UK Sport

We use cookies to track and analyse visitors to our website

These cookies help make the website usable by enabling basic functions like page navigation. They are necessary for our website to function and cannot be switched off.
These cookies gather information to understand how visitors interact with the website, such as how many people are using our website of which pages are popular to help us improve user experience. Switching off these cookies will mean that we cannot gather information to improve the user experience.
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by a third party provider whose services we have added to our website. Switching off these cookies mean that areas of our website cannot work properly.

Cookies are small text files that can be used by websites to make a user's experience more efficient.

The law states that we can store cookies on your device if they are strictly necessary for the operation of this site.

For all other types of cookies we need your permission.

This site uses different types of cookies. Some cookies are placed by third party services that appear on our pages.

You can at any time change or withdraw your consent from the Cookie Declaration on our website.

Learn more about who we are, how you can contact us and how we process personal data in our Privacy Policy.

Skip navigation
the national lottery
Twitter Facebook Youtube Instagram LinkedIn
  • About us
    • Our Directors Team
    • Our Board
    • Panels
    • Strategic Plan 2021-31
    • Our partners
    • English Institute of Sport
    • Accessibility
    • Contact us
    • Media centre
    • FAQs
    • Working at UK Sport
  • Our work
    • Investing in sport
    • Investing in events
    • Talent identification
    • Coaching
    • Powering positive change and social impact
    • International relations
    • Leadership, development & governance
  • Events
  • News
  • Sports
    Olympic sports
    • Archery
    • Artistic Swimming
    • Athletics
    • Badminton
    • Basketball
    • Bobsleigh
    • Boxing (Amateur)
    • Canoeing
    • Curling
    • View all
    Paralympic sports
    • Boccia
    • Goalball
    • Para-Archery
    • Para-Athletics
    • Para-Badminton
    • Para-Canoe
    • Para-Cycling
    • Para-Equestrian Dressage
    • Para-Rowing
    • View all
  • Resources
    • A Code for Sports Governance
    • Organisational Health
    • Annual reports
    • Board minutes
    • British Cycling independent review
    • Complaints and whistleblowing
    • Eligibility
    • Fraud, corruption and bribery
    • High Performance System Advisory Group
    • HR policy templates
    • Pregnancy guidance
    • Reports
    • Privacy policies
    • Publication Scheme
    • Recruitment framework
    • The Whyte Review
    • Tenders
    • Transparency and open data
    • Welsh language scheme
  • Jobs in sport
    • Explore career pathways
    • Jobs in sport
    • Submit a job
  • About us
    • Our Directors Team
    • Our Board
    • Panels
    • Strategic Plan 2021-31
    • Our partners
    • English Institute of Sport
    • Accessibility
    • Contact us
    • Media centre
    • FAQs
    • Working at UK Sport
  • Our work
    • Investing in sport
    • Investing in events
    • Talent identification
    • Coaching
    • Powering positive change and social impact
    • International relations
    • Leadership, development & governance
  • Events
  • News
  • Sports
    Olympic sports
    • Archery
    • Artistic Swimming
    • Athletics
    • Badminton
    • Basketball
    • Bobsleigh
    • Boxing (Amateur)
    • Canoeing
    • Curling
    • View all
    Paralympic sports
    • Boccia
    • Goalball
    • Para-Archery
    • Para-Athletics
    • Para-Badminton
    • Para-Canoe
    • Para-Cycling
    • Para-Equestrian Dressage
    • Para-Rowing
    • View all
  • Resources
    • A Code for Sports Governance
    • Organisational Health
    • Annual reports
    • Board minutes
    • British Cycling independent review
    • Complaints and whistleblowing
    • Eligibility
    • Fraud, corruption and bribery
    • High Performance System Advisory Group
    • HR policy templates
    • Pregnancy guidance
    • Reports
    • Privacy policies
    • Publication Scheme
    • Recruitment framework
    • The Whyte Review
    • Tenders
    • Transparency and open data
    • Welsh language scheme
  • Jobs in sport
    • Explore career pathways
    • Jobs in sport
    • Submit a job
Press Enter to Search
News

Growth, talent and delivering success for Britain

Published 19 February 2010

In response to a number of media enquiries British Skeleton would like to answer a number of questions regarding the growth and success of the sport over the past eight years and our vision on to 2014.

