Press Release: First Coventry Community Games is success

A fun-packed London 2012-inspired celebration of sport, culture and community spirit has been held in Coventry - and it is hoped it will be the first of many to be held across the region.Moat House Leisure and Neighbourhood Centre, in Winston Avenue, was the site of the first Community Games to be held in Coventry this year, which aim to bring together communities to take part in sporting and cultural activities inspired by and in celebration of London 2012.With less than 500 days to go until London 2012, Legacy Trust UK, who fund the Community Games Programme, are aiming for 500 Community Games to be held across the West Midlands before the end of the London 2012 Olympics and Paralympics.More than 100 people attended the event which included a number of Olympic and Paralympic-themed activities such as a football tournament for over-16s, basketball demonstrations with members of Coventry Crusaders, blind football penalty shoot-outs, an Olympic-themed assault course, fencing demonstrations and a fencing competition run by Salle Ursa fencing club.Other entertainment on the day included an opening ceremony, face painting, performances by local musicians, a bouncy castle and a visit from Lady Godiva.Simon Court, from Coventry Sports Trust who organised the event, said: “Having a sporting background myself I wanted to promote a lot of the ethos of sport in a community context.“It is not all about competition. It’s also about getting together, achieving and participating.“The venue here is a community centre as well as a leisure centre so the aims of the Community Games, celebrating the social and cultural aspects of a community, are also high up our agenda as a centre and we wanted to promote that.”CSW Sport is aiming to support communities wishing to host their own Community Games during the run up to London 2012. The organisation will be hosting a number of training workshops as well as offering support and guidance on how to organise events.A community could be a street, an estate, work colleagues, groups, a sports team, faith group, school and much more.Tracy Murphy, from CSW Sport, said: “London 2012 provides a once in a lifetime opportunity for people to engage with sport and culture like never before.“The Community Games provides a platform to bring the magic and inspiration of London 2012 into the very heart of a community and to celebrate everything which makes that community great.“We are committed to helping as many people as possible host their very own Community Games and we would urge anyone who is interested in doing so to get in touch to find out how we can help.”For more information on hosting a Community Games, and for details of the support available, visit www.communitygames.org.uk or contact Tracy Murphy on 02476 574441 or email: tracy@cswsport.org.uk.ENDS

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