The 4 mayors: Washam, Atkins, Knox, Aneralla
April 27. More than 1,200 Lake Norman people took part in the very first Mayors’ Fitness Challenge. Davidson won the Most Fit Town award while Cornelius came second. Huntersville; third; and Mooresville, fourth.
All of this in the midst of a global pandemic.
The majority of COVID-19 deaths in the United States have occurred in people with underlying diseases, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Coronavirus was the only cause mentioned in 6 percent of COVID-19 deaths.
Huntersville Mayor John Aneralla said the statistics got him thinking. “What can we do to get people in shape in a competition so that we can fight this disease,” said the mayor.
The mayors of all four cities and 1,223 citizens have registered.
A total of three million minutes later, the Fitness Challenge was completed in 12 weeks.
“The underreported crisis that emerged during the pandemic is that so many of our citizens are out of shape, leading to diabetes and heart disease or both,” said Aneralla, cyclist and swimmer.
