Gold medallist sailor champions Solent oyster restoration
An Olympic gold medallist has joined conservation efforts to restore oyster populations in the Solent, as his team gears up to race on the same waters in this season's SailGP.Dylan Fletcher, who helms Great Britain's team, said it was vital to protect the marine environment sailors share with hundreds of species that live in the strait between the Isle of Wight and Hampshire.The global competition returns to English shores in July for the first time in three years, with GB currently second in the standings, just one point behind Australia."We all need to do our little bit to make the world a better place," said Fletcher.
The Olympic sailor, who won gold at Tokyo 2020 in the 49ers class, has been joined by teammates, conservationists and children from Emsworth Primary School to learn about the Solent Oyster Restoration Project.He said: "It's incredible projects like this that are now rejuvenating the oceans and are bringing the native oysters back here into Emsworth."It's why we're really trying to show what is possible, that we all need to do our little bit to make the world a better place."Fletcher said having a SailGP event in Portsmouth was "massive", adding: "We've got a grandstand that can hold 20,000 people, so I'm hoping we'll have some good conditions, showcase sailing and show how fun it is to watch."We're really happy with where we are at the moment. It's ultimately a long season, but we'd love to take the win in Portsmouth."But while attention builds for the high-speed races, the Solent was once home to a different kind of activity as the site of Europe's largest oyster fishery.
Fletcher's teammate Kai Hockley said the restoration project had made a strong impression."I've learnt so much about how oysters help the Solent," he said. "With all the biodiversity it has, we need to make sure to protect it, to keep our Solent as good as it is."The Blue Marine Foundation, which runs the project, said oyster numbers in the Solent have collapsed due to pollution, disease and overfishing. The aim is to boost biodiversity and water quality but it would also help revive the Solent's former ecological and economic role.
Dr Luke Helmer, from the project, said: "We used to have Europe's largest fishery back in the 70s and 80s, with around 15 million oysters being taken, which is unfortunately now closed."That was about 840 tonnes a year. It was a huge industry that supported about 700 workers."What we're trying to do now is restore it - not only for that but for the environmental benefits, an adult oyster can filter 100 to 150 litres of water a day."The project team is currently checking out a new four-hectare seabed reef in Chichester, which could home hundreds of thousands of oysters."I think it's really important that all marine users get involved in this, nobody wants to be playing or swimming in muddy waters, and oysters have an important role to play in that," said Dr Helmer.
You can follow BBC Hampshire & Isle of Wight on Facebook, X, or Instagram.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Guardian
4 hours ago
- The Guardian
Can gold medals really inspire lasting change? It's time we tried to find out
Sighs of relief accompanied the appointment of Prof Nick Webborn as chair of UK Sport after a lengthy delay and rumours of existential threats from Whitehall's latest quango bonfire. It is a tricky time to take over as sport hangs in limbo without a strong advocate at the cabinet table as impossible funding and policy decisions are being made. At the same time, attitudes and expectations towards public bodies are changing as social needs and demands change. The need to justify the benefit to society of funding those who are world class at their sport is greater than ever. Arguably, there can be no organisation more suited to taking on difficult questions and reaching new heights than the agency that funds and masterminds Olympic and Paralympic high performance. So what's top of Webborn's in-tray? There is always the need to check in with the vision, the purpose, the raison d'être. Set up in 1997 after Great Britain won one gold medal in the Atlanta Olympics, UK Sport's mission was to ensure Team GB produced performances commensurate with the nation's size and potential with consistent funding to create a world-leading system. In short, to become world class. It was unacceptable to finish 36th in the medal table and no longer a reasonable strategy to rely on outlier athletes to win largely through their own efforts. The best athletes from that point on would receive the best technical, physiological and medical support in return for medals. The system worked beyond the wildest dreams of its architects, Sue Campbell and Peter Keen, who had never imagined reaching tallies of 29 gold medals would be possible at a single Olympics. Mind you, nor had they envisaged the cultural