A group of students from Stewards School in Harlow have proved themselves as thrill-seekers when they tackled the rapids at Lee Valley White Water Centre. The fourteen pupils, who are all currently studying PE, were taken along the same competition-standard course that will be faced by world-class experts during the London Olympics in 2012. The opportunity was part of Lee Valley Park Authority’s School Festival, which has given school students from surrounding areas the chance to enjoy the facilities at the centre before the games begin.
Gareth Hughes, the school’s assistant head of PE, who also joined the pupils in the rafts, said
“It was a thoroughly enjoyable and completely exhilarating experience for all our students.
“They got to tackle the same course that will be used in next year’s Olympic Games and it’s certainly not something that any of them will forget in a hurry!”
Chair of the London 2012 Organising committee (LOCOG), Seb Coe, added, “Lee Valley White Water Centre Schools Festival has been a fantastic way to bring the Olympic Games close to the young people of Harlow. They’ve experienced something truly unique at a world-class London 2012 venue and they can now say ‘I’ve raced the same course as the Olympians’.”
The centre is open in the run-up to the Games to members of the public, and will be opened again after the conclusion to the Olympics.