Fast and furious: netball live
The Olympics made us all sit up and take notice of women’s sport, but it’s an old skool activity that is really raking in the new players.
Women are flocking back to the netball court, and with Sport England investing £25m in netball with the view to getting more of us to take it up, it looks like a trend that’s here to stay.
England Netball reports that more than 40,000 women have returned to the game in the past four years. The governing body anticipates growth will continue to accelerate in 2013 as the sport gathers momentum, builds awareness and adopts higher, more professional profile.
Why I love netball by England player Sasha Corbin
This weekend (January 4-5, 2013) is your chance to catch the experts in action at the Cathedral City Mature Lighter Fast Net Grand Prix at Manchester’s Wright Robinson arena. Find out how to get tickets for the Fast Net Grand Prix
The Fast Net tournament has been described as netball’s answer to 20-20 cricket.
But even if you can’t make it to a live event, there will be coverage of the tournament, hosted by reigning champions, Manchester Thunder, on Sky Sports.
It’s a massive step forward for both netball and women’s sport, with the chance of a much wider audience.
The nationwide Fast Net tournament runs from February to May 2013, with fixtures in arenas across the country. Up to 2,000 fans are expected to attend each game.
Joanna Adams, head of marketing commercial and events, England Netball, says, ‘In the past four years we’ve seen a 34% increase in adult participation. Women are returning to the sport for all sorts of reasons: fun, sociability, nostalgia and, with an average 450 calories burned during one hour of play, health and fitness is a key driver.
'With Cathedral City Mature Lighter’s sponsorship, the professional game is gathering quite a fanbase. If even a small proportion of these are inspired to hit the courts, 2013 will be another huge year for the sport.’
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