Weltklasse Zürich Extra Mile in Bern a great success
Weltklasse Zürich in Bern? At the Wankdorf football arena? The seemingly unusual combination – the world-renowned Zurich athletics meeting as a guest at the Bern arena of Swiss football champion BSC Young Boys with one of its socially relevant projects at the Bern arena of Swiss football champion BSC Young Boys – proved a great success. Almost 40 Grand Prix von Bern volunteers greatly contributed to this very special final event by guiding more than 1 000 participating school students on their Weltklasse Zürich Extra Mile through the last day of the project, right up to the finish line.
Some 75 school classes from the cantons of Bern and Argovia had been tackling the Weltklasse Zürich Extra Mile project, and more than 50 classes lined up for its final event today. The students completed their second mile run after eight weeks of preparation in their PE class.
They lined up for the final leg of the project in the unique atmosphere of and arena where successful footballers play. And, of course, their Extra Mile included pre-run procedures in the Bern Young Boys player’s tunnel. All in all, a very special experience. The kids were cheered on by Olympic champion Nicola Spirig, former Federal Council Adolf Ogi and mascots Mani (BSC Young Boys) and Leo Letzi (Weltklasse Zürich).
Excited school kids, delighted organisers
Both organisations involved in today’s Weltklasse Zürich Extra Mile event, Weltklasse Zürich and host BSC Young Boys, were very happy with the successful day.
“Seeing children and youngsters immerse themselves in the Extra Mile project with so much joy and commitment never fails to impress me. We are very grateful to the BSC Young Boys team for inviting us to their “living room” and let us have this special event here. Conveying the joy and fun of doing sports represents an important element of our efforts to contribute to society. And we are happy that BSC Young Boys shares this commitment,” Andreas Hediger, Weltklasse Zürich Co-Meeting Director, said.
“What a fantastic sight! So many happy kids running at Wankdorf Stadium! BSC Young Boys has been focusing its CSR activities on promoting exercise among children and young adults for years. So, when Weltklasse Zürich introduced their incredible project to us, we were more than happy to provide a stage,” Head of the BSC Young Boys Marketing Department Daniel Marti added.
Overall, there are four Weltklasse Zürich Extra Mile final events in 2024. The first took place at Letzigrund Stadium last week, featuring more than 2 500 students from Zurich and the cantons of Argovia, St. Gallen, and Zug. After a summer break, students will start their run upon the “On your marks, get set, Extra Mile!” command at the Park im Grünen “Grün 80 in Münchenstein (Basel-Country) on 19 September 2024. And this year’s final Extra Mile will get underway at Letzigrund Stadium in Zurich on 24 September 2024.
About the Weltklasse Zürich Extra Mile:
Participating school students begin the project by completing a mile (1609 metres) in a playful way and on a special course across their school premises. Then, they start exploring, again in a playful way, aspects of long-distance running (which is part of the Lehrplan 21 physical education curriculum) in pre-designed lessons.
Running the distance within a certain time or in competition with others is not important. The project is all about self-assessment, self-reflection, and about making individual progress. Students work with an Extra Mile journal, the “Extrameilen-Büchlein”, that guides them through their project. At final events, they try to reach the goals they set for themselves in another mile run.
The Weltklasse Zürich Extra Mile is supported by the sports and education departments of the participating cities and cantons, by Swiss Athletics, by the Freude herrscht foundation, and by Dar Vida.
