A Week to Beat the World
A Week to Beat the World - Season 1
In a competition like no other, UK kids travel around the world to take on locals at their national sports. With just a week to learn the rules, can they beat the experts?
Where to Watch A Week to Beat the World • A Week to Beat the World - Season 1
36 Episodes
- Guatemala Day 1E1
Guatemala Day 1The boys' team of rugby player Franc, American footballer Reef and gymnast Sol are in Guatemala to learn about the ancient Maya ball game of pitz, the sport they will play in a tournament at the end of the week. Led by presenter Karim Zeroual, their first action-packed day involves a visit to ancient Mayan ruins, before witnessing this unusual sport in action. They meet their head coach Javier and the local Maya teens with whom they will be training all week, before chomping on a pretty terrifying traditional welcome meal. Finally, they face a shaman ceremony - one that asks the Maya ancestors if our boys are allowed to take part in this sacred sport. If the ancestors say no, the boys' team and Karim will be on the next flight home. - Guatemala Day 2E2
Guatemala Day 2It is day two of the boys’ team adventure in Guatemala, Central America, for rugby player Franc, American footballer Reef and gymnast Sol. Watched over and cheered on by presenter Karim Zeroual, they are here to learn the ancient Mayan ball game of pitz, the sport they have to play in a tournament at the end of the week. Led by head coach Javier, the boys join locals to have their first intense training session and quickly experience the dangers of this brutal sport. Meanwhile, presenter Karim Zeroual goes off in search of Guatemalan chillies at the local market – and gets more than he bargained for. - Guatemala Day 3E3
Guatemala Day 3It is day three of the boys' team adventure in Guatemala, Central America, for rugby player Franc, American footballer Reef and gymnast Sol. Watched over and cheered on by presenter Karim Zeroual, they are here to learn the ancient Mayan ball game of pitz, the sport they will play in a tournament at the end of the week. This time, led by head coach Javier along with Karim, the boys are taken to a local coffee plantation, to work like the locals and understand the lifestyle that makes Mayans so tough. Later, they are put through their paces when training during a tropical storm, and Karim sets up a traditional Guatemalan birthday surprise to celebrate team member Sol’s twelfth birthday – piñatas! - Guatemala Day 4E4
Guatemala Day 4It’s day four of the boys' team adventure in Guatemala, Central America, for rugby player Franc, American footballer Reef and gymnast Sol. Watched over and cheered on by presenter Karim Zeroual, they are here to learn the ancient Mayan ball game of pitz. Tomorrow, they are taking on the locals in a pitz tournament, so today is their last chance to master new skills. Led by head coach Javier, the boys race across a volcanic lake on traditional Mayan flat-bottomed canoes. They then have their final training session before the big match tomorrow as Karim takes part in another traditional ball sport that has a hot and scary twist. - Guatemala Day 5E5
Guatemala Day 5It is the final day of the boys' team adventure in Guatemala, Central America, for rugby player Franc, American footballer Reef and gymnast Sol. Watched over and cheered on by presenter Karim Zeroual, over the course of five days, under the guidance of head coach Javier, the boys have been learning to play the ancient Mayan game of pitz. Today, they have to put everything they have learnt into practice in a match against the locals. Dressed in the outfits of Mayan warriors, in front of a crowd and cheered on by Karim, can they beat the locals at their own game? - Kenya Day 1E6
Kenya Day 1The girls' team of sprinter Alesha, boxer Jocelyn and show jumper and runner Neisha are in Kenya to learn the sports of the legendary African tribe the Maasai warriors. At the end of the week, they will represent their host village in a local tournament involving three of these sports: spear throwing, rungu throwing and the high jump - Maasai style! Led by presenter Camille Ucan, their first action-packed day involves a tour of the village that will be their base for the week. They meet their mentor, village chief Kapito, and some of the local teens who will be training and competing with them. Meanwhile, Camille gets her hands dirty - quite literally - helping the women of the village with some DIY. Finally, the girls are thrown in at the deep end with their very first terrifying challenge - stick fighting the village chief! - Kenya Day 2E7
Kenya Day 2It's day two of the girls' team adventure in Kenya, East Africa, for sprinter Alesha, boxer Jocelyn and showjumper and runner Neisha. Watched over and cheered on by presenter Camille Ucan, they are here to learn the sporting skills of the legendary Maasai warriors: spear-throwing, rungu-throwing and the high jump (Maasai style!) At the end of the week, they will represent their host village in a tournament of these sports against other local Maasai. Today, led by mentor and village chief Kapito, the girls have their first intense training session in the high jump. They get involved in local life with a race to collect water for the village, and Camille tries to impress the locals with her singing prowess. - Kenya Day 3E8
