The
Cardiomyopathy
Association

If you’ve been inspired to take up an Olympic sport, trying the Gold Challenge for the CMA could give you the ideal start.

The Gold Challenge is an independent initiative to raise money for charity and motivate more than 100,000 people to join in London 2012’s legacy.

Challengers can pick between five and 30 sports to try – including everything from fencing and water polo to badminton and wheelchair basketball – at a centre near home.  You must pledge to raise £50 for charity from each of the events you enter.

Sarah Payle (left) and Mike Hurle have signed up for the CMA. They tried BMXing first but are also taking part in football, badminton, trampolining, wheelchair basketball and horse riding

You can try completely new sports as an individual or as a team with a group of friends, family or colleagues. You can also take part as a family. The challenge is available for all ages and abilities. So whatever your sporting interest, you can design your own challenge and also improve your fitness.

The 30 sports you can try your hand at include: archery, athletics (distance, field and track), badminton, basketball, boxing, canoe/kayak, cycling, equestrian, fencing, football, gymnastics, handball, hockey, judo, modern pentathlon, rowing, sailing, shooting, swimming, table tennis, taekwondo, tennis, triathlon, volleyball, water polo, weightlifting and wrestling.

Families and those aged seven to 15 can sign up for free and choose their activities from a range of family friendly options.  Families must have at least one adult (who can also be a carer or youth leader) over 16 and at least one child between the ages of seven and 15.

The challenges include the 5 Sport Challenge where families and groups of young people take on 5 Olympic and paralymic sports, the family activity challenge and the 2012km challenge where entrants must cover 2012kms individually or collectively in one or more of the Olympic and paralympic sports.

The initiative has joined forces with the Olympic sports’ various national governing bodies in partnership with the British Olympic Association, Team GB, Sport England and the British Paralympics.

A spokesman for Sport England said: “We are creating sporting opportunities and challenges that give everyone the chance to become part of the mass participation legacy of London 2012 and in doing so raise millions of pounds for charity.”

For more details about the Gold Challenge, click here. See the video here.

If you are interested in taking part in the challenge for the CMA, email Daniel Jackson or call the CMA office on 01494 791224.