Joe Wicks receives honorary university degree: It’s an absolute honour

Social media fitness coach Joe Wicks has described receiving an honorary university degree as “an absolute honour”.

Wicks, 38, was awarded the accolade from Loughborough University in Leicestershire during a ceremony on Tuesday for his work promoting health and wellbeing for all.

He said: “It’s an absolute honour and a privilege to be recognised by Loughborough University in this way.

“The university has a great reputation in sport, health, and wellbeing so to receive an honorary degree makes me feel incredibly proud.”

In a post to Instagram, he added that it was “wonderful” to be able to enjoy the day with his mother Raquela.

“Congratulations to all of you who graduated today and good luck for the future”, he said.

“I hope you enjoyed my speech. ‘If you’re going to miss the bus, miss it running’: Gary Wicks, 2016.”

The university’s vice chancellor for sport, Professor Jo Maher, said: “It is a great honour for us to recognise someone who has had such a positive impact on public health and wellbeing, a cause that is the central focus of all we do here at Loughborough University.

“Joe gets the whole family moving, turns our living rooms into gyms, and makes exercise fun, using his influence to campaign for better access to healthy spaces, healthy foods, and healthy living advice.”

The university is known for its focus on sport with Lord Coe and Paula Radcliffe among its graduates.

Wicks, who is also known as The Body Coach, shot to fame with his PE fitness classes on YouTube, which helped to get the nation fit during the Covid 19 pandemic.

Last month he led a fitness session at Glastonbury Festival just 10 days after he and wife Rosie welcomed their fourth child, a boy called Dusty.

On Monday, Spice Girls star Melanie Brown was awarded an honorary doctorate by Leeds Beckett University for her work campaigning for victims of domestic abuse, while comedian Josh Widdicombe received an honorary degree from the University of Exeter.