With the over-indulgence of Christmas a painful reality, Birmingham's NIA and ICC have teamed up to launch a fitness challenge for the region's professionals. Taking place on 22 February 2012, the Birmingham Bolt will see local businesses compete in a series of sporting challenges to get fit and help raise money for a great cause.Businesses from across the West Midlands are invited to enter teams of 10 people and compete in a series of events; including jumping, sprinting, long distance running, throwing and relays. There will also be a series of novelty rounds to ensure that less-sporty professionals can take part. The event will see a host of the region's organisations go head-to-head in a day of athletic challenges that will take place on the NIA's professional track, which has been used by some of the world's best athletes; from the Aviva Grand Prix Athletics to the Trampoline and Tumbling World Championships.
Guy Dunstan, General Manager of the NIA and its sister venue the LG Arena, said: "The NIA and ICC sit at the heart of the city, surrounded by a wealth of successful businesses so it made sense for us to partner with each other to host an event like this. The idea behind the Birmingham Bolt is to encourage businesses to put on their trainers and showcase their athletic (or not so athletic) ability for a day of fun and fundraising. As well as being a great method of team bonding, the teams will help us raise money for a very important cause. Birmingham Civic Society is all about nurturing the future professionals of the city and helping them shape their own lives and careers, and the money that we raise will help to support the Next Generation Awards and keep the programme going."
The Birmingham Bolt will also include networking after the games; giving people the chance to meet fellow professionals from across the region. I will be taking part, along with the NEC Group CEO, Paul Thandi, and we're both looking forward to meeting everyone taking part".
It costs £250 to enter a team of 10 into the Birmingham Bolt and the money will go towards the Birmingham Civic Society's Next Generation Awards, which encourages 11-14 year olds to consider what kind of city they would like to be living in, the issues that are important to them and how life in the city might be improved.
The day will end with a closing ceremony and be followed by a networking and drinks reception in the venue's Olympian Suite, where the team with the most points after the competition and the team who have raised the most amount of money for charity will be awarded the use of one of the NIA's prestigious hospitality boxes for an event of their choice (subject to availability).
To find out more about the Birmingham Bolt and to register your team, visit www.birminghambolt.com.