Kenya Day 3It's day three of the girls' team adventure in Kenya, East Africa, for sprinter Alesha, boxer Jocelyn and show jumper and runner Neisha. Watched over and cheered on by presenter Camille Ucan, they are here to learn the sporting skills of the legendary Maasai Warriors: spear throwing, rungu throwing and the high jump (Maasai style!) At the end of the week, they will represent their host village in a tournament of these sports against other local Maasai. Today, led by mentor and village chief Kapito, the girls have their next intense training session, this time in spear throwing. They have the experience of a lifetime, going on a game drive to learn more about local wildlife, as Camille attempts to impress the locals (again), this time by organising a very British tradition: a school sports day. - Kenya Day 4E9
Kenya Day 4It's day four of the girls' team adventure in Kenya, East Africa, for sprinter Alesha, boxer Jocelyn and horse rider and runner Neisha. Watched over and cheered on by presenter Camille Ucan, they are here to learn the sporting skills of the legendary Maasai warriors: spear throwing, rungu throwing and the high jump (Maasai style!) Tomorrow they are representing their host village in a tournament involving all of these sports, competing against other local Maasai, so today is their last chance to learn new skills. After earning their keep in the village by helping the locals on a cattle drive, mentor and village chief Kapito trains them in the sport of rungu throwing. Meanwhile, vegetarian Camille is introduced to a local food favourite - cow's blood. - Kenya Day 5E10
Kenya Day 5It's the final day of the girls' team adventure in Kenya, East Africa, for sprinter Alesha, boxer Jocelyn and showjumper and runner Neisha. Watched over and cheered on by presenter Camille Ucan and under the guidance of village chief Kapito, over the course of five days they have been learning the sports of the legendary Maasai warriors: spear throwing, rungu throwing and the high jump (Maasai style!) Today, they have to put everything they have learned across the week into practice, as they are representing their host village in a tournament involving all three of these sports, competing against neighbouring Maasai warriors. - Brazil Day 1E11
Brazil Day 1The boys' team of rugby player Franc, American footballer Reef and gymnast Sol are in Brazil, South America, to learn about the martial art capoeira. Watched over and cheered on by presenter Karim Zeroual, at the end of the week they are going to be assessed by top capoeiristas on how many moves of this incredible sport they have mastered. Led by Karim, their first action-packed day involves watching an awe inspiring - and for some very confusing - demonstration of capoeira from experts, before meeting head coach, Mestre Sabia. He introduces them to their training partners for the week - some of the top students from his school of capoeira. As the boys take a break to look around their home for the week, Karim learns about a local tradition said to bring good luck. Finally, the boys experience their first intense training session, which is unlike anything any of them have ever experienced before. - Brazil Day 2E12
Brazil Day 2It's day two of the boys' team adventure in Brazil, South America, for rugby player Franc, American footballer Reef and gymnast Sol. Watched over and cheered on by presenter Karim Zeroual, they are here to learn the moves of the martial art capoeira. At the end of the week, their challenge is to perform these moves in front of top judges and a local crowd. Today, led by head coach Mestre Sabia, the boys are learning the key capoeira skill of spatial awareness. To do so, Sabia introduces them to local sporting passion, footvolley. As they boys then take part in another intense training session, this time learning the Au - aka cartwheel - presenter Karim tries to make himself useful by cooking the boys a local food delicacy - with some unexpected results. - Brazil Day 3E13
Brazil Day 3It's day three of the boys' team adventure in Brazil, South America, for rugby player Franc, American footballer Reef and gymnast Sol. Watched over and cheered on by presenter Karim Zeroual, they are here to learn the moves of the martial art capoeira. At the end of the week, their challenge is to perform these moves in front of top judges and a local crowd. Today, led by head coach Mestre Sabia and presenter Karim Zeroual, the boys are spending the day in a favela, a low-income neighbourhood on the outskirts of town. This favela is the birthplace of many top capoeiristas. It is also home to a percussion group that Sabia hopes will help teach the boys some rhythm - another key component of the sport. - Brazil Day 4E14
