Emerging Athlete Support Initiative. Application pack

Transcription

1 Emerging Athlete Support Initiative Application pack

2 Emerging Athlete Support Initiative Introduction As part of the London 2012 legacy Surrey Sports Park piloted a new initiative during the academic year offering a select number of track & field athletes the unique opportunity to receive world-class performance support from our performance team worth up to the value of 2500 per annum. Following the success of the programme in its first two years, we are pleased to announce that we are now accepting applications for the academic year. The Emerging Athlete Support Initiative (EASI) aims to enhance the representation of talented athletes from the south-east of England. While many of the country s leading athletes receive the finest support services available, such amenities are not always available to emerging athletes. Limitations to the funding available for select sports often leaves gaps in service provision within the existing support programmes of talented athletes. With this in mind, EASI offers those eligible for the programme a specialist vehicle to fulfil their sporting potential through access to sports science, strength and conditioning, nutrition and lifestyle support. EASI is specifically interested in working collaboratively with coaches, clubs, schools, colleges, community partners and National Governing Body s in the identification of the south-east s most promising athletes and in nurturing their talent. We act as a support function to both the coach and athlete. Eligibility requirements To be eligible for EASI, applicants need to: be between the ages of 16 and 25 live in one of the following regions: Surrey, Greater London, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire, Oxfordshire or Kent compete in athletics at a high-performance level (or the potential to do so)* be serious about fulfilling their performance potential complete and return the required application by the 12 th September 2014 * we have refrained from specifying a certain level or ranking in the realisation that this may preclude individuals with serious potential from gaining a place on the initiative 1

3 How to apply To apply, you are required to submit: a supporting statement from an appropriately qualified and experienced individual or organisation (i.e. coach, National Governing Body official, support staff) a personal statement outlining your sporting achievements to date and why you believe you should offered a place on the EASI scheme. The following information should also be included within your personal statement: o full name o date of birth o contact address and phone number o home address o the event(s) you compete in and the level you are competing at (include your major achievements) o contact details for the individual or organisation providing a supporting statement for you Applications should be sent to James Wild, using the address j.wild@surrey.ac.uk, by no later than 12pm on Friday 12 th September Please include EASI application within your title. Following a shortlisting process, applicants will be invited to interview and meet the performance team before the announcement of the successful candidates is made. Active engagement Successful candidates will be expected to actively engage fully in the initiative and abide by the terms and conditions laid out in the EASI Athlete Agreement in Appendix A. About Surrey Sports Park Surrey Sports Park has and continues to play its part in building a national legacy of sport. Our University of Surrey owned multimillion pound facility offers a venue that hosts some of the best facilities in the world, attracting its own international and national events and teams that bring world class athletes to Surrey. The Park hosted 16 Olympic and Paralympic teams for pre-games training including GB Basketball, Singapore, US Triathlon and Chinese Synchronised Swimming. It is the permanent training base of Harlequins, netball Superleague team Surrey Storm, British Basketball League Club Surrey Heat and UK top 5 swimming club Guildford City. Our performance team has experience working with athletes competing at national to full international level in multiple sports including athletics, judo, alpine skiing, kayaking, rowing, netball, basketball, tennis, fencing, rugby, gymnastics, swimming, lacrosse, cycling, triathlon and more. 2

4 Testimonials I am so lucky to be part of the Emerging Athlete Support Initiative run by the Surrey Sports Park. I have been part of the scheme since last September and I have not looked back. I am a Paralympic athlete competing for Team GB in the 100m, 200m, 4 x 100m relay and long jump events. I compete in the IPC T38 class which is for athletes with mild cerebral palsy. At London 2012 I achieved 5 th place in the final of the 100m final, 8 th in the final of the 200m and a bronze medal in the 4 x 100m. Over the last year I have improved my 100m PB by half a second and qualified for the Commonwealth Games in which I will compete in the long jump for Wales. I am one of only a handful of Sky Sports scholarship athletes. I am part of an athletics academy at Oaklands College in St Albans and train there with my head coach for the majority of the week. James and his team have been amazing in providing specialist support to my current set-up at Oaklands. Back in September they performed various tests on me. From these original tests they wrote a physical preparation programme for me in conjunction with my head coach and UKA coach. They perform the same tests every few months so that I can see where I am making improvements. So far I have improved in all areas and it is great to see my hard work and the patience and dedication of all the staff at SSP paying off. I have also seen a nutritionist who has written me a nutrition plan based on my own needs and this is really helping with my training. I have trouble sleeping and the staff at SSP are also trying to help me with this by monitoring my sleep patterns. I also receive sports therapy treatment to keep my body healthy. James keeps in regular touch with my coaches via , phone and by posting videos on Dropbox. The therapy team also liases regularly with my physio. I feel that I am in really safe hands and that everyone s main concern is my well-being, progress and development. All in all my whole experience with everyone at SSP has been incredibly positive and I am indebted to all the staff there for the support I receive. Being an athlete can be really tough. There is not much financial support available particularly for Paralympic athletes. It can also be quite lonely and hard to keep motivated, especially when things go wrong. I am so fortunate that SSP chose me as one of their emerging athletes as the work they do with me has been so instrumental in the improvements I have made. All the team are all so lovely they are fun, supportive, friendly and really can t do enough to help me become the best I can be. I really look forward to the days I spend at SSP as I know the help I am getting is really helping me but it is also really good fun. - Olivia Breen (17), Paralympic sprint, long jump athlete and EASI athlete

