In the FC Eindhoven stadium on Wednesday afternoon, there will not only be football but also judo, frisbee and baseball. It was the last day of the ASML Summer Games, where children can try various sports for weeks. “There are children who don’t go on holiday.”
Most children who have tried different sports in the past six weeks have a favourite sport. Freerunning is popular among many children. “I liked freerunning so much that I tried it several times,” says one child. “You can run and jump and do a lot of stunts.” There is guidance for every sport. “Freerunning was a lot of fun. You get good explanations about how to do it,” says a young girl.
“There are 24 sports and 34 clubs participating. The volunteers are all very enthusiastic about showing children their sport,” says Michel Reinders, director of BrabantSport. ASML organised the Games together with BrabantSport. “Children may only know a few sports, not their talents. I hope that many children will now discover a sport that suits them and that they want to continue with.”
ASML
Some 1,200 children have tried out various sports in recent weeks. They are mostly children from families that are not well off at home. Chip machine manufacturer ASML organised the event. “Sports are not a given for all children,” says Marjolein de Hooge, Head of Social Involvement at the tech company. “There are children who do not go on holiday for six weeks. They are alone at home with a lot of screen time. We think it is important that children can do sports every day and try something new together with other children.” It is not the first time that the company has committed itself to the community.
According to De Hooge, cooperation in the region is important. “Then we can grow ourselves, but we also want children to be able to grow in their development.” It does not necessarily stop after these six weeks full of sports. “We hope that the children can continue to practice that sport after these six weeks if they have found a sport. Even if there are no resources, we will ensure it is still possible.”
This can be done, for example, through the Youth Fund for Sports and Culture. “Children and their parents receive information about the clubs they are interested in,” Reinders explains. “The Youth Fund can help make it financially possible to join them. For example, by paying membership fees or supplies needed for the sport.”
Judo
Studio040 spoke to children who had just finished judo. “Fun, but tough. Judo was intense,” says one girl. “You get pulled and pushed a lot. And it can hurt because you scrape yourself on the mat. But it was fun.” And that sound is heard more often. “My fingers hurt a bit now, but I enjoyed it. You can pull someone, you can hold someone in a chokehold, all sorts of things,” he thinks. But the best thing last summer for him was also freerunning. “I think I’ll continue with that.”
Source: Studio 040
For Eindhoven News: Beena Arunraj
