VOA Draws Inspiration From #StayStrong

The Fiji Association of Sports and National Olympic Committee's (FASANOC),Voices of the Athletes (VOA)Programme will draw inspiration from the International Olympic Committee's (IOC) #StayStrong campaign for this year’s Olympic Day Run which was scheduled for 23rd June, 2020.

Despite the cancellation of the Olympic Day Runwhich is usually held in the month of June, due to COVID-19, FASANOC through its VOA programme, hopes to come up with ideas to continue to share the Olympic Values of Excellence, Respect and Friendship.

VOA Coordinator, Jeegar Bhasvar said because of the unprecedented challenge the country is going through, the challenge is now on them to get creative and find ways to continue to spread these values.

"We are encouraging our members who have not only represented the country in sports but also are role models in their communities, to come up with ideas on how we can continue to spread these values and which platform would be the best," he said.

"Social media like Facebook and Instagram is being used by a lot of athletes to share tips on healthy living and at home work-outs so we are looking at something similar."

An IOC media release said it was using the #StayStrong campaign as an inspiration to help the world get through the COVID-19 pandemic together."During this time, we have been inspired by Olympians around the globe with their energy and positivity.

"They have formed the basis of the IOC’s #StayStrong campaign that has now reached 200 million with daily work-outs, tips for staying healthy in body and mind during the lock down.

The IOC hopes to take this #StayStrong campaign to the next level during the month of June and through to Olympic Day.

"And we would like to do this with you! This campaign puts athletes at the heart of the Olympic community and we want to build on this to inspire more people to Stay Strong, Stay Active, and Stay Healthy."

On the 23rd of June, the IOC aims to create the world’s largest 24 hour digital-first Olympic workout.

The IOC's digital team has worked on a plan that will feature athlete-led live workouts and discussions as well as athlete generated social content with the support of all its partners including National Olympic Committee's (NOC) and International Federations (IF).

The IOC believes this campaign can bring an additional dimension to the activities that NOC's and IF's might have already planned.

FASANOC is looking forward to taking part in the IOC’s #StayStrong campaign and sees this as an excellent opportunity for its VOA and Athletes Commission programs to collaborate on engaging the community in a virtual sporting experience!

"This will be a first for Fiji and we are looking forward to the creativity of our members," said Jeegar.

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