abuses that might accompany a newfound focus on medals above all else. Over recent years, UK Sport adjusted its strategy to the aim of 'winning well', but leaders and coaches complain this remains poorly defined, while the clarity of medal expectations still dominates. A mantra of 'medals and more' was introduced though this seemed largely to emphasise that medals came first and the rest was rather vague and secondary. Bringing teeth to what 'winning well' looks like – after checking whether the phrase still has credibility across theelite sports world, its athletes, coaches, leaders – feels essential for steering high-performance sport through its next phase. It is interesting to note the energy and passion the Australian system is putting into bringing this phrase to life. There was a clear and striking vision in 1997 that fitted the wider social context – a different vision is needed for a very different era. The next issue in the in-tray may help. UK Sport has been talking more about increasing 'social impact'. Recent organisational changes at UK Sport led to the social impact team being reduced and merged into the communications team, but this area needs to have greater substance, and less rhetoric, to seriously explore what 'lasting positive social impact' could come beyond the Olympic and Paralympic medal table. UK Sport's strategy refers to 'the powerful platform sporting success has to inspire and effect lasting positive change for individuals and society'. Those deeply invested in the current system or who have excelled through it fully buy into this. Yet serious evidence of this happening at scale is hard to come by. Recent research showed that any minor uplifts in the form of increased physical activity or subjective wellbeing during London 2012 fizzled out once the event had finished. The narrative that Olympians inspire the next generation is often fuelled by stories that are told energetically, while on a larger scale, evidence shows that young people are often more inspired by a teacher or local coach than an Olympic champion who is simply too distant to relate to. In these tumultuous times, it is surely essential to explore how money spent on medals and 'inspirational moments' could produce something deeper and longer lasting. Webborn brings vital relevant experience as chair of the British Paralympic Association, which has set a social impact strategy through to 2032 with clear ambitions to improve access to sport and help break down societal barriers for those with disabilities. Here's hoping Webborn and his team have insights into how to be more effective than in the past. Sport doesn't have a great record on changing the lives of disabled people for the better, a point Tanni Grey‑Thompson has been vocal about for years. Sign up to The Recap The best of our sports journalism from the past seven days and a heads-up on the weekend's action after newsletter promotion Understanding the need to move on from Olympians showing medals in school assemblies, UK Sport launched a pioneering programme, 'Powered by Purpose', to support athletes to become agents of change for causes they care about, enabling them to use their platforms and role-model status for good effect beyond winning medals, while also bringing to life the theory that flourishing athletes perform better and more sustainably when there is a wider meaning in their sporting journey beyond the scoreboard. It is a great move but this is social impact one stage removed, effectively outsourcing it to a few athletes without UK Sport holding itself accountable beyond medals. The question for Webborn is how could UK Sport use its innovative talents and peerless determination to explore what lasting social value could come from those medals. There are no existing solutions as it hasn't really been tried. The past 28 years have proved that medals can be won without much lasting positive social change. The challenge is to prove that the same or greater levels of performance can be achieved in a way that brings greater positive outcomes for others. That will require a different mindset and belief that says winning matters but is not enough on its own; and it will require a whole different set of impact-focused skills within the organisation. This will also require a different and much more integrated working relationship with its sister organisation that looks after grassroots sport, Sport England, to learn from their ongoing experiences (and failures) about how sport can be an effective tool for social change. But what an opportunity for UK Sport, which exists to dare to make the impossible possible. UK Sport's stated purpose and mission is to create 'extraordinary moments' over the next decade. Webborn's challenge and opportunity is to use the funding and talents of the country to create something much longer lasting. Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here.
