University hosts Devon Games to Inspire

This annual event is the largest one day sporting occasion in the County and more than 300 volunteers, including sports coaches and students from five of the universities in the region, will be helping to run the activities.

The day includes competitive sports like cricket, hockey, tennis, girls tag rugby and netball, sports taster session like frisbee golf, and dance including an original performance for everyone to enjoy in the afternoon. Various activities will be available to enjoy throughout the day including making things from recycled materials.

Devon Games to Inspire is aimed at young people who have not yet reached County standard in their sport. For the DGTI they represent the area where they live. By training for and taking part in this event it is hoped that they will continue to play sport by joining local clubs.

Medals will be awarded to winners and everyone will receive a certificate for taking part. During the Closing Ceremony, which will be introduced by a local samba band, there will be a Winners trophy for the team representing the Devon area with the most points from the day. A Fairplay trophy for the team that has best displayed good sportsmanship will also be given out.

Councillor Hart, Leader of Devon County Council, a major sponsor of the day via Team Devon said: “This event, formerly the Devon Youth Games, gets bigger and more ambitious each year. Using the publicity around London 2012 we feel it is essential that young people are encouraged to be active, to learn to both compete and to lose gracefully and to have fun. Most of those involved will never have attended such a large sporting event and we know that taking part in the Games to Inspire often encourages them to join a club and progress in sport”

University of Exeter Deputy Vice-Chancellor and RELAYS Chairman Professor Neil Armstrong commented: “I am delighted to welcome these young people to the University. We have wonderful sports facilities here at Exeter and these are available for the whole community to share. I hope that these young visitors will look around the campus and be impressed by what they see and that we will be welcoming them here to study in the future.”

Following a successful application from RELAYS the 2011 Games has been awarded a London 2012 Inspire Mark as it has not received any commercial sponsorship and the sports and activities have been inspired by Olympic ideals.

The event is also being promoted as part of Universities Week by Universities UK (UUK). This event will be used as one example amongst many others showing the positive impact that universities have on local communities, business and the future of the UK.

In 2011 the Devon Games to Inspire has two main sponsors. RELAYS (Regional Educational Legacy for Art and Youth Sport) and Team Devon.

RELAYS is funded by the Legacy Trust UK, an independent charity that has been set up to build a lasting legacy from the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games and HEFCE (Higher Education Funding Council for England).

Team Devon is a partnership of bodies from across the County which are responding to the opportunities presented by London 2012. In summer 2011 Team Devon is supporting a series of activity months to encourage everyone to get moving.

The Devon Games to Inspire has been running for more than ten years and it is held in a different part of the County each year. In 2011 it is being hosted by the University of Exeter for the first time. Trials and training sessions have been organised by local councils across the County since March and teams represent their council area. Council sports staff recruit coaches, many of whom are volunteers, to develop and encourage their teams to take part in the Games.

Team Devon is part of the Devon Economic Partnership that works to improve Devon’s economy. It is made up of representatives from the public and private sectors who meet regularly to identify and address the key priorities for Devon’s economic development.

RELAYS is a London 2012 legacy project based in universities across the south-west region. Its aims are to:

• Inspire young people to volunteer, try new sports and be creative
• Bring together universities, communities and business
• Connect local people with the London Olympic and Paralympic Games

RELAYS staff run and support a variety of festivals, events and activities across the south-west and it has worked with thousand of young people and volunteers.