The University of Leeds hosted the UK Corporate Games for a second year in a row with more than 75 organisations taking part in a weekend of sporting action.
The Corporate Games is the largest multi-sport festival for business, with events including dragon boat racing, padel, karting, golf, tennis and netball.
The event is traditionally held in a different UK city each year, but following the resounding success of last year’s event, organisers decided to host the games in Leeds once again.
Karina Kendrick, Head of Conferences and Events at the University of Leeds, said: “A warm thank you to the UK Corporate Games team for giving us the opportunity to host once again.
“It was fantastic to welcome an incredible mix of companies from across the region and beyond our campus to showcase our excellent sporting facilities and accommodation, with over 800 guests staying in our student halls.
“It has been truly rewarding to see the lasting legacy from the previous year’s event, from increased staff engagement in sport to a growing sense of community and improved wellbeing.”
The University of Leeds finished second in the overall medal table, winning 39 medals in total across a wide range of events including squash, table tennis, cycling, running and badminton.
Leeds proved to be a fantastic host city – its world-class facilities, passionate community and strong support from local businesses and stakeholders helped make this such a memorable Games.
Over 2,000 competitors took part in the games, which kicked off with the Welcome Festival, presented by former BBC Look North presenter Tanya Arnold.
Following the athletes’ parade around the University of Leeds campus, Councillor Salma Arif, Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care, Public Health & Active Lifestyles at Leeds City Council, welcomed competitors to the games.
She said: “We were delighted to host the games last year and we’ve made history by being the only city to host the games consecutively.
“Events like these bring a huge boost to our visitor economy and give us the opportunity to show how fantastic our city is and what we have to offer. This event reaffirms Leeds’ position as a city that is well placed and hugely experienced in delivering sporting events.
“A huge thank you to the University of Leeds for hosting the games and allowing participants to utilise some of their fantastic facilities.”
Doug White, Director of the UK Corporate Games, said: “We are absolutely delighted with the success of this year’s UK Corporate Games in Leeds. The energy, enthusiasm, and sportsmanship shown by every participant was inspiring and a true testament to the power of sport in bringing people together.
“Leeds proved to be a fantastic host city – its world-class facilities, passionate community and strong support from local businesses and stakeholders helped make this such a memorable Games.
“We’re proud to have delivered an event that not only celebrated teamwork and healthy competition but also strengthened connections across companies nationwide.”
The games encourage staff health and wellbeing through participation in sport and the opportunity to meet new people and try new activities.
Dan Culliford, Solution Architect at the University of Leeds, who competed in the basketball, said: “It was great to meet new people from across the University and play together. We had a number of training sessions on the run up to the games and the team pulled together. We ended up coming third overall!”
Further information
For more information, please email Rebecca Hurrey at r.hurrey@leeds.ac.uk in the University of Leeds Press Office.