Mumbai, 23 October 2017 – Laureus World Sports Academy Member Kapil Dev, a legend of Indian cricket, shared the leading role with Bollywood actress and IWC brand ambassador Sonam Kapoor as the pair celebrated the success of the Magic Bus programme in Mumbai, which is supported by Laureus. Kapil Dev and Sonam Kapoor participated in a Magic Bus activity-based session at the District Sports Complex Dharavi (DSC) in Dharavi today, where they interacted with children and young people from the Magic Bus programme.
The Magic Bus India Foundation works with India’s poorest children and young people, taking them from a childhood full of challenges to a life in which they can earn a livelihood.
It is one of the largest anti-poverty programmes in India, with 9,000 trained volunteer mentors helping more than 400,000 children. Laureus has been supporting Magic Bus since 2003. The programme helps children to finish school and move on to vocational institutes or colleges, ultimately becoming taxpaying citizens. It also combats problems such as child marriage and child labour. Magic Bus children finish school up to Grade 12, while more than half of children in India drop out by Grade 10, at age 16.
IWC Schaffhausen is the Global Partner of the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation. Earlier this year, the Da Vinci Chronograph Edition “Laureus Sport for Good Foundation” (Ref. IW393402) was launched, with some of the sales proceeds being used to support the foundation.
Kapil Dev was one cricket’s greatest all-rounders. When he retired in 1994, he had made 5,248 runs with an average of 31.05, and held the world record for the most wickets taken with 434 test wickets. He is now a Laureus Academy Member.