Sportacus

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Sportacus (played by Magnús Scheving, with some stunts by Joe Eigo) is a fictional character from the childrens' television show LazyTown. He is the hero of the show. His name is a portmanteau of the ancient figure Spartacus and the word Sport which represents his athleticism. It is unknown if this is his full real name, or his superhero alias.

He speaks English and Icelandic and is from "an island in the North Sea." In the past, Lazytown was protected by a similar hero from that area with a #9 on his chest (Sportacus wears a number 10). In the first episode when Stephanie was trying to think of how to encourage Lazytown's kids to get active, she sent a message through a tube that was used to communicate with #9, and Sportacus received her message and came to Lazytown. Exactly what #9 and Sportacus' connection is to each other hasn't been explained by the show yet. Sportacus encourages the kids of LazyTown to eat fruit (which he calls Sports Candy) and play outside instead of sitting around indoors. He wants to make sure LazyTown is happy, and knows that they have to be healthy and fit if they want to be happy. Sportacus is so engaged in his life of physical activity that he does gymnastics just to get from place to place--even doing acrobatic flips just to get from one side of his kitchen table to the other--and the children have to instruct him on how to relax.

In the original Icelandic play that the TV series is based on, Sportacus was an elf and was called Íþróttaálfurinn (The Athletic Elf). His superhero vulnerability is sugar; just a small amount quickly makes him fatigued (he calls this a Sugar Meltdown).

[edit] Abilities

Sportacus is very fast and acrobatic. He can get around LazyTown faster than any other person and does exercises such as performing one-handed press ups while eating an apple. He seems to spend most of his free time exercising, preparing healthy meals, and watching for trouble. Inside the number 10 emblem on his chest, he has a crystal that illuminates and beeps when someone nearby is in trouble (though he will rush to the rescue when the crystal isn't signalling if he thinks there is a problem). Once the crystal was jarred loose by Stingy driving his mini-car over Sportacus's back, and in "Lazytown's New Superhero" he surrendered it to Stephanie when she convinced him to take a day off. Sportacus's crystal might be more than just a signal for trouble.

[edit] Airship

The large airship that floats above LazyTown is where Sportacus lives. It has Sportacus' bed, food and other equipment. He travels between here and LazyTown using his pod-like "Skutla". Sportacus gets it to move by pedaling. The airship has a number of fold-out furniture pieces and hidden closets full of sports equipment. Messages can be sent to the airship via a pneumatic launcher next to the mailbox in town. When Sportacus calls for a piece of sports gear, it drops from the airship.