Leading sports medicine specialists are calling for the introduction of mandatory "physical literacy" tests in schools to help children with health problems and identify future talent.
Dr Andrew Franklyn-Miller
told the BBC that the "physical competence" of young people has been jeopardised by the failure to give PE the same priority as other school subjects.
Franklyn-Miller said that testing helps to identify those children who struggle with maths or English, but not for physical development, cardiovascular fitness or co-ordination.
It is also argued that the chance to use the 2012 Games encourage children to become more physically active was an opportunity that had been "missed".
The call came ahead of the UK Sport and Exercise Medicine (UKSEM) Conference, which is taking place at London's ExCeL centre between 23 and 26 November.
Franklyn-Miller said: "Society has deemed it acceptable to aspire to participate rather than achieve, to hope that vaguely defined skills might maintain fitness rather than test our children against benchmarks.
"Surely part of the Olympic legacy should be that we give future generations the benefit of experience that our Olympians give in achievement, aspiration and success?"
Details:
www.uksem.orgImage: Mat Hayward/shutterstock.com
