home venue this year, as the best young stars from across the country all come together to take part in the four day extravaganza.

Results - Winners/Spirit of the Games Winners

(See separate Results Document for full results)

Wheelchair Basketball