CONOR BENN STEPS INTO THE RING AS THE FACE OF YOUTH SPORT TRUST'S NATIONAL SCHOOL SPORTS WEEK 2026

Published: 09/03/2026 | Written by: Alex Courbat

You've seen him standing tall in front of packed stadiums, but this story? It isn't about titles or bright lights. It's about what happens when movement becomes medicine, when sport becomes a refuge, and when simply showing up can quietly transform a young person's life. As the face of Youth Sport Trust's National School Sports Week 2026, Conor Benn is championing a mission that stretches far beyond belts and boxing bouts. At a time when more children than ever are battling isolation, anxiety and inactivity, the real question isn't who's winning – it's who's being left behind.

Conor Benn's alarm goes off at half-past four most mornings. By five, he's already running – 5.5 kilometres before the rest of his neighbourhood has stirred. It's a routine he's kept for years now, even when there's no fight on the horizon. Especially when there's no fight on the horizon.

"My dad's 62 and he still trains like it's a religion," Conor explains. "Every morning, like clockwork. I used to wonder why he was so obsessed with it. I never really understood until I got older." What Conor eventually realised – what his father had worked out decades before – is that training isn't just physical. It's also mental.

"It releases endorphins, makes you feel good about yourself," he says. "And this isn't just for kids. This goes across all ages. You haven't got to be the best, you haven't got to be competitive. You just need to love and enjoy it."

It's this philosophy that made Conor the perfect face for the National School Sports Week 2026 initiative. The UK's leading children's charity for improving education and development through play and sport, Youth Sport Trust has been running National School Sports Week every year since 2008. This year's theme – Summer of Sport – celebrates the Commonwealth Games, the Winter Olympics, and the men's World Cup, using these events as inspiration to get Britain's kids moving.

But beneath the excitement of elite competition lies a more urgent mission: getting young people to understand that sport isn't about placing first on a podium. It's about those 60 minutes of vigorous physical activity every day that the Chief Medical Officer recommends – the hot and sweaty, heart-rate-elevated kind that over 40% of families don't even know is recommended, let alone achieve.

Because the statistics are stark. One in five children aged eight to sixteen in England has a probable mental health disorder. More than one in five year six pupils are obese, with rates twice as high in the most deprived areas. 84%

per cent of parents believe their children are spending too much time online and not enough time with each other in person.

For Conor, these aren't just numbers. They're the kids in his community – the ones who never make it through the door of his gym. And it shouldn't be like that.

Boxing gyms have always been democratic spaces. As Conor puts it: "A place for the rich, for the poor, for the broken, for the healed, for the strong, for the weak. It's a place for everybody and nobody judges."

It's this levelling of the playing field that Youth Sport Trust champions across all sports and physical activities. Their programmes show that when young people take part, 74% of educators report improvements in school engagement. 75% of participants report improved resilience. 79% feel more confident in sport and physical activity. And 75% say they're happier.

"You don't notice it daily," Conor says, echoing the experience of thousands of young people who've gone through Youth Sport Trust programmes. "But when you look back in six months, you see the difference. You see how much it's changed your life."

The beauty of the Youth Sport Trust approach is that it's not prescriptive. National School Sports Week isn't about forcing every child into competitive sport. It's about finding what works.

"It could be PE, it could be play, it could be competitive sport," explains the Youth Sport Trust team. "We want to make sure that for their health and wellness, they're moving their bodies. They don't need to be scoring all the goals or placing on the podium. We want them to be having fun moving their bodies."

For some, like Conor, that might mean the structured discipline of a boxing gym. "Skippy, shadow boxing, pad work, bag work," Conor lists. "There's so many different ways to get involved before you ever have to think about sparring. Make it fun, get them moving, teach them the fundamentals. If they want to take it to the next level, that comes naturally."

For others, it might be swimming, football, dance, or simply running outdoors. The key is variety and accessibility.

And for those who don't see themselves as athletes at all, there are other ways in. "They could find their way within sport through coaching," the Youth Sport Trust team points out. "It could be the science behind it, learning about the data of physicality. It could just be being embedded in a sporting community. They're all so good for your social skills, for your mental health, for your physical health."

What particularly excites Conor about his role as the face of National School Sports Week is the emphasis on mental health and social development – aspects of sport that often go unspoken in traditional athletics.

"If you really want to find yourself and find out who you are, what you're made of, boxing is that sport," he says. "You find out how resilient you are, how strong you are – not just physically, but mainly mentally."

This aligns perfectly with Youth Sport Trust's recognition that sport provides more than physical benefits. In an age where children are losing vital social skills to screen time, physical activity offers something screens can't: human connection. It's a chance to step away from doom scrolling and video games – to be present in a way that's increasingly rare and to find that sense of community and belonging that so many young people are searching for.

Conor has seen this transformation first-hand, watching youngsters go from isolated to integrated simply by showing up to the gym three days a week. "Kids come into the boxing gym with their heads down, can't speak to anyone, so shy. Six months later? Head up, chest out, talking to adults like it's nothing. It's incredible what sport – and boxing – can do."

He remembers one lad in particular – Josh Clark – who used to come round to his house. "Quiet kid. Really quiet. A few months later, he's a great little fighter. But how did he know he had that in him until he did it?" he says. "You're putting yourself in an environment that might be intimidating," he acknowledges. "You may not feel comfortable at first. But you're going to be in intimidating rooms sometimes in life. You're going to be in environments where you don't feel comfortable. Get comfortable."

As the face of National School Sports Week, Conor Benn embodies something bigger than celebrity endorsement. It's a recognition that the face of a campaign should live and breathe its values – and few people understand the transformative power of daily movement better than someone who's built their entire life around it. Someone who has tested that belief in the hardest possible circumstances – and found it held.

This summer, as the world's elite athletes compete on the global stage, Youth Sport Trust is asking a different question: what if every child in Britain had the chance to discover their own version of that transformation? Not to become world champions, necessarily, but to find structure, build resilience, make friends, and – crucially – to be happier.

It's a simple question with profound implications. For the 75% of young people who report improved happiness after taking part in Youth Sport Trust programmes, the answer is already clear. For the thousands more who could benefit but haven't yet taken that first step, National School Sports Week 2026 offers an invitation.

As Conor puts it: "You just need to get there." So, see you there!

Youth Sport Trust is the UK's leading children's charity for improving the education and development of every child through play and sport. National School Sports Week 2026 runs this summer, celebrating the Commonwealth Games, Winter Olympics, and men's World Cup whilst encouraging all young people to move their bodies every day. To get involved with National School Sports Week, visit https://www.youthsporttrust.org/.