With just five years to go to London 2012, the need for outstanding British coaches has never been greater. UK Sport today unveiled the identities of seven more coaches singled out for development – the majority of whom will be hoping to be the driving force behind home medal success in five years’ time.
The move came as the UK’s high-performance sports agency revealed the 2007 intake of its innovative ‘Elite Coach’, which aims to accelerate the development of the nation’s most exciting coaching prospects. Being part of Elite Coach promises a challenging three-year journey on a fast track to coaching excellence.
The scheme will see tailor-made programmes developed for each of the ten coaches, which will not only allow them to develop their technical skills by working with and observing the best in action, but also to develop the leadership skills which are the hallmark of the best operators in high-performance environments in the world of sport, business, industry and the arts.
"Our intention is to take some of the most promising coaches that British sport has to offer and to expose them to the best practitioners from the sport sector and beyond - wherever they happen to be in the world", said Liz Nicholl, UK Sport’s Director of Elite Sport. "When you add that to the ability for this group to share their experiences with one another, you have a powerful mix that will result in a new breed of elite coach capable of inspiring our athletes to new heights."
The announcement pits some former athletes with others who have already embarked on a coaching career:
• Alex Perry – Table Tennis
• Audrey Cooper – Volleyball
• Rick Velati – Triathlon
• Mark Wood – Bob-Skeleton
• Paul Green – Taekwondo
• Stefan Trofan – Table Tennis
• Rhona Martin - Curling
The seven new candidates are the fourth group since the scheme’s inauguration in 2004. Just making the starting line for the three year programme was an achievement in itself, as candidates – who had to be nominated by their governing bodies – underwent a rigorous selection process.
“Coaches will play a critical role in our ambition to move up the Olympic medal table both in Beijing, Vancouver 2010 and critically in London 2012. As such, Elite Coach represents a key strategic investment in our drive for success and as the past 24 months have shown, is capable of delivering results in an accelerated timeframe”, added Nicholl.
“Whilst we had put a tremendous effort into building a programme around all those selected and were always confident that it would deliver, we hadn’t necessarily anticipated just how much each group would develop its own dynamic of support, challenge and drive. That has had a hugely positive impact on both the coaches and their sports.”
The 2007 group will come together for the first time this week where they will hear from key figures within the high-performance coaching industry and spend time putting the finishing touches to their individual development programmes, which will see them undertake anything from international exchange programmes with the world’s most successful sports, to placements in business and the arts.
UK Sport hopes that the £500,000 per year programme will produce over 50 elite British coaches by 2012.
The previous elite coach groups were:
2004
• John Amos – Weightlifting
• Tim Foster – Rowing
• Mike McFarlane – Athletics
• Graeme Randall – Judo
• Paul Ratcliffe – Canoeing
• Kevin Renshaw – Swimming
• Adam Sotheran – Diving
• Nick Strange - Rowing
2005
• Ian Barker – Sailing
• Chris Boardman – Cycling
• Karen Brown – Hockey
• Steve Gladding – Diving
• Kate Howey – Judo
• Jim Mallinder – Rugby
• Ciaran O’Brien – Swimming
• Nigel Redman – Rugby
• Dan Salcedo – Triathlon
2006
• Graham Antwhistle - Swimming
• Jess Garland – Netball
• Louise Graham – Swimming
• Steve Harris – Canoeing
• Harvey Hillary - Sailing
• Danny Kerry – Hockey (women)
• Harry King – Athletics
• Jason Lee – Hockey (men)
• Tony Minichiello – Athletics
• Darren Warner – Judo
Meanwhile, this year’s World Class Coaching Conference takes place at the Belfry, Birmingham from 12-15 November. Around 400 of the leading coaches and support service providers will gather for four days of keynote speeches, seminars, workshops and networking. The Conference traditionally attracts not only the leading figures from the UK, but also from around the world, to look at a range of factors that will have a bearing on the UK’s ability to deliver medals at the world’s major events.