SPAR

The UK’s largest convenience store group, SPAR is passionate about athletics. As a Principle partner of European Athletics since 1996, SPAR became a sponsor of UKA in 2004, and we are proud to have recently renewed this partnership for another four years. Since 2004, SPARs objective has always been to encourage children to take up athletics and to support the athletics stars of the future.

To achieve this we set up the SPAR Sprints programme. Making use of our position as part of the local community, the programme aims to inspire children to take up sprinting and hurdling both in schools and athletics clubs. By increasing participation levels, we aim to identify the stars of the future – and to create the best environment for them to reach their full potential. One of the ways we do this is through the SPAR Stars initiative, which sees 24 budding athletes a year selected by UKA to be SPAR Stars. These athletes are given support and recognition through the SPAR partnership in the form of coaching and provision of sportswear.  

Previous SPAR stars include Chris Clarke, winner of the European Junior Championships U20 400m title in 2009 and World Youth Championships U18 champion in 2007, Annabelle Lewis, who won gold in the 4x100m in the European U23 Championships in 2009, and Martyn Rooney, silver medalist in the 4x400m relay in the World Championships in Berlin in 2009.

Through these methods we aim to support all local, regional and national teams and help build the profile of UK sprinting on the world stage. We have recently re-launched our new website which has information on our SPAR Sprints programme as well as athletics news. The website also has downloadable school sport certificates for you to edit and use at your sport events and an Athletics Convenient Guide which has information on each of the main events with keys facts, statistics and rules.

For more information please see: www.spar.co.uk/HealthandFitness/Athletics.aspx