Vientiane Capital, Lao PDR - November 2022 - Tanner and De Witt supports the Lao Rugby Federation to provide rugby and life skills learning opportunities through the Champa Ban Youth Rugby Program.
The Lao Rugby Federation is proud to welcome Tanner De Witt to the LRF family with their sponsorship supporting one set of village youth rugby teams in Vientiane Province, Lao PDR. “Champa Ban” means blossoming flower in Lao language, and the program currently involves nearly 3,000 young players across the country who participate in weekly rugby and life skills sessions as part of the Pass It Back curriculum. Through the program, youth Coaches aged 16 to 25 are trained by internationally accredited rugby trainers, life skills instructors and first-aid trainers to go onto coach teams in their respective communities.
The Pass It Back curriculum uses rugby as a tool to support learning across key life and leadership skills topics including gender equality, future planning, preventing violence and sexual reproductive health and rights. The LRF has delivered over 30,000 sessions to more than 10,000 players since piloting the curriculum in 2012. Annually, over 100 community-based coaches are trained to become specialists in the curriculum content as well as becoming role models and ambassadors for the game for other young people and community members in their villages.
Vientiane Province, located 1-2 hours north of the nation’s capital, represents the new frontier for the rugby community in Laos, with one of the fastest growing player and coach populations in the country. Since a pilot project in 2018, the Vientiane Province rugby community has expanded to include over 300 players in 24 teams.
“The Lao Rugby Federation is proud to welcome Tanner De Witt into the Champa Ban Connect family,” Mr. Virayouth Rathikoun, LRF President, commented at the sponsorship agreement signing. “With the first full school year underway since COVID interruptions, more young people will have a chance to learn valuable life skills through rugby and develop the LRF community thanks to Tanner De Witt.”
The 2022-2023 support from Tanner De Witt for the Champa Ban Youth Rugby Program has allowed the LRF to involve two additional male and two additional female teams from Vientiane Province to join in the National Youth League supporting more than 50 young people from rural Laos to learn important life and leadership skills through 32 integrated sport sessions over 12 months.
The LRF would like to thank the community of Tanner De Witt for their support of Champa Ban Youth Rugby in Vientiane Province, and across the country. Their support has allowed children and youth to pursue their passion, obtain life skills, and foster leadership skills through the sport of rugby.
About Lao Rugby Federation - The Lao Rugby Federation (LRF) is the governing body for all rugby activities within the Lao PDR and focuses on developing sport through school and community development initiatives for youth and senior domestic and international representative teams.
About Tanner De Witt Solicitors - Tanner De Witt is a renowned independent law firm located in Hong Kong. First established in 1999, Tanner De Witt is now comprised of over 100 lawyers. Mainly working in the areas of dispute resolution, Tanner De Witt works in several areas of international law.
For more information about this press release, please contact:
Phone: +856 21 315 795
Email: info@laorugby.com
Website: www.laorugby.com