Prince William leads virtual meeting with UK's athletes, talks importance of mental health

Prince William and Kate Middleton have dedicated years of effort towards the cause of mental wellbeing. During the pandemic, the Duke of Cambridge sent out several reminders to the public to take care of their mental health particularly at the time of the global health crisis. Now, the royal is reaching out to the athletes and urging them to focus on mental and emotional well-being.

According to People, Prince William joined a round table conference with several other A-listers of the sporting world to discuss the impact of positive mental health for the athletes. Speaking from his Norfolk home Anmer Hall in a virtual meeting, the duke was joined by sporting personalities like Jamie Murray, Ellie Simmonds, Dame Sarah Storey, Lizzy Yarnold, and Alex Scott alongside Oliver Dowden, the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport.

The meeting was held in regard to the government's Mental Health and Elite Sports Action Plan as the industry is scheduled to reopen in the UK next week after the coronavirus lockdown restrictions are lifted.

During the call, the royal and the players discussed how they can contribute to creating awareness about mental health issues for the general public. He considered it a "unique opportunity" to bring about positive change in the sports industry. He even talked about the Heads Up campaign, a mental health campaign against the prevention of suicide that is being promoted by the UK's Football Association.

"Through the Heads Up campaign, the football community has come together to do its part in driving lasting change by encouraging people to open up about their mental wellbeing, at the same time as embedding a mentally healthy culture across the sport," the father-of-three said during the call. "I believe that there is more we can do collectively to ensure this is replicated across all of sport. And that is why I am so happy to be here with you all to discuss how we can make that a reality. We have a unique opportunity to use the tragedy of the pandemic to bring about positive change. As the sporting world begins to return it is vital that we talk about the mental wellbeing of our sportspeople and fans."

Towards the end, Dowden thanked the prince and other personalities for participating in the meeting and informed that as they return to work there is support available for everyone to talk about mental health. "Sport is leading the way in this important conversation, and I pay tribute to football and the Duke for leading a generational shift to attitudes on mental health," Dowden said.