Olympic champion Greg Rutherford has welcomed a campaign to help people keep fit at home during the coronavirus lockdown.
Rutherford, who won Olympic gold on Super Saturday at the London 2012 Games in the long jump, admits to being a lover of the great outdoors under normal circumstances, but believes anything that allows people to maintain social interaction is to be applauded.
He has partnered with grassroots funding body Sport England to encourage the nation to share videos and photos of their home workouts.
“You realise in these scenarios that the social interaction that you have with people – just going round people’s houses, seeing family members, is incredibly important for our mental health in particular, and taking that away from people is very hard for them to deal with,” he told the PA news agency.
“So anything that can promote a bit of social interaction and togetherness and a slightly family feel is hugely important at this time.
“Now you have a way everyone can get involved, push each other if you wish. It gives people a place to burn off that energy and blow off a bit of steam.”
As well as Rutherford, a number of athletes are involved in the Sports England campaign, including Olympic gymnastics gold medallist Max Whitlock.
“A lot of our lifestyle is geared around being outside, but fundamentally a change like that in the short term to save people’s lives in the long term is something we all need to get our heads around and realise that it’s very important to do,” Rutherford said.
PA
