UK Sport

Talent initiative applicants impress Olympic medallists

Girls4Gold applicants are put through their paces in Bath
The bath Chronicle/Lloyd Ellington

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Jessica Whitehorn 28 July 2008

In a week where Team GB were officially entered for the Beijing Games, the search for hidden talent took another step forward as UK Sport and the English Institute of Sport (EIS) descended on Bath and Manchester for the Girls4Gold and Pitch2Podium Olympic Talent Assessment Events.

After opening in London earlier this month, this was the second stop and final opportunity for any of the 1,100 football players contacted via the Pitch2Podium initiative to be tested to see if they possessed the raw talent attributes to become an Olympic medallist. Meanwhile, the first testing day for Girls4Gold got underway, a new female talent identification initiative designed to systematically unearth young athletic women with Olympic potential in targeted sports.

Pitch2Podium applicants were invited to Sportcity in Manchester and the Girls4Gold were welcomed to Team Bath’s home at the University of Bath Sports Training Village – world class settings for both events. The testing team, a working partnership of EIS talent identification scientists and UK Sport staff alongside national governing body Olympic coaches, put applicants through their paces.

The athletes underwent a challenging schedule with physical and physiological assessments interspersed with sessions designed to give them an insight into what could lie ahead should they progress. Sprints, jumps, endurance and body measurements, were carefully taken with applicants aiming for target scores set by current world class performers.

The Pitch2Podium testing day was capped by the appearance of Olympic Gold medallist and programme ambassador Darren Campbell, who spoke to the players on his own sporting journey – and couldn’t resist getting involved with the rest of the staff in motivating the players through the final part of the day.

“These boys have taken a brave step in attending today. After spending a decade aiming for a professional football contract only to fall short, it takes a special person to look at what else is out there.

"As well as having the raw physical characteristics to be successful in an Olympic sport, these boys also bring some of the other desired traits. They’ve had a solid grounding in a professional environment where they have been disciplined and are used to the hard daily grind of training and competing.

"In many cases they are ready-made and have fantastic transferable skills, which may ultimately mean they could be fast-tracked into alternative Olympic sports with structured support from UK Sport.”

With Phase 1 assessments now complete, the team of Olympic coaches and sports scientists will begin their analysis on the players’ performance data to see who possesses the required qualities for further investigation. This will see some players short listed and invited to attend a Phase Two Sports Specific Assessment post the Beijing Olympic period.

For the Girls4Gold, Modern Pentathlon Olympic bronze medallists, Kate Allenby and Georgina Harland, came along to the first testing day in Bath to share their Olympic experiences with the applicants and explain the hard work and dedication that may lie ahead if they are to realise their dreams.

A total of 156 athletes were present at the Bath testing day. The Girls4Gold testing team were very impressed with the level of determination and commitment the applicants showed, as well as some outstanding performances on the various tests.

Harland said: “It is great to see so many young, seriously athletic women here today giving their all in the hope that they too could become an Olympian and perhaps even a medallist. Girls4Gold is such a fantastic opportunity. If I had my time again, I would definitely apply. It gives these athletes a chance of eliminating the luck factor in discovering a sport they could be great at.”

There are two further Phase One testing events for more Girls4Gold hopefuls in August, before the decisions will be made as to who will progress to Phase Two for more specific testing in the sports of cycling, rowing, canoeing, modern pentathlon, sailing (women’s windsurfing) and bob skeleton. With over 900 applicants scheduled to be tested over the Olympic period, the chances of coming across a few hidden gems seems highly likely.

Head of Talent Identification and Development at UK Sport, Chelsea Warr, who oversees both the Girls4Gold and Pitch2Podium initiatives, said:

“The calibre of the applicants has been very impressive and surpassed what we expected to see. I am convinced, more than ever, that the UK is a nation littered with outstanding sporting talent that too often is overlooked.

"The attitude of the Girls4Gold and Pitch2Podium applicants has been outstanding and it's great to see that those attending are really up for a challenge. We have certainly seen some exciting talent, with a number of applicants producing results that indicate that they have something very special.

"This, combined with world class coaching and support systems and a lot of hard work, could mean there is every chance some of these applicants featuring in British teams by London 2012.”

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