The Telegraph – Boudicca Fox-Leonard
“Gail Emms always thought she had a normal childhood. One full of bike races with friends, family walks and badminton at her local sports centre. She has no doubt that growing up in a household packed full of activity set her on a course for sporting success – Emms won silver at the 2004 Olympics in the badminton mixed doubles. But after retiring in 2008, she became an ambassador for the Youth Sport Trust and was faced with an uncomfortable truth: most kids aren’t sporty at all. “I realised I’d been living in a bubble,” says the 39-year old. “Until I went into schools, I’d never met children who weren’t interested in sport and I couldn’t believe it.” A study by Essex University reported in June that child fitness levels are falling at an even faster rate than feared – a decline of eight per cent over the previous 10 years. It’s a situation Emms and her fellow Youth Sport Trust ambassadors have been seeking to change through visits to thousands of schools across England.”(more)