The Turkish Olympic Committee’s (TOC) ‘Active Kids’ initiative for this academic year was launched last Saturday at schools across Istanbul, and will involve 1200 children.

The initiative, now in its third year, has been co-developed by Nike and more than 70 expert organisations who research and promote the many benefits of physical activity for children. ‘Active Kids’ aim is to combat the epidemic of physical inactivity that is growing at an alarming rate and poses a major threat to the health, happiness and prosperity of communities around the globe.

This year, the TOC returns to five primary schools in Istanbul, targeting children between the ages of six and ten. Classes will take place on Saturdays, lasting one and a half hours, and will include a variety of fun and engaging physical activities under the supervision of qualified instructors.

This year’s curriculum has been expanded to include additional sessions on the basic techniques for popular sports including athletics, handball, volleyball and basketball.

Speaking about the ‘Active Kids’ project, TOC President, Professor Dr Uğur Erdener, said:

“The TOC are pleased to welcome back the ‘Active Kids’ project for its third consecutive year. Since its inception in the 2014/15 academic year, we have reached thousands of children in Istanbul, educating them on the benefits of leading physically active lifestyles. As the Turkish Olympic Committee, we must continue to promote sport amongst all our citizens, and we are committed to doing so from the earliest age possible. Access to sport is an issue in some parts of Turkey which is why we run a number of other initiatives aimed at boosting physical activity at youth level. These include the ‘Free Sports Schools’ project which provides access to sport for 1500 children between the ages of seven and fifteen. Now in its 20th year, it was recently expanded to five schools across Turkey.”

In addition to making sport accessible to children, the TOC has also been running a Sports Culture and Education initiative for the last ten years. Through it, millions of children throughout Turkey have been educated on the values and history of the Olympics, the importance of nutrition and the discipline needed to achieve sporting success on the international stage. Presentations are usually held at schools and local municipality halls and are led by TOC staff, national athletes and academic experts.