Empowering youth through sport
ILLOVO – Participation in this year’s JP Morgan Corporate Challenge on 7 April at the Wanderers Club will not merely be a run, walk or jog for corporate camaraderie - it will also serve a deeper purpose by empowering the youth to transform their local communities through sport.
Participants will trade corporate clothing for running gear for a good cause as JP Morgan will make a donation in celebration of the Corporate Challenge to the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation.
This will be the third consecutive year that the foundation has benefitted from the event. This year, the donation will be ear-marked for the Youth Empowerment through Sport (Yes) programme which supports youth leaders from Sport for Social Change (SSC) organisations.
The Yes programme provides these youth leaders between the ages of 18 and 24 with accredited and non-accredited training that gives them potential access to further employment and education.
Chairman of the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation South Africa, Morné du Plessis, said the Yes programme provides graduates with opportunities and hope through sport.
“Youth empowerment is becoming an essential part of South Africa’s future growth, with many corporate social investment initiatives, as well as our government, investing in youth programmes throughout South Africa,” said Du Plessis,
“The programme aims to train, empower and ultimately provide opportunities for inspiring young community leaders from around the country.” It covers, among others, topics such as leadership, sports event management, project management, information technology training, mentorship, and psychology assessments.
Du Plessis said the donation will allow the young leaders who graduate from the programme to reinvest their knowledge when they return home.
“Many of these young leaders are from Laureus-supported projects and have come full circle as such, having been project participants themselves, and are now mentors giving back to their respective communities,” Du Plessis continued.
“Through the generous support of the JP Morgan Corporate Challenge, we will be able to invest even more into these young leaders of tomorrow!”
The challenge has been highly successful since its 2004 debut. A capacity crowd of more than 13 000 entrants from 227 companies will be at the Wanderers Club on 7 April.
Details: www.jpmorganchasecc.com
