Ahead of this weekend's crunch Six Nations clash against Ireland, three of England's Six Nations stars were beamed in via 02's 5g network for a surprise virtual PE lesson at Bristol's Summerhill Academy.
Bristol-born Ellis Genge was on hand to provide guidance to a group of junior school children between the ages of 7-11 alongside England colleagues Henry Slade and Jack Nowell.
The players were shown from their training base at Clifton College, which displayed them full-size on a screen with them able to fully engage with the children in the session, which was followed by a Q & A session.
The England trio appeared as 4K holograms thanks to Portl technology allowing them to attend the event despite being in a COVID bubble at the moment and Genge, who attended John Cabot Academy which is little over a mile away from Summerhill, was pleased to be able to impart some of his experiences to the children.
“I really enjoyed talking to people from similar areas to me - I get a bit more out of it I think, regardless of the subject.” The 27-year-old said.
Genge, who has started all three of England's Six Nations matches so far added: “I enjoyed trying to educate them and pass on a bit of knowledge whether it be about rugby or about life but I thoroughly enjoyed it.”
Headteacher Chris Barratt he was pleased to welcome Ellis and his colleagues into the school, albeit virtually, he said: "Here at Summerhill today we’ve had an amazing experience.
"It was a great experience for the children because those three will be seen as real role models”
“Ellis Genge went to one of the secondary schools which is part of the group of schools we belong to, the Cabot Learning Federation. We’ve got Year 6 children, including some that were in the session, who are going to John Cabot Academy in September.
“To be able to see success and someone that’s really gone on with ambition and become an elite sportsperson from the local area is an amazing experience for the children”
The school have been embracing active lifestyles for its children and Barratt was keen to stress the importance of such events in promoting such behaviours.
He added: “We have a big push at the moment on what we call a healthy bodies, healthy minds approach in school with lots of active learning”
Children that are healthy have got more energy, they manage their concentration levels better and they can engage with the learning more successfully
The players were based at Clifton College in Bristol for the event as part of their training camp in the city and Henry Slade reflected on the camp which was part of their preparations for a crucial Six Nations clash against Ireland where a defeat would end their title hopes.
Slade was positive about the Red Rose's week in the city, saying: “It’s been nicer for us here in Bristol, which is only an hour up the road, so it’s been a good week”
“We’ve got together as a squad and done some bits to bring us closer together and we’ve had a successful week in that regard with a couple of good training sessions”
O2’s 5G mobile network is available in over 300 towns and cities in the UK, with the ambition to reach 50% of the UK’s population with its 5G coverage in 2023.
To find out more about O2’s 5G network and their work with the RFU, follow @O2 or @O2Sports on Twitter.’
