Weltklasse Zürich inspires more than 5 000 children and young adults to participate in sport this September

Weltklasse Zürich 2024 was another great celebration of athletics. Both steeped in tradition and highly innovative, the meeting drew 25 000 sports fans to Letzigrund Stadium and captivated millions of viewers in front of TV screens around the world again this year. Weltklasse Zürich is more than a meeting, however. Much more, as a closer look at the organisation’s activities in the month of September reveals.

Three different initiatives at three locations, but all three of them aimed at passing the passion of Weltklasse Zürich on to the next generation. The Jugend trainiert mit Weltklasse Zürich kids clinic, the national UBS Kids Cup final event, and two final events of the Weltklasse Zürich Extra Mile (in Basel-Country and Zurich) had more than 5 000 children and young adults on their feet this September.

The first, the kids clinic, took place at the beginning of the month. More than 500 children and young adults met for Jugend trainiert mit Weltklasse, the country’s largest athletics training session, at Letzigrund Stadium. Their illustrious coaches included international top stars Sha’Carry Richards, Fred Kerley, Ryan Crouser, and Wayne Pinnock, and local heroes Simon Ehammer, Mujinga Kambundji, and Jason Joseph. They were all there to inspire the young athletes and provide them with tips and tricks for their athletics journey. The session was held in various groups, so that the kids could practise passing batons, jumps, and throws. A very special experience for everyone involved, and an event that had been fully booked weeks before it finally happened.

A record number of participants between the age of seven and 15 were lining up for the UBS Kids Cup national final events at Letzigrund Stadium just two days after the athletics meeting. The country’s best young talents competed in the same setting as their role models two days earlier, and they all fought hard for a spot on the podium. Launched in 2011, the UBS Kids Cup has been the most successful youth sports initiative in Switzerland, providing the athletic foundations for great and sustainable athletics careers. The performances at the Swiss national final event proved that the future of the sport is bright.

The third project, the Weltklasse Zürich Extra Mile is expressly not about performances and fast times. An initiative for schools, it aims at improving endurance sports skills of students – in a playful way and as an element of the Lehrplan 21 physical education curriculum. There are six to eight training units in PE classes and a long run both at the beginning and at the end of the project.

After two successful final events at Zurich’s Letzigrund Stadium and Wankdorf Stadium in Bern, a third final went underway at the Park im Grünen in Münchenstein last week. 500 school kids from the cantons of Basel-Country and Basel-City tackled the 1609 metres. And today, 2 500 kids from four different cantons (Argovia, Glarus, St. Gallen, and Zurich) gathered in Zurich to complete the Extra Mile course leading across the venue’s premises and into the stadium.

Weltklasse Zürich Co-Meeting Director Christoph Joho was delighted to see them all in action. “Watching kids and young adults being excited about doing sports is motivating, and it takes us up on our promise. We view Weltklasse Zürich as a player in our society – a perspective that comes with a responsibility. It is immensely important to us to use the range and renown of our world-famous athletics meeting to inspire the next generation. And with our initiatives, with Jugend trainiert mit Weltklasse Zürich, the UBS Kids CUP, and the Weltklasse Zürich Extra Mile, we can achieve just that. The approaches may be different in each project, but they are all hugely successful.”

Visit our websites to learn more about these Weltklasse Zürich initiatives: 

Jugend trainiert mit Weltklasse Zürich

UBS Kids Cup

Weltklasse Zürich Extrameile