Sainsbury’s Launches 1 Million Kids Challenge

To mark 500 days until the opening ceremony of the Paralympic  Games, Sainsbury’s, Official Partner of the 2012 London Paralympic Games, yesterday (Monday 11th April) launched its 1 Million Kids Challenge. The Challenge aims to encourage 1 million children from across the UK to get a taste of the excitement of the Games by trying out a Paralympic sport . Sainsbury’s today also announced its Paralympic Legacy Fund, an initiative that will support Paralympic athletes  as well as promoting a healthy lifestyle at London 2012 and beyond.

Through its Paralympic Games partnership and commitment to promote a healthy, fitter lifestyle across all ages and abilities, Sainsbury’s aims to make Paralympic sports more accessible by supplying free sports equipment to schools so children can give  Paralympic sports a try for the first time.

All of the schools participating in the Sainsbury’s 1 Million Kids Challenge will be eligible for additional rewards and benefits, such as access to London 2012 Ticketshare tickets and visits from athletes by joining the Get Set network, London 2012’s reward and recognition scheme for schools and colleges across the UK.

In addition to the 1 Million Kids Challenge, anyone who is interested in trying out a Paralympic sport can contact Parasport, an organisation which has been established to make it easier for the public to learn about and participate in these sports in their local communities (www.parasport.org.uk/).

In conjunction with the BPA, Sainsbury’s has also set up a Paralympic Legacy Fund which will support Paralympic athletes at the Paralympic Games and beyond.  The first initiative around the fund is the launch of a freshly designed Paralympic Games shopping bag, which is available in Sainsbury’s stores, with profits from the sales of the bag going to the fund.