#StayStrong: How YOG athletes are keeping active in lockdown
With many countries around the world enforcing lockdown measures to help combat the spread of COVID-19, we take a look at what former Youth Olympic Games (YOG) athletes are doing to #StayStrong #StayActive and #StayHealthy while at home.
Duda
Brazilian beach volleyball star Duda – who won gold at the YOG Nanjing 2014 – may not be able to practise with regular partner Ágatha Bednarczuk but, luckily, she’s been able to work on her skills at home with her mother while in lockdown. The pair showed off their talents on Duda’s Instagram page, with the 21-year-old posting: “Having a mother who is also technical helps a lot in this quarantine!”
Jacko Gill
Shot-putter Jacko Gill – a silver medallist at the YOG Singapore 2010 – has been able to keep up his training during lockdown at home in New Zealand thanks to an impressive weights room in his garage. The 25-year-old – who finished ninth at the Olympic Games Rio 2016 – posted a clip of his gruelling regime on Instagram, adding: “Getting training done in the garage during these hard times. Stay safe my friends!”
Jade Jones
Singapore 2010 taekwondo gold medallist and double Olympic champion Jade Jones has also converted her garage into a makeshift gym, to ensure that she can still train during lockdown.
“Transformed our messy garage into a training dungeon,” posted the 27-year-old on Instagram recently, alongside photos of a newly-installed padded floor, weights and an exercise bike.
Jones and housemate Bianca Walkden – herself an Olympic bronze medallist in taekwondo – even recorded a special workout session to share their fitness tips, which was posted on the BBC Sport website.
Jessica Fox
Slalom canoeist Jessica Fox has been getting her family involved in her training while in lockdown in Australia. The Singapore 2010 gold medallist shared a video on Instagram showing her 84-year-old grandma, Mamie, joining her for a stretching session in the garden.
“I’m so grateful for this moment I got to share with my grandma,” she posted. “Mamie came outside when she saw me working out and wanted to join my stretch. 84 years young! She is the best; we are going to make this a daily ritual!”
Manu Bhaker
Indian shooter Manu Bhaker looks as if she may be using her time in lockdown to switch sports, as she shared a video on Instagram of her practising her tennis skills indoors by hitting a ball against a wall. And the 18-year-old, who won gold and silver medals at the YOG Buenos Aires 2018, showed pretty good form as she demonstrated both her forehand and her backhand in the video.