THE first ever Us Girls Rocks Festival which took place on Sunday at Leigh Sports Village has been hailed as a huge success by organisers.

The event, which featured a wide range of free sporting activities along with an FA Girls’ Football Festival, was aimed at encouraging young women aged 14 to 25 to get active and have fun.

Young women from across the north west were invited to take part in sports such as taekwondo, judo, handball, volleyball, table tennis and netball, plus dance and fitness, free beauty treatment and lifestyle advice.

Around 150 girls, most of them taking part in sport for the first time, participated in the FA’s Girls’ Football Festival led by FA coaches.

They were accompanied by Team GB, England and Lincoln Ladies football star Jess Clarke who gave the girls an insight into the life of a semi-professional female footballer.

The event which was run by StreetGames and Wigan Leisure and Culture Trust’s Sports Development Unit, had a fun and friendly atmosphere with music, prize giveaways, free beauty treatments, hair styling and health checks.

Team GB Olympian and new Us Girls Champion Sophie Cox held judo taster sessions and answered questions about her sport and career.

Helen Crowley from Us Girls said: “It was an amazing day and the turnout was fantastic. I saw a lot of young women playing sport with big smiles on their faces, which is exactly what Us Girls is about.”