Budding Lambeth sports stars wanted for the London Youth Games

Budding sports stars of the future are being called on to represent Lambeth in this year's London Youth Games and follow in the footsteps of basketball superstar Luol Deng.

Lambeth Council is calling on sporting young people aged 7-17 to help bolster Lambeth's team for the annual competition – the largest sporting youth event in Europe.

The Youth Games sees London boroughs competing against each other to be crowned overall champions of London in 30 sports from angling and archery to football and weightlifting. As the excitement grows in the build up to the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, competitions such as the London Youth Games give local young people the chance to showcase their talent.

Lambeth wants to be able to field the strongest team possible so is looking for young people who play sport competitively and think they may be good enough to represent their borough to come forward.

Luol Deng, who now plays for the NBA team Chicago Bulls, is a former London Youth Games competitor for Lambeth, and hopes to be a part of the London 2012 Games himself.

He said: "The London Youth Games were a highlight of my summers growing up in London. The Games were an important part of my development as a basketball player and I truly loved competing against friends from other boroughs."

Cllr Pete Robbins said: "The Youth Games have provided tremendous competition experience for a whole host of sporting stars who have gone on to achieve great things in their chosen field, and it's also great fun to be part of the team. We have some extremely talented young people in Lambeth so I hope as many as possible come forward to make this year’s Team Lambeth the strongest yet. Here in Lambeth we are determined to give young people the chance to participate and excel in sport, and to engage in the unique experiences the 2012 Games being hosted in London will offer."

To be considered, download and fill out an expression of interest form, and send to:

London Youth Games 2009

Sports and Recreation Unit

4th Floor Blue Star House

234-244 Stockwell Road

London SW9 9SP

Or telephone Natalie Kavanagh-Clarke 0207-926-0338 or email londonyouthgames@lambeth.gov.uk.

Events are divided into two categories:

The Main Games are made up of 28 sports. The finals will take place on 4-5 July 2009

The Mini Games consist of eight sports designed especially for 9 - 11 year olds. The Mini Games will take place on 2 July 2009.