The Guardian
4 hours ago
- The Guardian
‘People think I have disappeared': Joe Morrell raring to go after 492 days out
'It's been like snakes and ladders,' says the midfielder Joe Morrell, detailing how a hellish 16 months has proved the most difficult duel of his career. An innocuous click in his left knee, a setback in the gym while on holiday in Miami and the onset of arthrofibrosis – a condition where scar tissue builds between joints – and suddenly 492 days have passed since his last appearance, for Portsmouth in a League One match at Oxford. He had just celebrated his 100th game for the club en route to the Championship. 'People are probably quite confused and think I have disappeared. Everyone forgets about you.' An unwanted glimpse into retirement and time on the football scrapheap have led to some dark days during Morrell's rehabilitation, which he has done predominantly at Portsmouth, where his contract expired last summer. He rewinds to this January and crying his eyes out 12 months after the initial injury, swallowed by the sense time was slipping away as another milestone in his recovery drifted from view. September had turned into January and then it dawned he would not return last season. 'I had that feeling of knowing I was going to burst into tears,' he says. 'I had a shower, got in the car, drove around the corner from the training ground and then I had to pull over. It was just a kind of release. I care about football so much … It has been unbelievably tough.' He discusses the mixed emotions of watching former teammates, off the high of a win, bounce into training while he struggled to walk up stairs, and pining to experience even the worst elements of being a professional. 'I had quite a bad disciplinary record – that's a stick I've been beaten with – but I've joked to some of the lads this year: 'What I'd give now to be sent off, I'd snap your hand off.' 'Portsmouth lost 6-1 at Stoke and I'm watching it thinking: 'I'd love to be on that pitch now.' It probably shows you how low I've been,' he says, able to raise a smile. He laughs at the suggestion he could return with a Zen frame of mind – 'It would be pointless … I need to play on the edge' – because he aches for pressure, purpose and, in a perverse way, flak. 'People tweet you to say you played rubbish; I kind of miss that in a sense. My phone isn't blowing up … two and a half years ago I was playing at the World Cup and I'd come in after a match and have 200 messages.' Morrell remembers the relief of not sustaining an anterior cruciate ligament injury when receiving his scan results after being forced off at Oxford. 'I was almost happy,' he says of a chondral defect diagnosis. 'A bit of cartilage had snapped off and was floating around my knee.' After an operation he was non‑weight‑bearing for a month but expected to return for pre‑season last June. Then he slipped while doing plyometrics in Florida and screws attached to his cartilage came out. 'If you had told me the next time I'll be on a pitch would be July 2025 … yeah, crazy.' Sign up to Football Daily Kick off your evenings with the Guardian's take on the world of football after newsletter promotion In a parallel universe, Morrell would probably have been with Wales preparing for the visit on Fridaytomorrow of Liechtenstein to Cardiff in a World Cup qualifier – but his 38th cap is on hold. He bumped into the manager, Craig Bellamy, while doing some of his rehab with Sean Connelly, the head of medical at the Football Association of Wales. 'The best moments of my career have been in a Wales shirt and I'd love to have more of them,' he says. 'I know I have to sort a club first and everything else will take care of itself. I believe the best years are ahead of me.' At 28, Morrell – who will marry his long-term partner, Ellie, at the end of the month – is adamant he has six or seven years left in the game but made the most of his enforced sabbatical. A co-owner of fan‑owned Merthyr Town, who will play in the sixth tier next season, he attended their match at Havant & Waterlooville. 'I've tried to see it as an opportunity even though some days it is tough to get out of bed because you don't have that purpose and you come home, your knee is swollen, and you don't know where the finish line is … It has been incredibly tough, and also for the people around me. You try to be the same person you always have been, to be as insular as possible and keep emotions to yourself, but it is difficult.' He recently completed his Uefa A licence with the FAW, where he studied alongside Nani, Morgan Schneiderlin and Xherdan Shaqiri. Morrell faced Shaqiri in a Euro 2020 opener in Baku but jokes the Swiss did not remember him and thought he was a coach on the course. Coaching Portsmouth's under-14s has given Morrell a raison d'être. 