ITU & Laureus Team Up in London

by Brad Culp on 23 Jul, 2010 05:22 • Español

Olympic gold medallists Emma Snowsill (AUS), Jan Frodeno (GER) and Simon Whitfield (CAN) joined tennis legend Boris Becker and rugby great Sean Fitzpatrick at the launch of a midnight basketball league in Lambeth, South London on Thursday night. The project, which aims to keep young adults off the streets between the hours of 10pm-2am, is supported by the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation, the official charitable partner of the Dextro Energy Triathlon ITU World Championship Series. Both Becker and Fitzpatrick are among the 46 sporting legends that make up the Laureus Academy.

The three world class triathletes and two Laureus sporting legends spent time getting to know the over 50 kids participating in the midnight basketball project, before performing drills and playing a few games of one-on-one.

Live text, timing and video will be available at triathlon.org tv during this weekend’s events. Tune in at 1pm local time on Saturday to catch the women’s race and 4pm on Sunday for the men’s contest.

“The great thing about a project like this is that it teaches kids the power of sport from a young age,” Whitfield said. “Instead of spending the late night hours on the street, these kids are doing something positive that will benefit the entire community.”

The midnight basketball project visit came two days ahead of the Dextro Energy Triathlon ITU World Championship London, which will take place in world famous Hyde Park this weekend. Among those lending their support to the athletes competing will be fellow Laureus Academy member Daley Thompson, who has been coaching a group of 25 Laureus fundraisers leading up to the event. Thompson has also been helping to train Fitzpatrick, who will be competing in his first triathlon as part of an age-group relay this weekend.

“The Laureus partnership with the ITU is a great initiative enabling sports enthusiasts to race at an iconic London 2012 venue alongside elite athletes, while raising funds for the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation. I’ve had great fun training the Laureus team, and have been really pleased with the commitment and level of fitness, so I’ll be looking out for some impressive results in Hyde Park. The best of luck to Sean and the rest of the team!”