A walking football tournament will be coming to Bolton this summer to help show “sport should be for everyone”.
The event will feature two competitions, a competitive tournament and a community cup, which will aim to raise funds for charity and will be held across Bolton Arena and Leverhulme Park.
This will build on the many decades of fundraising efforts by Ken Heathcote, who will turn 91 on the day of the event on Saturday, July 18.
Known as the “Bolton’s forefather of fitness”, Ken will also be aiming to swim 91 lengths at the pool at Nuffield Health to help raise further funds.
One of the competitions has been named the Brenda Heathcote Foundation Community Cup, in honour of Ken’s late wife who was a key part of many charitable works.
Ken said: “Brenda always believed that sport should be for everyone, regardless of age, ability or background.
“The generosity of our corporate sponsors means that families and community groups can take part completely free of charge, because a business has stepped up to make it happen.
“That’s what this event is all about, Bolton people looking out for each other.”
The tournament was organised in collaboration with Bolton Council’s Let’s Keep Bolton Moving initiative with support from Bolton Wanderers in the Community.
The tournament will feature two competitions kicking off from 9am on July 18.
The competitive tournament will be hosted at Bolton Arena and invites established walking football teams to compete for the Bolton Walking Football Tournament Cup.
Teams of five can enter for £500, with proceeds supporting charities.
Every participant will receive a medal to mark the occasion, with the winning team lifting a trophy in recognition of their achievement.
The second competition, The Brenda Heathcote Foundation Community Cup will take place at Leverhulme Park.
The cup is designed for inclusive teams composed of families, community groups, friends, and colleagues.
There is no cost for successful applicants, but teams must ideally include a mix of ages and genders and should not already play together in regular walking football leagues.
As with the Competitive Tournament, every participant will receive a medal, and the winning team will be presented with a trophy to commemorate their victory.
Registration is limited to 32 teams for both tournaments.
Both competitions will be kicking off from 9am on Saturday, July 18.
Anyone interested in more details about registration can visit https://letskeepboltonmoving.co.uk/walking-football/
Source: https://www.theboltonnews.co.uk/news/26031293.walking-football-tournament-come-bolton-summer/
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Author: The Walking Football
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