Durham County Cricket Club batsmen Will Smith visited St Cuthbert’s Primary School in Chester-le-Street this afternoon (29 January) and officially opened their new gym.
St Cuthbert’s RC, situated less than a mile away from Emirates Riverside, have funded the gymnasium with a £10,000 Lottery Award and £5,000 raised by their parent teacher group.
Smith, who returned to Durham CCC at the end of the 2017 season after leaving Hampshire, took time out of his busy pre-season training schedule to speak to the children about his experiences in sport and offered advice on how the boys and girls can start to get involved in cricket.
“It’s brilliant to be given the chance to visit one of the local schools and have the chance to talk to the children about getting into sport and offer them some advice,” Smith said.
“The new facilities look fantastic and it’s great for the youngsters to have access to them every day of the week.
“It’s important for children to keep active and it’s nice to see St Cuthbert’s encouraging their pupils to stay fit and healthy.”
After speaking to the pupils, Smith then moved outside where the new top of the range facilities, equipment and exercise resources were unveiled to the public, parents, pupils and teachers.
The gym is suitable for all junior children and is aimed to keep the children active during their time at school. The gym adds a wider dimension to the activities that are available to the junior children and offers a series of machines designed to work all the main muscle groups.
The children will be encouraged to use the gym for fitness purposes during their break times, Lunch hour and as part of their timetabled PE lessons.
The event ended with a group photo of Will and the pupils in front of the gym and the Durham opener signing a number of autographs and posing for selfies.