LOCAL ATHLETE
Athlete leaps in with support for new play area
A
triple jumping athlete from Newcastle has helped to officially open a brand new play area at a school.
The Glebe Academy in Fenton was in urgent need of expansion and upgrading, and now the school s dream has come true thanks to a £24,000 donation from JCB, which funded the installation of a 330 square metre artificial grassed surface. The new play area was recently officially opened by JCB-sponsored athletes, slalom canoeist Adam Burgess, aged 28 of Stone, and triple jumper Ben Williams, aged 29 of Newcastle, who staged a special PE lesson for pupils to mark the unveiling. The pair took a break from training from the summer games in Tokyo to put youngsters through their paces after cutting a ribbon at the opening ceremony. Glebe Academy Principal Suzanne OakesSmith said: As the school sits in the lowest two per cent of deprivation in the country, with many of our pupils having no gardens or access to outdoor space, being able to provide this new area at the school is extremely significant. Our limited outdoor space has always been a huge challenge, so the JCB donation has turned a dream into a reality. A project of this size would have been out of the reach of the school and this work will benefit us for years to come. We are thrilled and very thankful to JCB and Lord Bamford for making this happen. It s also come at just the right time as it gives our children a safe outdoor space and enables us to meet the social distancing needs of the Covid-19 pandemic. JCB Chairman Lord Bamford: I m delighted to support the Glebe Academy with this initiative because it s so important that children have access to safe outdoor spaces.
Ben is Britain s leading triple jumper. He was crowned British Triple Jump Champion in 2019 with a lifetime best jump of 17.27 metres almost the length of a double decker bus. Ben added: We had a great morning with the Glebe Academy and hopefully we ve managed to pass on our love of sport and the fun you can have in keeping fit during the PE lesson. Both athletes are sponsored by JCB to help in their preparations for the summer games. Adam started canoeing at the age of ten on the River Trent in his home town of Stone and has been competing internationally for Great Britain and winning medals since the age of 14. He said: We had great fun taking the PE lesson with the pupils on the new JCB play area. Fitness and exercise has been an integral part of my life since childhood and I really appreciate the importance of children having somewhere safe to exercise and run around.
