“Our wish is to train once with Fortuna Düsseldorf!” Fortuna Düsseldorf fulfilled this wish of the primary schoolchildren participating in the initiative “SMS. Sei schlau. Mach mit. Sei fit.” (in English: Be smart. Join in. Be fit.) and invited them to a training session at the Youth Academy Center located at Flinger Broich. The training sessions were led by coaches of the Fortuna youth teams. “For us, guiding children toward a healthy lifestyle is an essential responsibility of society. For this reason, we believe that the initiative of the German Diabetes Center “Be smart. Join in. Be fit.” is important, and we are very glad to support it,” said former Bundesliga player Sascha Rösler, explaining why Fortuna has been committed to the initiative since the last three years.
The initiative "SMS. Be smart. Join in. Be fit." led by DZD Professor Karsten Müssig shall make children in Düsseldorf and Cologne primary schools aware of the benefits of a healthy diet and more exercise. The participating children receive extra lessons on nutrition in cooperation with the Educational Center for Dietary Assistants of the Kaiserswerther Diakonie and take part in the exercise program for primary schools “Fitness for Kids” developed by sports scientist Dr. Kerstin Ketelhut. The two health insurance companies IKK classic and KKH, the organization diabetesDE - German Diabetes Aid, the Sports Department of Düsseldorf and other renowned partners and prominent people support the project and provide other attractive venues outside the classroom for the participating children. Thomas Geisel, mayor of the state capital Düsseldorf, is patron of the project.
More information about the initiative can be found at: www.sms-mach-mit.de