Accompanied by global icon David Beckham, athletes from the Macau Special Olympics (MSO) participated in a health and wellness event at the Parisian Macao’s Eiffel Tower on Friday.
A group of 30 MSO athletes paired up with Sands China Care Ambassadors to make a 30-storey climb from the 7th floor observation deck to the top of the tower, where they enjoyed a bird’s eye view of the Cotai Strip from the observation deck on the 37th floor.
The athletes received a boost of encouragement from Beckham, who attended the event and signed a football for the MSO football team. He then accompanied the participants on their climb up the tower, before presenting the MSO members with certificates for participating in the event. They ended the afternoon with a group photo as a memento of the occasion.
“I am very excited to be back in Macau. It’s one of those visits and places I am excited to do and excited to be here, so we have had a great, fun few days, and I am looking forward to this,” he said ahead of the climb. “This is the highlight of the trip.”
“I was an athlete for 22 years, so I went through a lot of different training regimes and tried different ideas and different fitness ideas. And I think it was in Milan, that we tried stair training, so I think it’s a great way to keep fit, it’s a great fitness regime. I am excited about this. I know there [are] a lot of floors, so we will do as many as we can, but I am excited,” said Beckham.
Friday’s community activity was held ahead of Saturday’s ‘Light the Night’ vertical charity race to support MSO. The event was a family fun day incorporating sport, wellness activities, music, food and drink, and is topped off with a full run around the Venetian Macao and the Parisian Macao, and a ‘Tower Fun Run’ up the Eiffel Tower.
Beckham’s participation in Friday’s activity with MSO is said to be an example of Sands China’s efforts to utilize events like the Light the Night Run to organize community outreach activities in Macao.
“They are a way for the company to give back to the Macao community, by providing opportunities for locals to interact with incredibly talented and accomplished individuals, offering them inspirational and educational experiences,” Sands China said in a press release.
According to Sands China, all registration fees for the Light the Night Run are being donated to the Macau Special Olympics, which provides year-round sports and athletic competition in a variety of Olympic-type sports for people with intellectual disabilities.
Money raised will cover MSO’s bowling training program for 2018. Including registration fees, Sands China will donate a total of MOP150,000 to the Macau Special Olympics.
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