On October 1^st, 60 people gathered in Wellington to officially launch the mission of Ignite Sport Trust. This recently established charitable trust is set to positively impact New Zealand young people, their families and the wider community. Ignite Sport is not a sports club as such, although it does use the medium of ‘sport and recreation' to and make a difference.

Tony Blair once said "Investment in sport is not just a sports policy. It's a health policy, an education policy, an anti-crime policy and an anti-drugs policy".  

To positively influence our sports culture is a great challenge for the church. In fact, one of our most obvious mission fields is on the sports field and in the gymnasium.  With sport being at the heart of New Zealand culture we have a wonderful opportunity to use the power of sport and recreation to positively impact, not only the lives of young people but also to effect change within society.

The vision of Ignite Sport is simple: 'to positively influence New Zealand sports culture and provide opportunity for all people to realise their God-given potential in both sport and life".

Ignite Sport began its work six years ago and was originally developed as a project of Youth For Christ. Since then Ignite Sport have run senior high school sports specific academies that have been designed to develop elite level 'sports mad' young people in all aspects of life, including physical, emotional, relational and spiritual. Over 350 senior High School young people have attended these 'live in' academy camps in both Wellington and Christchurch, with each covering a wide range of sporting disciplines and codes. Apart from the many learnt skills and drills, participants have interacted and journeyed with many successful and known athletes, coaches and mentors.

Ignite Sport moved out from YFC in 2006 and registered as its own Charitable Trust in June 2007. It seemed an appropriate time to move as YFC was itself going through a major national restructure. Ignite Sport had also developed to the point that YFC could send it out with its blessing to be yet another example of a mission initiative planted and now developing independently as an organisation.

The Ignite Sport academy programmes have provided a solid foundation for this growing New Zealand sports initiative. Ignite Sport is now developing other projects with the aim to further support, serve and develop young athletes and all those who are ‘sports mad'. These new projects include a variety of other sport, recreation and health focused initiatives. These will primarily be aimed at positively impacting a number of social concerns currently being exposed in the media. These include health related issues (obesity, asthma, diabetes) and other current social issues (fewer volunteer coaches, non-active young people, less participation in healthy recreation and a current trend that sees more and more young people give up sport and recreational activity on leaving school).

Sport in New Zealand all too often neglects issues of ‘balance' in a young athlete's life. We are good at coaching drills and skills but we must also train our athletes and all young people to consider issues of character and ‘heart'. This is where Ignite Sport can play a unique part in assisting athletes to think about all areas in their lives that potentially work against them achieving that optimum performance both on and off the sports field. This provides opportunity for Ignite Sport volunteers to encourage athletes to consider the place God has in their lives and for them to know and understand His ‘ultimate potential' for them as athletes and as people.

Kevin Goldsbury (Coordinator, Ignite Sport)

For further information about Ignite Sport, its mission and its projects please contact:

Kevin Goldsbury
Ph (04) 9202204
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
http://www.ignitesport.org.nz/

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