Kelly and Ainsley put healthy eating on the menu

Celebrity chef Ainsley Harriott has teamed up with Dame Kelly Holmes' On Camp with Kelly initiative supported by Aviva to educate athletes and young people attending university about the importance of good nutrition for physical and mental performance.

To help the commonly known Pot Noodle Generation, Ainsley was at University College Birmingham on Saturday 10th of October taking the On Camp with Kelly athletes through cooking demonstrations and providing recipes to cook quick, cheap and healthy dishes. The aim, to give the athletes a better understanding of how to cook nutritious meals, enabling them to refuel properly after training and competition. Ainsley also taught essential practical cooking skills to help them through their student life. The athletes then underwent their own challenge by each preparing and cooking the dishes that have been demonstrated themselves.

Dame Kelly says: "Over the past six years of running my On Camp with Kelly initiative, I have become aware of the issues faced by talented athletes who go away to university with limited cooking skills and insufficient knowledge of preparing nutritious meals on a budget, which ultimately is detrimental to their health and performance as sports people.

"For that reason I decided to host this Get-Together, supported by Aviva, where the On Camp with Kelly athletes will not only benefit now but gain valuable life skills for the future. I am delighted to have the assistance of Ainsley Harriott in this, whom I am sure will pass on the best skills in a simple effective energetic way, as well as to have the use of the excellent facilities at University College Birmingham."

Ainsley adds: "Cooking nutritious and tasty meals doesn't need to cost the earth and can be done without dramatically altering students' busy social and sporting schedules. I am really pleased to be involved in educating the athletes on the On Camp with Kelly initiative, supported by Aviva, as I feel a few simple food preparation skills and quick and easy recipes can transform students' relationship with food and provide essential nutritional information which often can be forgotten when young people flee the nest."

The On Camp with Kelly initiative, which has been supported by Aviva since 2004, provides 800m and 1500m athletes and their coaches with the unique opportunity to benefit from the personal mentoring from Dame Kelly Holmes as well as educational get-together and camps and medical and other financial support.

This educational Eat for Success Get-Together with Ainsley Harriott aims to broaden the athletes' experience, teaching them to take responsibility for the food they eat and also support those making the transition from home to university whilst still maintaining a high level of training and competition.

Sue Helmont, Head of Advertising and Media at Aviva Life Insurance, said: "We are proud to support these young athletes and believe it's important for young people to understand the importance of good nutrition and how detrimental it can be to their health if neglected. We are thrilled that Ainsley Harriott has teamed up with Kelly Holmes for this unique educational experience. As the team behind UK Athletics we look forward to seeing the positive impact on our next generation of British medal winners".