Bampton Beaver Scouts meet Olympic race walker, Chris Maddocks

On a hot and humid early Wednesday evening, I joined an enthusiastic group of Bampton Beaver scouts for a walk, quite a fast walk!  For the umpteenth time I came out of competitive retirement to join these 5-8 year olds and share my Olympic Games' experiences with a chat and outdoor fun. At the bequest of group leader and friend, Dave Phillips I've visited the scouts on several occasions since 2013.  With each visit it's clear that Dave and his band of helpers organise a wide range of indoor and outdoor adventurous activities.  With every new group I meet, they clearly are up for a new challenge. 

After the register was read I was introduced and we set about our warm-up stretching exercises outside on the parched but still beautiful large treelined grassy area.  Myself and Dave, an athletics man himself with Exeter Harriers shared the instruction which the children followed with smiles on their faces.  Then, over a short distance we did some racewalking practise with some determined faces to be first to the finish line, natural competitiveness, I call it.  Bearing in mind how warm it was, the children heeded our advice to drink and hydrate frequently.  A few perimeter circuits followed and we were done.

Inside after a brief rest we gathered inside with Medal Ted ever popular taking centre stage ( he always tries to steal the show and...invariably does ) On my laptop I showed the Beavers a clip of me finishing my 50km race at the 2000 Sydney Olympics in front of nearly 100.000 stadium spectators.  Question and answers were lively with me sharing memories of what it felt like to race, famous people I'd met like boxer Muhammed Ali, all members of the Royal family including the late Queen and what is now, King Charles.  By that time, parents had returned and with a final poignant activity outdoors where a four of the older Beavers ceremoniously 'swam' towards their new cub leader and the next stage of their scouting lives.  Handshakes all round by the grown ups, most like myself, eager to dash off and get to a TV to watch the World Cup semi-final match between England and Argentina.  Given the final result, I will leave it there!