'My Monday and Friday nights at the academy have kind of been my Saturday afternoons because you have to prepare, deliver. There's a lot that appeals about coaching and management; it's impossible for me to be the best player in the world – I'm small, slow, not physically strong and there's a level of God-given talent you have as a player – but as a coach that's not the case.' He does a good line in self-deprecation but Morrell is an attractive free agent. He has had interest from the US, Far East and Middle East, as well as closer to home. Being sidelined has not stifled his love for the sport. 'I'm addicted to football,' he says, explaining how he watches Major League Soccer matches on Wyscout. 'It used to frustrate me when I would ask people: 'Did you watch the game?' And they'd say: 'Nah, I was playing Call of Duty.'' Now he recognises the bigger picture. Walking his cavapoo, Fred, has given him time to reflect. 'We get sucked into thinking football is the most important thing in the world because people care about it so much, which is great, but the reality is, it's not. This has hammered that home.' He hopes the end is in sight. 'There were certainly days where I didn't think I'd be able to get in a position to play again, moments where I've had conversations with people around me: 'We might have to go down another route. Is this going to be the end of me playing?' 'People will see I have not played for a long time and, understandably, there will be question marks. The truth is I'm fit and ready to go. I feel like I can be a better player than I was before, as well as a better person. I don't think I'll feel like a footballer again until that whistle goes in the first game of the season in August and it's certainly not something I'll take for granted.'
The Independent
a day ago
- The Independent
Keely Hodgkinson and Mo Farah spearhead government plea to back London World Championships
Olympic gold medallists Keely Hodgkinson and Sir Mo Farah are among more than 100 athletes calling for the Prime Minister to financially back a London bid for the 2029 World Athletics Championships. In a letter, penned one week before Chancellor Rachel Reeves presents her spending review, the authors argue the impact of the event "goes far beyond medals and headlines" and implore Sir Keir Starmer to affirm Government's support because "the window to act is short." The PA news agency understands a commitment of £45million is being sought, which, according to a feasibility study conducted by Athletic Ventures, would generate an economic and social impact of more than £400m. The letter reads: "We write as athletes who have had the honour of representing Great Britain and Northern Ireland on the world stage. Among us are World, Olympic, European and Commonwealth champions and medallists. "We've stood on podiums with pride but there is nothing like competing in front of a home crowd. For many athletes, it's a once-in-a-lifetime experience. For our country, it's an opportunity we must not let pass us by. "That's why we are calling on the UK Government to back the bid to host the World Athletics Championships in 2029. "There is no more iconic setting than the London Stadium, the scene of unforgettable moments at the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, and the record-breaking 2017 World Championships. "Britain knows how to put on global events. We do it brilliantly. And when we host, the impact goes far beyond medals and headlines. It inspires a generation. It generates huge economic and community impact. It brings the country together in excitement and joy." Other signatories include two-time world heptathlon champion and Paris 2024 Olympic silver medallist Katarina Johnson-Thompson, double Athens 2004 Olympic gold medallist Dame Kelly Holmes, 2023 world 1500 metres champion Josh Kerr and 2019 world 200 metres champion Dina Asher-Smith. A steer in the spending review would give an indication that the bid has not been forgotten. The funding itself would not be required until 2028, but the finance needs to be guaranteed by September, the deadline for organisers to submit a formal expression of interest to World Athletics. A successful bid would see London host the world championships for the first time since 2017, an event that boasted a sold-out stadium for every session. PA has contacted the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) for comment. The letter continues: "We know there are tough decisions facing the country. But this isn't just about sport. It's about opportunity, inclusion, wellbeing-and pride. "Events like this bring economic benefit, drive tourism, and showcase Britain at its best. But above all, they leave a legacy that lives on in communities, schools and families for years to come. "The window to act is short. A decision to back the bid is needed in the coming weeks. We ask you - our government - to show your support and help us bring the world championships home."
