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World Athletics Day

About World Athletics Day

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When is World Athletics Day?

World Athletics Day is celebrated globally in May each year to raise awareness among children and young people about the importance of fitness and encourage them to play sports, especially athletics.
 
The day was first introduced in 1996 by the International Amateur Athletic Federation (IAAF)—now known as World Athletics—the international governing body for athletics.
World Athletics Day is celebrated globally in May each year to raise awareness among children and young people about the importance of fitness and encourage them to play sports, especially athletics.
In 2021, World Athletics Day was celebrated on May 7. But, the date is subject to change and is announced by World Athletics every year.
 
World Athletics Day allows schools, colleges and various other institutions to promote their students’ interests in several athletic sports, from running to shot put, which require strength and stamina. The IAAF sponsors and organises these events. However, this has been disrupted in recent times owing to the Covid-19 pandemic.
 
A key goal of World Athletics is to establish athletics as the top sport in schools globally in terms of participation. The federation believes schools are the best place to promote physical activity and that no other environment can compete with schools in terms of their ability to nurture and coach youngsters.
 
The federation believes athletics is a core sport that develops children in a well-rounded way and allows them to flourish in other physical activity, and that athletics must be made central to schools' sport programmes.

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