Kobe Bryant needs you to get active

Lausanne, June 14, 2013: Basketball superstar Kobe Bryant has joined forces with the International Olympic Committee in a ‘call out’ to the world to get active for Olympic Day on 23 June.

In a short video posted on YouTube and other social media platforms today, the two-time gold medallist with the US men’s basketball team has called on people everywhere to lace up their running shoes, don their sweatbands and take part in any physical activity they desire. And Kobe, who is currently recovering from recent surgery to repair an injured Achilles tendon, asked people to make a special effort on his behalf.

“I can’t run, I can’t jump and I can’t swim yet,” Kobe said. “So I need you guys to pick up the slack for me and be doubly active.”

Every year hundreds of thousands of people around the world take part in Olympic Day events – and this year the IOC is asking people to take a picture of their sporting activity and post it on social media. The best photograph will win the lucky person a trip to Switzerland, the home of the Olympic Movement in Lausanne and the refurbished Olympic Museum, which reopens later this year. (Details of the competition and how to enter below).

For 65 years the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and its partners in the Olympic Movement have been encouraging people of all ages, abilities and backgrounds to get active on Olympic Day.

Today, Olympic Day has evolved to become a key date in the Olympic Movement’s calendar, and has gained momentum worldwide with almost 4 million participants from around the world and over 150 National Olympic Committees (NOCs) taking part last year. It is an opportunity to encourage the young and not-so-young, regardless of their sporting ability and their background, to get moving, learn about the benefits of physical activity, discover new sports and reflect on the Olympic values of excellence, friendship and respect.

Many of our 204 NOCs will be organising educational, cultural and sporting activities under the motto “Move, Learn and Discover.” Please consult www.olympic.org/olympicday for more information on Olympic Day activities happening near you.