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GB ATHLETES HELP INSPIRE NEW YEAR HEALTH KICK

3rd January 2014

The National Lottery releases infograph to highlight the amazing achievements of GB’s funded athletes

Friday January 3, 2014: With people across the nation vowing to keep fit as part of their New Year’s resolutions, The National Lottery has released a fitness inspired infograph to celebrate Day 3 of its ‘Just Imagine’ campaign.

Just Imagine is The National Lottery’s new nationwide campaign, launched January 1, to raise awareness of the massive impact that £31 billion in project funding has had across the UK since the first National Lottery draw 20 years ago this year.

The infograph image focuses on a series of incredible facts that show the extreme lengths that GB’s elite level, Lottery-funded athletes go to in order to maintain their peak physical condition in training and competitions. The picture has been created to highlight how many of the UK’s favourite sports men and women can focus 100% of their time and energy on training thanks to National Lottery funding.

Key statistics reveal that an average elite male canoeist, such as Olympic Champion Ed McKeever, lifts 1,200 tonnes a month during their strict gym workouts, the equivalent of lifting six blue whales.

In the pool, elite swimmers, such as European and Commonwealth Champion Francesca Halsall, swim an average of 1,864 miles a year, the equivalent of swimming further than the distance from Beijing to London over four years.

And for anybody that has overindulged during the festive period, take heart in the knowledge that the average athlete consumes over 1.1 million calories per year, which is the equivalent of eating three Christmas dinners each day!

To emphasise the impact of Lottery-funding in sport in the UK, the infographic reveals that 62 of Team GB’s 65 medals the London 2012 Olympic Games were won by Lottery-funded athletes. While of the 120 medals won by ParalympicsGB at the London 2012 Paralympic Games, 113 were won by Lottery-funded athletes. Overall, since Lottery-funding came in to play in 1997, GB’s athletes have won a staggering 623 Olympic and Paralympic medals.

To enable people to learn more about National Lottery funded projects in their area, the National Lottery has launched a ‘Good Cause Finder’. To see projects in your area, or to find out more about Just Imagine January, visit www.lotterygoodcauses.org.uk

-ENDS-

Notes to editors

Notes to Editors

For press enquiries relating to the Just Imagine campaign:
Alex Bake alex.bake@fasttrackagency.com 07552 289 290
Jim Williams jim.williams@fasttrackagency.com 07814 068 349

For press enquiries relating to the National Lottery:
Michael Thompson, Head of Media at the National Lottery Promotions Unit, on 07734 295745.
Weblinks

Website: www.lotterygoodcauses.org.uk
Twitter: @lottogoodcauses #JustImagine
Facebook: www.facebook.com/LotteryGoodCauses
About the National Lottery Promotions Unit
The National Lottery Promotions Unit (NLPU) is responsible for raising awareness of Lottery funding to Good Causes. Amongst other initiatives, NLPU manages the National Lottery Awards.
National Lottery funding is awarded through 12 distributing bodies: Big Lottery Fund, UK Sport, Sport England, Sport Wales, Sport NI, Sport Scotland, Heritage Lottery Fund, Arts Council England, Arts Council Wales, Arts Council NI, Creative Scotland and the British Film Institute.
Over £31 billion has been awarded to good cause projects across the UK since the launch of the National Lottery back in 1994. Currently, £33 million of good cause funding is raised every week by National Lottery players.