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Tata Steel Commissions Research that Reveals Kids’ Lack of Fitness
05/05/2011 - Research released to launch the Tata Kids of Steel triathlon series has revealed that more children prefer sedentary activities over physical activity. The survey of 1500 British 6- to 15-year-olds was commissioned by Tata Steel in partnership with British Triathlon.
Research released to launch the Tata Kids of Steel triathlon series has revealed a generation of children who risk eschewing physical activity in favor of watching TV, playing video games, and chatting on social networks.
The survey of 1500 British 6- to 15-year-olds, commissioned by Tata Steel in partnership with British Triathlon, revealed that more than twice as many youngsters spend their free time watching TV (79%) as they do playing sport (34%). Other less-active activities preferred to sport include surfing the internet (56%), chatting on social networks (45%), and playing video games (43%).
Only 34% of the youngsters had swum a length of a pool and just 46% had ridden their bikes in the last week. In contrast, nearly three-quarters (73%) had found the time to play a video game in the last seven days. In addition, 15% of the kids confessed to not being able to swim, nearly a quarter (22%) claimed they’d never run a distance of 400 m, and 1 in 10 said they couldn’t ride a bike.
The research findings help to reinforce Tata Steel’s commitment to giving more than 50,000 8- to 13-year-olds the chance to discover triathlon by 2012. Since launching in 2007, Tata Kids of Steel has created opportunities for nearly 25,000 children to participate in free and fully equipped mini-triathlons geared toward having fun and taking part, regardless of ability.
Karl Köhler, CEO of Tata Steel in Europe, said: “This research has highlighted a number of important issues which we hope Tata Kids of Steel will help to address. As the Corporate Partner of British Triathlon, we’re committed to reviving an interest in playing sport within local communities, so to be giving 14,000 children a first-hand experience of how accessible and fun triathlon can be is a very exciting prospect.”
This summer, Tata Kids of Steel will visit 18 locations nationwide and give more kids the chance to sample triathlon than in previous years, according to Tata Steel.
The European operations of Tata Steel (formerly known as Corus) comprise Europe's second-largest steel producer. With main steelmaking operations in the UK and the Netherlands, the company supplies steel and related services to the construction, automotive, packaging, material handling, and other demanding markets worldwide. Tata Steel is one of the world’s top 10 steel producers. The combined group has an aggregate crude steel capacity of more than 28 million tonnes and approximately 80,000 employees across four continents.
British Triathlon is the current Sport Governing Body of the Year and the National Governing Body for Triathlon, Duathlon, and Aquathlon in Great Britain, responsible for raising profile and delivering elite performance of the sport. Tata Steel is the Corporate Partner of British Triathlon.
