England rugby stars Ellis Genge, Henry Slade and Jack Nowell gave a primary school class an unforgettable day - by dropping in to deliver a virtual PE lesson.
Whilst the England squad are still working within COVID restrictions during the Guinness Six Nations, they used state of the art technology to appear as 4k holograms at Summerhill Academy in Bristol.
The trio, who will aim to help England beat Ireland at Twickenham this afternoon (Saturday, March 12) delivered a world first virtual rugby PE lesson with the help of team sponsors O2.
They used Portl, a high-spec device using hologram technology, to allow Genge, Slade and Nowell to gatecrash a standard PE lesson over O2’s 5G mobile network.
They ran a mixture of boys and girls aged between seven and 11 through a variety of training drills, shouting instructions and encouragement as the session ended with a touch rugby match.
Pupils were then able to conclude the session by speaking to the players and pose for pictures in their hologram form in a rare chance for fans to mix with the players in the current coronavirus climate.
Bristolian Genge, said: “Having been born and brought up in Bristol and not had the access to rugby that many have at a younger age, I hope that the virtual rugby PE lesson can have a lasting impact on the kids to want to play more rugby in the future.”
Slade commented: “It was absolutely incredible to see this technology in the flesh for the first time and being able to connect to the kids in this way is something straight out of the future.”
Nowell added: “It’s been a real tough last few years for so many people and we’ve been unable to engage with our fans and the British public in a way that we’ve been used to so this was great fun to do this with the schoolchildren in Bristol.”
Steve Grainger, Director of Rugby Development at RFU, commented: “Engaging with local communities is at the heart of the work that we do and helps to inspire a new generation of players across the country.
"Due to the pandemic, this type of technology is a great tool to bring fans closer to the players and helps act as a huge motivation For Eddie Jones and the team when they step onto the pitch.”
Chris Barratt, Headteacher at Summerhill Academy, said: “We are extremely grateful for this opportunity from O2 and the RFU.
"It’s not every day that your students get to interact with some of the best rugby players in the world.
"To see this happening at our school is something we are very proud of and we hope that this technology can be used to coach even more children in the future.’’
To find out more about O2’s 5G network and their work with the RFU, follow @O2 or @O2Sports on Twitter.