5 I have been training with the Surrey Strength team for about 10 months now as part of the Emerging Athlete Support Initiative (EASI), to help me improve at Discus. Over this time all of the attributes necessary for me to succeed such as speed, power and strength have improved significantly. I wholly believe this is due to the highly specific strength programmes that they have put together for me that involve a variety of power improving exercises. The EASI scheme has helped me in more ways than in strength and power gains. I ve visited a sports therapist who has helped me with my flexibility and showed me exercises that address particular areas that I m weak in. The people on the team are genuinely nice individuals who really want to get the best out of you, so that you achieve to your full potential for whatever sport you train for. - Omar Reid (18), international discus thrower and EASI athlete 2014 The support provided by the EASI programme has really helped improve my performance. I have made a lot of progress this season in terms of my strength, power and speed on the track and the work I have done with James also helped to develop my sprint technique. This has contributed to me achieving a new PB and a medal at the English Schools Championships. - Matilda Rainsborough (17), 400m sprinter and EASI athlete 2013 James has been pivotal in providing a structures programme of strength & conditioning to Matilda. I have been hugely impressed with his attention to detail and his empathy in developing individually tailored strength, power, injury prevention and drill-based programmes tailored. The EASI programme has certainly been of support to me as an athletics coach. - Alli Crossman (400m and middle distance athletics coach). 4

6 Appendix A EASI Athlete Agreement 5

7 EASI Athlete Agreement Terms and conditions We recognise the importance of maintaining a well-regulated environment and professional support mechanism for athletes to excel in their event(s). In return, they will be expected to: Attending appointments and training sessions 1) Attend and be punctual to all agreed appointments and training sessions 2) Arrive in appropriate training attire (or bring it with them to change into) complying with the following regulations: a. Shoes must be worn for all sessions. Only certain athletic shoes are permissible. This would include running trainers, and weightlifting shoes during gym sessions and running trainers or spikes during track based sessions. Footwear must be clean b. Athletes are required to wear either sports shorts or tracksuit trousers. Jeans, or non-sporting shorts are not permitted c. T-shirts, tracksuit tops and sports vests are required. Dress shirts or any tops with offensive language or graphics are not allowed d. No hats are allowed e. Any jewellery that may possibly injure an athlete is not permitted during lifting sessions, including rings and necklaces. Small earrings and items that cannot possibly inhibit a lifter or injure them are approved Physical preparation and development 2) Work with their Strength & Conditioning Coach and their existing Head Coach in relation to their individual physical preparation and development plan. This will typically include, but is not limited to: a. an annual plan b. a weekly training structure c. a needs analysis d. physical performance goals e. a monitoring strategy to measure performance improvements f. a monitoring strategy to prevent overtraining 3) Follow his or her physical preparation plan and to seek the prior consent of the Strength & Conditioning Coach and existing Head Coach for any change in it 6

8 General media 1) Consent to his or her training sessions being filmed and recorded by or on behalf of Surrey Sports Park and agree that these films and all rights will be the property of Surrey Sports Park and may be used for non-commercial training, coaching and research purposes 2) Agree to allow Surrey Sports Park to use their image during the EASI programme period. No use is permitted whatsoever if such use would be detrimental to the reputation of the athlete or otherwise derogatory or offensive 3) Engage in a maximum of 4 half days of appearances in any year of the EASI programme period at mutually agreed dates / times 4) Actively use social media to publicise the support you receive as part of the EASI programme Confidentiality and data protection 1) Acknowledge that all personal information will remain confidential at all times (both during and after the end of the EASI programme period) 2) Acknowledge that all personal information provided by him or her may be stored electronically and will not be passed on to others unless written permission is given by the athlete User agreement Note: the following agreement should only be signed if the Athlete is successful for the EASI programme. This should not be completed as part of the application pack. I [ ]have read and fully understand the rules and regulations within this document and agree to abide by them during the length of the EASI programme period: Signed by: Signature (Athlete) Print name Date Signature of Parent / Guardian* Print name Date * (or person with parental responsibility, if athlete is under the age of 18) 7