London is one of the sporting capitals of the world, from the grandeur of the 2012 Olympics and the Wembley arches, all the way down to basketball in community halls and local park runs, sport is a key part of our culture.
Over the next four days, this series will explore the barriers to participation that people face within the ELL boroughs; looking closely at success stories which highlight individuals that have overcome the obstacles into sport, broken the stereotypes and bested the stigmas and statistics that push people away from participation.
Barriers such as disability, age, gender, poverty, accessibility, culture – and now the Coronavirus – all impact people’s desire and ability to become involved in sports.
With the nation under lockdown, facilities have closed and sport participation has never been more challenging. In addition, nearly 200 sport facilities being permanently closed down within our boroughs since 2004, however, we were surprised to find that on average sport participation levels have increased. Using SportEngland data, the upcoming series will explore sport participation levels, analysing factors which affect participation and following the stories behind the numbers.
We want to know #whatsstoppingyou tweet us @EastLondonLine using the hashtag and let us know what barriers you face to participating in the sport you love and how you are keeping active during coronavirus
Day One: What Are The Issues?
- Coronavirus has led to innovation in sports participation
- MAP: Access to fitness — how does your borough compare?
- OPINION: On cycling (or not) during coronavirus
Day Two: Barriers To Participation – Gender
- You tell ELL: We need more time to exercise
- And yet she persevered: women from ELL boroughs on how they stay active
Day Three: Barriers To Participation – Ethnicity
Day Four: Get Involved
- ELL Athlete Profile – Phillips Idowu
- MAP: ELL Parkruns reviewed and mapped
- QUIZ! Have you got what it takes to win gold in our Olympics quiz?
This series was written by Charles Woodham, Celine Wadhera, Sean Russell, and Alex Mistlin
