Sports captains at a private school have started a campaign to keep pupils fit despite Covid-19 restrictions.

Ellie Richmond and Andre Mussenden, both 16, of Warwick Academy, said that the Dig Deep Fitness Challenge asked schoolmates to submit videos of them taking part in sports.

The two said that the campaign, launched last Monday, had got off to a good start.

They added that, although they had not received many submissions so far, the videos they had seen were encouraging.

Andre, from Smiths, said: “We have been impressed by the videos and talents that the students at Warwick Academy have, and otherwise would not be seen in a day-to-day setting.

“We were also surprised, but incredibly grateful for, the support we received from our teachers and their willingness to allow our plan to come to fruition.”

The Dig Deep Fitness Challenge was designed to get high school pupils to film themselves keeping up with a series of challenges.

The campaign was originally intended to keep pupils active while they had online classes.

But Andre and Ellie decided to push ahead with the programme after pupils returned to school on May 10 because sports activities were still restricted.

Ellie, from Southampton, said the campaign started off with a two-week talent section, where participants were asked to showcase their physical skills.

She added that it would be followed by a two-week stamina challenge, where pupils would film themselves doing activities such as biking, swimming or running.

Ellie said: “We were hoping to give students something to look forward to and to give them something to do outside of schoolwork, but also a way to get students active and involved during remote learning.”

She added: “We thought it was important to get the students to be more active and go outside for some fresh air.

“Being stuck inside for a prolonged period of time and working at a desk can get very tiresome and it’s not good for your mental and physical health.

“However, we did not want to create something that would drain time away from them.”

Ellie said that she and Andre spread news of the campaign with a promotional video that they sent to the heads of years from year 7 to year 12.

She added that they expected to receive more videos this week as news of the challenge spread.

Ellie said: “Year 7,8,9 and 11 were all given the opportunity to participate in this challenge and from what we have heard so far people are enjoying the idea of being a part of something that promotes being active.

“This also allowed students to show off their talents to the school.”

The two captains said that their goal also included a reminder to pupils that they did not have to be athletic stars to play and enjoy sport.

They added that they looked forward to helping fellow pupils improve their sports skills through events like the school’s annual Swim Gala and Sports Day.