Celebrations for The Queen's Diamond Jubilee continue through sport
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UK Sport 07 June 2012
The Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Trust (QEDJT) has announced that the International Development through Sport (IDS) charity IDS in close partnership with the Youth Sport Trust (YST) will convene and lead delivery of the Young Diamonds project, one of the “six themes for six decades” that will represent and celebrate the Queen’s sixty-year reign.
Young Diamonds – one of six themes chosen to reflect the values of Her Majesty The Queen - are young people who are using sport to improve their lives and the lives of their communities across the Commonwealth with a strong focus on the values of leadership, dedication, duty and compassion. It is under the Young Diamonds banner that the QEDJT, and those of the other five themes, will extend Her Majesty’s legacy through charitable work.
Former Prime Minister of the UK, Sir John Major, Chairman of QEDJT board of Trustees introduced Young Diamonds at the official press conference with the words of a young sports leader from Botswana. “As a young man in Botswana put it: ‘Sport has the power to change almost everything, it speaks a universal language,’ I agree with that, and throughout our communities we wish to promote the culture of teams not gangs,” said Sir John Major.
Sport has been chosen because of the power and appeal it has to inspire and empower young people and the partnership between IDS and QEDJT is a partnership which “meets the Trust’s objectives of making a real and lasting difference,” said Debbie Lye, Chief Executive of IDS. It is the overarching vision shared between QEDJT, IDS and YST that will enable young people across the Commonwealth to access life changing opportunities and the chance to contribute to The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Legacy.
IDS has international partners in over 30 Commonwealth countries with small and local organisations, based at the heart of communities responding to local needs.
Sport has long been endorsed by The Queen herself, who in her 2010 Christmas speech, endorsed it as “one of the most powerful ways” to build communities and harmony.
“These kinds of activities are common throughout the world and play a part in providing a different perspective on life. Apart from developing physical fitness, sport and games can also teach vital social skills,” she continued.
Seventeen year old Shaikh Salman, a peer leader in the NGO Magic Bus, India, has been involved in sport and development programmes for three years. Through a sports mentoring programme, he has developed leadership skills and helped others use sport to create positive change in his community. “Sport has changed me. Now I am more confident and acting as leader. In the community, nowadays there is a shift in people’s attitudes towards gender because of sport and people allow girls to participate in sports session.”
Lesego Mogorosi, a young sports leader from Botswana, expressed excitement at the new partnership by saying, “It is a great honour, as it will not only make me grow, but also provide a platform of learning different things from other Commonwealth counterparts of different perspectives, backgrounds, countries and organisations, who will also be under the banner of the Queens’ Diamond Jubilee.”
Debbie Lye adds, “To be selected as a charity to contribute to The Queen’s Jubilee Legacy brings incredible recognition for the power and impact sport can have in this special year. IDS has used sport to enrich the lives of many thousands of young people and we look forward to extending these opportunities more widely across the Commonwealth.”
Baroness Sue Campbell, Chair of the Youth Sport Trust, added: “At the Youth Sport Trust, we know how beneficial working in partnership can be to increase the sporting opportunities that are available to young people. Through our extensive experience in school sport, we hope to develop even greater opportunities for young people across the Commonwealth to experience the power that sport has to change lives.”
For more information about IDS, visit www.uksport.gov.uk/pages/ids
For more information on the Youth Sport Trust, visit www.youthsporttrust.org
For more information about QEDJT, visit www.jubileetribute.org
