IT’S quite a scary thought to know we are not talking Monopoly money when we quote figures of £91 million for hosting the recent inaugural European Championships, and the debate continues on whether or not this is a good investment.
While it will take some considerable time to deliver an evaluation on this, figures detailed for previous events have been extremely positive.
The 2014 Ryder Cup at Gleneagles was estimated to have brought a boost of about £106m boost to Scotland, with £22m of that focused in the host region of Perth and Kinross. In the main the debate is about whether large events leave a legacy for sport and whether they inspire the public to get more active.
I believe that the work that was carried out at Glasgow Green was nearer the mark to getting people active.
All sorts of organisations turned out during the 10 days and encouraged the general public to get involved and try out some new activities.
I was privileged to be involved with two of them, Scottish Sports Futures and The Weekday Wow Factor. Some of you may know I am chair of SSF and very proud of this fact. The good work that is carried out by the staff and their immense band of volunteers is amazing and is all done with passion and compassion, helping young people in the community.
The Weekday Wow Factor is the brainchild of an extremely dedicated individual, Pasna Sallis, an occupational therapist who established the social enterprise to make a positive impact on the health and wellbeing of older people.
Based in Glasgow, Weekday Wow Factor runs social and adventure activities for older people at risk of suffering from loneliness and social isolation. I met some really interesting people that day and all of them had recently been on an “adventure” organised by Pasna.
Zip sliding seemed to be a favourite as were their regular trips to Pinkston Watersports, where they enjoy a wide range of water sports activities.
Both are great organisations delivering at different ends of the age spectrum and making a difference to those who may feel a little lost and lonely. I take my hat off to both of them!
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