Brazil Day 4It's day four of the boys' team adventure in Brazil, South America, for rugby player Franc, American footballer Reef and gymnast Sol. Watched over and cheered on by presenter Karim Zeroual, they are here to learn the moves of the martial art capoeira, as at the end of the week, their challenge is to perform these moves in front of top judges and a local crowd. Today, led by head coach Mestre Sabia, the boys' final training before the big event is taking place at the beach. In addition to being put through their paces learning yet another complicated capoeira kick - one which even top gymnast Sol struggles with - Sabia tests their balance by throwing them into a surfing lesson on the high seas of the Brazilian coast. Meanwhile, presenter Karim takes the idea of 'fitting in' on the beach a little bit too far. - Brazil Day 5E15
Brazil Day 5It's the final day of the boys' team adventure in Brazil, South America, for rugby player Franc, American footballer Reef and gymnast Sol. Over the course of five days, under the guidance of head coach Mestre Sabia and cheered on by presenter Karim Zeroual, the boys have been learning the moves of martial art capoeira. Today, they have to put everything they have learned into practice as they are going to be judged by top capoeiristas on just how far they have come. Dressed in the outfits of capoeiristas, in front of a local crowd and cheered on by Karim, can they pull off a set of complicated moves and avoid physical injury? - Japan Day 1E21
Japan Day 1The boys’ team of rugby player Franc, American footballer Reef and gymnast Sol are in Japan to learn about the national sport of sumo wrestling. Watched over and cheered on by presenter Karim Zeroual, at the end of the week they are going to compete in a sumo wrestling tournament against top young locals. Led by presenter Karim, their first action-packed day involves a terrifying demonstration of sumo by some impressive – and pretty massive - local competitors. They then meet head coach for the week, Sensei Inahara, and their training partners - some of the top students from his school of sumo. After a quick stop to drop their bags at their accommodation (a sleepover with their training partners) they are straight into their first training session – learning how to stomp and stretch like a pro. Meanwhile, Karim tries to get into the sumo vibe by eating chanko nabe soup, their favourite food – all 10,000 calories of it in one go! - Japan Day 2E22
Japan Day 2The boys’ team of rugby player Franc, American footballer Reef and gymnast Sol are in Japan to learn the national sport of sumo wrestling. Watched over and cheered on by presenter Karim Zeroual, at the end of the week they will be competing in a sumo wrestling tournament against top young locals. Head coach Sensei Inahara has a tough training regime planned for the boys. Today is all about reaction times - a key skill for any good sumo wrestler. After an intense training session during which the boys have their first experience of wearing the mawashi (traditional sumo outfits) – as well as trying to push each other out the ring – Inahara takes them fishing. But this being sumo training, the fishing doesn’t involve rods and they have to catch the fish by hand! Meanwhile, Karim has a taste of how good his reaction times are – and it doesn’t go all that well. - Japan Day 3E23
Japan Day 3The boys’ team of rugby player Franc, American footballer Reef and gymnast Sol are in Japan to learn their national sport of sumo wrestling. Watched over and cheered on by presenter Karim Zeroual, at the end of the week they will be competing in a sumo wrestling tournament against top young locals. Today, head coach Sensai Inahara wants to test the boys’ leg strength – essential if they are going to have a chance of winning a wrestling match. To do so, he is taking them to the mountains to scramble up rivers and squat under freezing cold waterfalls. Meanwhile, Karim is getting wet in a totally different way – trying and failing to work out how to use one of their high-tech toilets. - Japan Day 4E24
Japan Day 4The boys’ team of rugby player Franc, American footballer Reef and gymnast Sol are in Japan to learn their national sport of sumo wrestling. Watched over and cheered on by presenter Karim Zeroual, at the end of the week the boys will be competing in a sumo wrestling tournament against top young locals. Today, head coach Sensai Inahara wants to teach them the importance of body positioning – key to any good sumo move. After an intense training session that involves bashing a heavy wooden pole, followed by facing an actual sumo adult expert in the wrestling ring, he takes them to a dance festival happening in town to see if they can learn some other moves. But there is a twist - their dance teacher is none other than Karim! - Japan Day 5E25
Japan Day 5It’s the final day of the boys’ team adventure in Japan, for rugby player Franc, American footballer Reef and gymnast Sol. Over the course of five days, under the guidance of head coach Sensei Inahara and cheered on by presenter Karim Zeroual, the boys have been learning the art of sumo wrestling. Today they have to put everything they have learnt into practice as they are taking part in a sumo tournament against some top youth players. Looking the part in the traditional outfits of sumo wrestlers, in front of a local crowd and cheered on by Karim, can they pull off a miracle, avoid injury and beat the locals at their own game?