Each Saturday hundreds of children are filling the Gozo Sports Complex in Victoria, the grounds of the Secondary school, as well as other complexes across Gozo, as part of the On the Move programme, with 24 weeks of sport activities.
The On the Move programme is organised by SportMalta in collaboration with the Gozo Sports Board, and the winter programme has attracted a record number of 400 children, playing and practicing different sports events..
The Minister for Gozo Anton Refalo, together with the CEO of SportMalta Mark Cutajar, visited the Gozo Sports Complex and met with various participants.
The Minister reiterated the importance of sport and physical activity to improve the quality of life. He also mentioned the recent announcement that a a swimming pool will be built in Gozo. The facility will not only be used by athletes, but will also include a therapeutic pool for rehabilitation purposes, he explained.
Dr Refalo said that the Ministry for Gozo is once again subsidising the cost of the On the Move Gozo programme, as well as offering free transportation from any village.
This year there are also organised activities on Fridays where pre-kinder and kinder children have specific sessions for themselves, and fitness sessions for adults, including for over 60s.
There are several new disciplines for this year’s programme and those that are attracting the most interest are badminton, horse riding, cycling, chess, rugby, yoga, athletics, tennis, squash, dance, martial arts and gymnastics.
Minister Refalo thanked the Gozo Sports Board, as well as the teachers and coaches who are all qualified and employees of SportMalta. Dr Refalo also showed his appreciation for the full cooperation of SportMalta.
Photograph: MGOZ/George Scerri