SAWYERS NAMED RIGHT TO PLAY ATHLETE AMBASSADOR

Olympic long jump finalist Jazmin Sawyers (Lance Brauman) has become an Athlete Ambassador for Right To Play, the international charity which uses sport and play to improve the lives of vulnerable children in some of the world’s poorest communities.

Sawyers is an advocate of women’s rights and is lending her voice to raise awareness of the plight of vulnerable girls around the world. She teamed up with Tokio Myers, winner of Britain’s Got Talent last year, to record the official anthem of Team England for the Commonwealth Games – a stirring rendition of the classic Jerusalem.

Having won long jump silver at Glasgow 2014, Sawyers will begin her campaign on the Gold Coast tomorrow, and said: “Sport continues to have a huge impact on my life and I feel passionately about the power of sport and play to change lives.

“Personal empowerment, equality, social cohesion and leadership are just a few of the vital benefits sport and play can bring to society. Every child deserves the chance to succeed and I believe sport is an ever more crucial vehicle of change in a distracted world. I’m very excited to be working with Right To Play and look forward to helping them continue their great work.”

Sawyers will be leading Right To Play’s Girls On Track campaign being delivered in partnership with British Athletics. The campaign is focused on raising awareness and vital funds to help more girls access education.

Right To Play currently reaches almost two million children across Africa, Asia and the Middle East, of which 47 per-cent are girls. To find out more about the Girls On Track campaign and how you can get involved, visit www.righttoplay.org.uk

Partnerships Executive at Right To Play, Jake Sawer, said: “I’m thrilled to welcome Jazmin as our latest Athlete Ambassador. Jazmin understands the positive impact sport and play can have on young lives having experienced it herself and will be a great advocate of our work.

“We are very excited that Jazmin is supporting our Girls On Track campaign and look forward to working with her on this and several other projects we have coming up. Firstly though we wish Jazmin the very best for the Commonwealth Games this month.”