Augie In Action! Augie In Action! - Ihrsa

Cannons Gets a New Shot with Nuffield
Hospital group acquires club chain for $391 million
Aleading private healthcare group in the U.K. has
purchased the Cannons chain of 52 health and
fitness facilities in a deal believed to be worth
about $391 million.
Nuffield Hospitals acquired Health Club Investment Group
Limited, the parent company of Cannons Health & Fitness,
from PPM Capital, a private-equity company, in November.
“Nuffield has been steadily repositioning from being purely
a hospitals operator to being a provider of a broad range of
health services and healthcare,” David Mobbs, the group
chief executive of Nuffield Hospitals, says of the move.
Nuffield is believed to be the first U.K. company to offer businesses
a single point of access to health, wellbeing, and fitness
services, the result of its having launched its Nuffield Proactive
Health service in 2005. On-site health assessment, physiotherapy,
and general practice services proved popular with the corporate
community and, through Cannons, there’s now an opportunity
to introduce these services to a larger audience.
“Cannons and Nuffield Proactive Health can complement
each other’s strengths, and develop together,” observes Chris
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Short Takes | They Don’t Come Any Better than Jessica Biel
For years now, Jessica Biel has
been garnering accolades as a
promising young actress and
as “America’s favorite
fitness girl,” and, on
both counts, CBI is
inclined to agree.
Biel first came to the
public’s attention in
7th Heaven, a TV
series, in 1996,
engaged it fully in the
2004 film Blade: Trinity
as a vampire slayer,
and has since held
onto it with impressive
appearances
in such vehicles
as Elizabethtown,
Stealth, The Illusionist,
and last year’s
comedy, I Now
Pronounce You
Chuck and Larry.
In virtually
every one of them,
she’s either hinted
at, or unabashedly Jessica Biel
Jessop, the chief executive of Nuffield Proactive Health. “We
have expertise in integrating health services with fitness and
exercise, whereas Cannons has built a strong reputation for
operating excellent clubs that are great places to get in shape
and stay healthy.”
“We’re very excited by Nuffield’s vision of a broader-based
health and fitness proposition,” says Cannons Chief Executive
Arnu Misra. “Our colleagues and members can look forward to
a bright, secure, and exciting future under the Nuffield umbrella.”
Commenting on the acquisition, Andree Deane, chief
executive of the Fitness Industry Association (FIA), enthuses,
“We think it’s fantastic news. This is a first for the medical
profession to recognize the fitness industry as a contender for
quality fitness provision… There’s no stronger message than
a takeover of a fitness company.”
Cannons, founded in 1980 by industry veteran Harm Tegelaars,
was purchased by the Royal Bank of Scotland and PPM in 2001 for
approximately $705 million. There are an additional 15 Courtneys
sites in public leisure centers managed by Cannons Leisure Management.
In all, the group serves some 165,000 members. —|
demonstrated, her superb
fitness and extraordinary athleticism.
In Blade: Trinity,
she flexed her taught
biceps as she battled evil,
and, in I Now Pronounce
You Chuck and Larry,
she showcased her svelte
curves in lingerie.
Her physique and
physical vitality are both
the result of hard work—
lots of hard work. Guided
by personal trainer Jason
Walsh, the 5'7" Biel
works out for one hour,
six days a week, with
sessions running the
full gamut, from
jogging and
plyometrics, to
weight training and
yoga. Even during
her free time,
she remains active,
playing volleyball on the
beach, surfing, and hiking
with her dogs.
| News & Know How | News
Recently, Walsh discussed some
of the particulars of Biel’s regimen
with People magazine. Stretch: one
of her favorite exercises, he said, is
the walking lunge. “This stretches the
larger leg and glute muscles.” Cardio:
a .25-mile jog, followed by 200-, 150-,
and 100-meter sprints. “It’s the cardio
than leans her out.” Core: “Hanging
leg raises don’t build a six-pack, but
they flatten. Jessica hates them,
but she powers through!”
Biel, who turns 26 on the 3rd of this
month, has an equally healthy mental
attitude. She refuses to obsess over
her weight, ignores Hollywood’s
fascination with the super-skinny,
and, in fact, doesn’t even own a scale.
Instead, she focuses on her strength
and overall health. Her New Year’s
resolution, according to People: “Stop
eating cheese and start eating kale,”
she told the magazine. “I eat way too
much cheese. Kale is good for you and
delicious with a little garlic.”
When it comes to CBI’s fitness role
models of the month—they don’t
come any better than Jessica Biel. —|
www.ihrsa.org | MARCH 2008 | Club Business International 27
Graham Whitby/Sportsphoto Ltd./Allstar/Newscom