UK School Games
Encyclopedia
The UK School Games was an annual sporting competition for elite school-age athletes in the United Kingdom
held between 2006 and 2011.
The event was based on an Olympic Games
model, with multiple sports events held across an intensive four-day period. The Games were organised by the Youth Sport Trust
, sponsored by Sainsburys, and from 2008 received funding from Legacy Trust UK
, a charitable trust set up to ensure that the 2012 Summer Olympics generate a lasting legacy across the UK.
In 2011, 1600 elite school-aged athletes participated in the event across 12 sports: Athletics, Badminton
, Cycling
, Fencing
, Gymnastics
, Hockey
, Judo
, Rugby Sevens
, Swimming
, Table Tennis
, Volleyball
and Wheelchair Basketball
.
The number of sports involved in the games will also increase to around 30.
. The four-day national event will take place across a range of sporting venues around London, with the final day of action set to take place in the Olympic Park in Stratford using some key Olympic 2012 venues (including the main stadium).
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
held between 2006 and 2011.
The event was based on an Olympic Games
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
model, with multiple sports events held across an intensive four-day period. The Games were organised by the Youth Sport Trust
Youth Sport Trust
The Youth Sport Trust is a British charitable trust which aims to support the education and development of young people through physical education....
, sponsored by Sainsburys, and from 2008 received funding from Legacy Trust UK
Legacy Trust UK
Legacy Trust UK is a charitable trust in the United Kingdom, established in 2007 to support a range of cultural and sporting activities in connection with the 2012 Summer Olympics and 2012 Summer Paralympics in London, with the aim of creating a lasting cultural and sporting legacy from the Games...
, a charitable trust set up to ensure that the 2012 Summer Olympics generate a lasting legacy across the UK.
In 2011, 1600 elite school-aged athletes participated in the event across 12 sports: Athletics, Badminton
Badminton
Badminton is a racquet sport played by either two opposing players or two opposing pairs , who take positions on opposite halves of a rectangular court that is divided by a net. Players score points by striking a shuttlecock with their racquet so that it passes over the net and lands in their...
, Cycling
Cycling
Cycling, also called bicycling or biking, is the use of bicycles for transport, recreation, or for sport. Persons engaged in cycling are cyclists or bicyclists...
, Fencing
Fencing
Fencing, which is also known as modern fencing to distinguish it from historical fencing, is a family of combat sports using bladed weapons.Fencing is one of four sports which have been featured at every one of the modern Olympic Games...
, Gymnastics
Gymnastics
Gymnastics is a sport involving performance of exercises requiring physical strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, and balance. Internationally, all of the gymnastic sports are governed by the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique with each country having its own national governing body...
, Hockey
Hockey
Hockey is a family of sports in which two teams play against each other by trying to maneuver a ball or a puck into the opponent's goal using a hockey stick.-Etymology:...
, Judo
Judo
is a modern martial art and combat sport created in Japan in 1882 by Jigoro Kano. Its most prominent feature is its competitive element, where the object is to either throw or takedown one's opponent to the ground, immobilize or otherwise subdue one's opponent with a grappling maneuver, or force an...
, Rugby Sevens
Rugby sevens
Rugby sevens, also known as seven-a-side or VIIs, is a variant of rugby union in which teams are made up of seven players, instead of the usual 15, with shorter matches. Rugby sevens is administered by the International Rugby Board , the body responsible for rugby union worldwide...
, Swimming
Swimming (sport)
Swimming is a sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation .-History: Competitive swimming in Europe began around 1800 BCE, mostly in the form of the freestyle. In 1873 Steve Bowyer introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native...
, Table Tennis
Table tennis
Table tennis, also known as ping-pong, is a sport in which two or four players hit a lightweight, hollow ball back and forth using table tennis rackets. The game takes place on a hard table divided by a net...
, Volleyball
Volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
and Wheelchair Basketball
Wheelchair basketball
Wheelchair basketball is basketball played by people in wheelchairs and is considered one of the major disabled sports practiced. The International Wheelchair Basketball Federation is the governing body for this sport. It is recognized by the International Paralympic Committee as the sole...
.
UK School Games
- 2006 — GlasgowGlasgowGlasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
- 2007 — CoventryCoventryCoventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city in the English Midlands, after Birmingham, with a population of 300,848, although...
- 2008 — BristolBristolBristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
and Bath - 2009 — WalesWalesWales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
(CardiffCardiffCardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
, NewportNewportNewport is a city and unitary authority area in Wales. Standing on the banks of the River Usk, it is located about east of Cardiff and is the largest urban area within the historic county boundaries of Monmouthshire and the preserved county of Gwent...
and SwanseaSwanseaSwansea is a coastal city and county in Wales. Swansea is in the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan. Situated on the sandy South West Wales coast, the county area includes the Gower Peninsula and the Lliw uplands...
) - 2010 — North East EnglandNorth East EnglandNorth East England is one of the nine official regions of England. It covers Northumberland, County Durham, Tyne and Wear, and Teesside . The only cities in the region are Durham, Newcastle upon Tyne and Sunderland...
(NewcastleNewcastle upon TyneNewcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...
, GatesheadGatesheadGateshead is a town in Tyne and Wear, England and is the main settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead. Historically a part of County Durham, it lies on the southern bank of the River Tyne opposite Newcastle upon Tyne and together they form the urban core of Tyneside...
and SunderlandCity of SunderlandThe City of Sunderland is a local government district of Tyne and Wear, in North East England, with the status of a city and metropolitan borough...
) - 2011 — SheffieldSheffieldSheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
Name Change
Following the 2011 UK School Games, the event changed its name to the School Games.Format Change
The structure of the event also changed from previous years. The UK School Games was an annual event for the most talented school-age athletes, whereas the new School Games is a year round, inclusive sports competition that’s designed to get young people of all ages and abilities enjoying the benefits of competitive sport. There is a new pyramid structure in place and school-aged pupils will compete at four levels:- Level 1 - Intra-school competition
- Level 2 - Local inter-school competition
- Level 3 - Annual area school games festival
- Level 4 - National multi-sport event
The number of sports involved in the games will also increase to around 30.
2012 School Games
The next School Games will start in September 2011 and culminate in the national event being held in May 2012 in LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. The four-day national event will take place across a range of sporting venues around London, with the final day of action set to take place in the Olympic Park in Stratford using some key Olympic 2012 venues (including the main stadium).
See also
- 2012 Summer Olympics2012 Summer OlympicsThe 2012 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the "London 2012 Olympic Games", are scheduled to take place in London, England, United Kingdom from 27 July to 12 August 2012...
- 2012 Paralympic Games
- Youth Olympic GamesYouth Olympic GamesThe Youth Olympic Games is an international multi-sport event first held in Singapore from August 14 to August 26, 2010. The games are held every four years in staggered summer and winter events consistent with the current Olympic Games format. The age limitation of the athletes is between 14 to 18...
- Commonwealth Youth GamesCommonwealth Youth GamesThe Commonwealth Youth Games are a small-scale version of the Commonwealth Games, designed for the youth of the 71 Commonwealth countries.-History:...