For the past two weeks, Think Pacific Fiji led a group of highly motivated volunteers to the outskirts of Nausori to help run the “Rewa Sports Camp 2019” and engaged Rugby League Fiji and Athletics Fiji to deliver coaching clinics and activities.
The core aim of the Sports Camp was to create and bring a fun, safe and active holiday period for local children, whilst introducing them to new sports and developing new sporting skills whilst positively impacting their physical and personal development.
The Think Pacific Fiji team led by Danny Threapleton also led coaching sessions for a variety of mainstream and minority sports daily, as well as delivering activities that focused on developing functional movement skills and skill related fitness attributes.
A typical day would usually start out with Functional Movement Screening (FMS), warm up and games from 9:00am-9:30am followed by Multi Stations where the topic/theme of the day would either be Health Related or Skill Related, lunch, sports coaching sessions and then cool down.
Cardiovascular endurance, muscular strength, muscular endurance and flexibility were the major components that Think Pacific Fiji were focused on delivering to the kids during the days where Health Related was the topic of the day.
“With these such topics, we can combat the mindset of sedentary lifestyle at a young age which in turn can combat the fight against NCD’s, Heart Diseases, Obesity and Diabetes in the long run”
Danny Threapleton
Where “Skill Related” was the theme of the day, the team covered components such as agility, balance, coordination, speed, power and reaction time. The focus of such a theme was to work on practicing movement skills that are commonly used in performing sports specific skills. This worked hand in hand with the Kids’ Athletics program that Athletics Fiji delivered throughout the two weeks.
Events like hurdle race, shuttle relay, formular 1, cross hop and the missile toss were very popular among the kids and not beause of the colorful equipment that was being used but at the fact that the AF coordinators along with the volunteers kept it fun, entertaining and competitive the whole time.
At the end of both the weeks, the venue of the Sports Camp would switch from the Burebasaga District School grounds to the Sports Council Netball Centre where the kids would have an opportunity to put into practice all that they had learned throughout the week in the first half of the day. After lunch all the kids would then hop over to the Damodar Aquatic Centre for the Learn to Swim program where they had 2 areas set up at the Aquatic Centre. The Junior Pool for the non-swimmers and the Main Pool for the swimmers.
It was definitely a hectic two weeks for the Think Pacific Fiji volunteers as well as the Athletics Fiji and Rugby League sports developement officers but one worth a lot of memories, new friendships and a feeling of worthwhile and satisfaction after helping change the lives of a 100 plus Rewan kids.
Story by: Athletics Fiji (06/12/2019)