In her own words, Michelle explains how she has been involved with the Right to Play charity and asks for your support:

Hello friends in judo,

After almost too many years to count rumbling and tumbling on the tatami of the world, I decided it was time for some change. Sat here typing away from an office in Soho, London, living the 9-5(ish) and experiencing the hellish daily commute on the London Underground, change I’ve got.

To explain how I got here; in the (very cloudy) days post competition at the Olympics last August, I came across a booth in the athlete’s village offering 3 month voluntary work placements to five Olympians worldwide, with a charity called Right to Play. The thing that initially appealed was their logo; “Look after yourself, look after one another”. Life can feel very complicated sometimes and never more so for myself than at that particular time, but at the end of the day, there’s not much more to it than that. Anyway, it appealed to the senses shall we say, I applied, got a place and here I am.

Right To Play is an international charity that uses sport and play as a vehicle to help some of the most vulnerable children of the world. It implements programs in 23 countries across Africa, Asia and the Middle East, where it uses the power of sport to educate, promote health and well being , build bridges in divided communities, help with conflict dissolution and enhance the lives of children in disadvantaged areas.

Over my three month placement, two and a half of them will be spent working with the UK team of Right To Play in London and two weeks will be spent out in the field getting involved with the implementation of programs in a country of my choice.

What has all this got to do with you? I hear you ask.

Well I’m sure most of you like myself, having been privileged enough to experience the wealth of benefits sport has to offer, will strongly believe in the power of sport. Which is precisely why I’m getting in touch with you and hoping you’ll get involved with the great work Right To Play are doing. I’m not after your precious pennies, well no more than a quid anyway, what I’m after is your cooperation and support.

March 25th is Right To Play Day.

Here at Right To Play UK, we work closely with the student population on various fundraising strategy and up to now, Right To Play Day has been primarily aimed at them. I however have made it my personal objective to get as many of you mangled-fingered, cauli’-eared, big-hearted lot (apologies to any of you who have so far managed to retain unspoilt beauty on the mat) involved in the day too.

It’s easy and we ask for no more than one measly pound from any of you. Basically on 25 th March (or an alternative date if it’s more suitable for your club) we are asking each of you to donate £1 for your ‘right to play’. Payments can be made through collections at your clubs or you can txt PLAY to 81400.

Simple really, but collectively we can be part of something special and really make a difference on a global scale. Also we could set a precedence for other sports to follow in coming years.

In the run up to the day, if you can coordinate effort at your clubs to publicise the event and raise awareness about Right to Play as much as possible, that would be great. You can download a poster here which you can print out and display around your dojo, in the changing rooms, on the back of toilet doors – anywhere you think they’ll be seen! You will see that there is space on the poster to insert the date of your choice.

If you’re a coach reading this, being ‘top dog’ in the dojo, you’re probably ideally placed to take this on board. However, you may also be the busiest person in the club, so even better – delegate. If you’re a player, parent or a keen supporter of judo and would like to contribute, I urge you to take initiative and make Right To Play Day a success at your club.

If any of you want to make a real event of the day and organise fundraising events on the back of Right To Play Day, to really up the fundraising ante, we shall be immensely grateful. Some ideas could be; the classic sponsored throw, judo quiz, raffle or post training cake sale (MUCH more my scene). We can potentially provide you with prizes and Right To Play materials in the form of t shirts, wrist bands, mini balls etc to support your plans.

If you would like any more information, advice or support, you can contact me at the office on the number: 020 7734 7946

To learn more about Right To Play, check out:

righttoplay.org.uk

I look forward to hearing from you guys. Thanks so much for taking the time to read this.

Very best wishes from,

Michelle.