Youngsters compete to book their place in the Norfolk School Games
Hundreds of sporting youngsters in Norwich yesterday bid to win their school a place in the Norfolk School Games.
The sports hall athletics competition, which took place at the University of East Anglia-based Sportspark, brought together 280 year five and six pupils.
Jon Osborne, partnership development manager for the Norwich School Sports Partnership, which organised the event, said it had been a huge success with nine schools from across the city getting involved.
He said: 'The atmosphere was absolutely electric. It's the noisiest competition we've ever had. We had to move it to the UEA because interest from schools was so great.'
Events included javelin, standing long jump, standing triple jump, standing vertical jump, a variety of track events, and pot bounce – an agility test where competitors have to jump from side to side over a low hurdle as quickly as possible.
The competition is part of the wider School Games contests, which are aiming to increase youngsters' interest in sport as part of the legacy of the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Mr Osborne said: 'The event is all about cheering on your team mates. There are no individual winners – it's a team competition with an overall score for your school.
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'Even if you're the worst person in the team, you are still scoring points which could be the difference between your school coming in first or second place.'
The winning team, from St Thomas More Junior School, on Jessopp Road, will go on to compete at the Norfolk School Games which are due to take place this summer.
The other teams taking part yesterday were from: Avenue Junior School, Cringleford Primary, Eaton Primary, Henderson Green Primary, Wensum Junior, Mulbarton Junior, Earlham Junior, and Little Melton Primary.
The Norfolk School Games were officially launched in the county earlier this month.
It will see more than 1,500 children aged seven to 15 take part in a range of sports over the next few months with the final set to take place on June 18 and 19. photo: BILL SMITH
