Sport In Mind, the UK mental health sports charity, has launched its new Saving Lives Through Sport campaign, shining a light on the powerful role movement can play in supporting mental health and helping people feel connected before they reach crisis point.
Every year, around 200 children lose their lives to suicide. Sport In Mind believes that prevention starts much earlier and that sport and physical activity can offer far more than physical benefits. For some, it can provide confidence, routine, connection, a sense of belonging and a community of people around them when they need it most.
The campaign launches on World Mental Health Day, 10th October 2026, bringing together a powerful new film to celebrate the mental health benefits of running and the launch of Sport In Mind’s 100K Your Way Challenge, giving people across the country a simple way to get moving and support the charity’s work.
At the heart of the campaign is a new film, directed by Paul Jordan and produced by Megan Sutton, which has been more than two years in the making. A true labour of love, the project brought together 18 animators from six countries, and an army of wider creative collaborators who all contributed their time and talent to bring the idea to life. Many were drawn to the project through their own personal connection to running and its impact on their mental health. The result is a unique mix of animation styles and live-action footage that reflects the diversity of the running community.
The film features everything from 2D drawing and 3D CGI to model-making, paper collage, fuzzy felt, stop-frame and AI-assisted animation, including work from a stop-frame animator who worked on Fantastic Mr Fox. It features runners of different ages and abilities, including a wheelchair user, a blind runner and Sport In Mind ambassador and former footballer and Love Island star Dejon Noel-Williams.
The lyrics, performed by Genesis Elijah, were written by Paul Jordan and originally conceived as a three-act spoken word poem. The film moves from stereotypical images of the archetypal runner, through a celebration of the many different people who run, to its central message: that what ultimately unites runners is the way running makes them feel.
The film’s Creative Director Paul Jordan said: “For me, this campaign is deeply personal. Running has given me so much over the years including space, clarity and a way to feel more like myself and creating this film felt like a way of giving something back. I see it as a love letter to running, and a way of repaying what I think of as a kind of ‘life debt’.”
Alongside the film, Sport In Mind is challenging people to take part in 100K Your Way, completing 100K in 10 days from 10th October 2026. Participants can walk, run, cycle, swim, or combine different activities, doing it alone or with friends, family or colleagues.
In partnership with the NHS, Sport In Mind has already supported more than 60,000 children, young people and adults through sport and physical activity, with 94% reporting improved mental wellbeing after taking part. Challenge participants are encouraged to raise sponsorship to help Sport In Mind support more people. Just £54 will enable 10 people to access the healing power of sport at a Sport In Mind session, providing a safe space to get active, connect with others and support their mental wellbeing.
Neil Harris, Founder and CEO of Sport In Mind, said: “Sport has the power to change much more than our physical health. It can give people confidence, connection, routine and a sense of belonging, and that is the message we wanted to bring to life through Saving Lives Through Sport. The new film is a brilliant celebration of what movement can mean to different people and shows that there is no one way to move and no one reason to do it.
“We hope it inspires people to find their own way to move, while reminding them that looking after our mental health can start with something as simple as putting one foot in front of the other. That’s why we’re also launching our 100K Your Way Challenge on World Mental Health Day, giving everyone the opportunity to get involved, get moving and help us reach more people through the life-changing benefits of sport and physical activity.”
