THE FIRST rule of sport is that not everyone can come first – but at the opening ceremony of the Saddleworth Village Olympics, every child was as good as gold.
More than a thousand children from seven village teams lined up at Saddleworth School on Saturday, September 5 for the ceremony, hosted by long-time chairman Stephen Hewitt.
They would shortly dive head first – not literally – into their first long jumping event, before looking ahead to a day full of tug of war and athletics.
The rest of the competition will continue across various schools in Saddleworth until September 20, where a closing ceremony will be hosted at the Diggle establishment it was opened at.
And if the noise generated by chants of ‘Uppermill,’ ‘Delph and Denshaw’ – to the tune of Seven Nation Army (add lots of ‘els’ to make it fit) and ‘LGFG’ for Lydgate, Grasscroft, Friezland and Grotton – is anything to go by, spirit is overflowing.
“This is all about getting involved in sports and staying active,” Stephen told Saddleworth Independent. “It’s not about winning. If you win, that’s great, but if you don’t, have fun.
“They won’t realise at this age, but when they’re playing football and rugby, they’re learning teamwork skills which will help them later on in life.
“I think it’s important to get them involved in sports so they can stay active, make friends, and learn lots of new skills.”
Now on its 41st year, this will be Stephen’s final Village Olympics as chairman, before he is taken over by ex-PE teacher Scott Chapman.
But speaking to the Saddleworth Independent in June, Stephen said stepping back from the role won’t mean leaving behind the competition altogether.
“It’s my last year as chairman this year, after four years of leading a fantastic set of volunteers to put these games on, the time is right that I take a back step and let other lead,” he said.
“I’ll still be involved in the background and be at some events, but it’s time for new input and fresh ideas. The SVO will be in great hands, though, with Scott Chapman set to take over.
Though he will soon be watching it from the sidelines, Stephen said he was very happy with how his final opening ceremony kicked off.
“It’s been good, it’s been enjoyable,” he said. “The kids are at the long jumping now and are ready and raring to go.
“That’s the main thing; they don’t want to listen to me drone on, they just want to be doing sports.
“It’s been a lot easier as well behind the scenes, a lot of people stepped up.
“It’s been my most stressful year with things going on in the background, but my easiest year because other people have stepped up and helped out as well.
“We have just all put in 100 per cent, and [the new team] not just going to keep the games going, they’re going to make them thrive bigger and beyond.
“We all want to see more children involved in sport, and I know this committee and these Olympics are all about that.”
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