Over the past eight years British Skeleton has successfully grown from a fledgling Olympic sport in the UK and delivered a World Class structure and performance pathway for athlete development. Our programmes have consistently produced a pipeline of talent capable of representing Great Britain at all levels of international competitions. In fact, 13 different British athletes have won a total of 76 medals on the world stage in the last four seasons.

This programme has clearly demonstrated that systematic talent identification and development of the right athletes with proper funding, high quality coaching, a professional management structure, and investment in technical innovation, a traditionally non-winter sport nation can be a world leader.

Prior to competition we would like to recognise the important contribution that our funders and partners have given the performance programme. The sport has received £2.1 million core Lottery funding from UK Sport between 2006-10. In addition, The Talented Athlete Scholarship Scheme (TASS) have been the major supporter of British Skeleton’s talent and development squad athletes over the past six years. UK Sport has also invested significant funding in our Skeleton Futures talent identification and development programme in the last two years. Research and innovation of cutting edge equipment and preparation techniques has been provided by UK Sport's innovation team, high quality sports science and medicine services have been delivered through core funded English Institute of Sport practitioners. This funding has allowed British Skeleton to gradually evolve its performance pathway and athlete development programmes since their inception in 2000.

We have also received clothing and equipment from Adidas and Tesa (tape). The University of Bath has provided excellent facilities including the push start track crucial to summer time preparation. While some athletes choose to opt out of some services the overall success of the programme is clear with 76 medals won by 13 different Pathway Programme Athletes between 2006 and 2010.

This stability of funding in the past four years has meant that our top World Cup athletes have each received Athlete Personal Awards (APAs) which this year amount to between £18k - £27k of Lottery funding per annum, and over four years equate to between £70,000 to £94,000 per athlete, depending on results and achievement of their annual performance targets. These allowances have provided them with funding for living and personal training expenses, and give them the freedom to train full time and to be totally committed to the programme.

The World Cup squad is the pinnacle of the programme and has received over  £114,000 per athlete over the four years (£30,000 per athlete 2009/10) in core funding to support their training, travel and competition on the World Cup circuit, at World and European championships. This excludes all administration and performance management costs.

As performance standards continue to rise we believe we can deliver a truly world class performance programme which is focused on success.

UK Sport

The programme has also supported the British teams on both the InterContinental /Europa / Americas Cup series. Maintaining these programmes has not been easy at times and reductions have been needed to cope with dramatic foreign exchange movements; which caused costs to increase by £50,000 in four months.

All these results could not have been achieved without the total dedication, commitment and skill of the athletes, supported by the highly professional coaching team led by Performance Director Andi Schmid and it is from these foundations we look forward the sport developing even further going from strength to strength towards 2014!

The 2006 to 2010 campaign maybe at an end shortly, but for British Skeleton the programme continues with our six Skeleton Futures Talent Squad continuing their training with camps in Igls, Austria and then three weeks in Lake Placid, USA before the season is over. They will then be on the path to join the current 12 athletes on the World Cup and Inter Continental Cup circuits to achieve international success for Great Britain. As performance standards continue to rise we believe we can deliver a truly world class performance programme which is focused on success.

Related Links

  • British Skeleton
  • Research and Innovation / Innovation Partners
  • Talent ID
Share
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
News
five athletes sat on stage in mid disussion
International Relations Seminar 2023
21 March 2023
Eilish crossing the line celebrating with her arms in the air
New research shows British public support athletes speaking out and driving social change
8 March 2023
Female wheelchair basketball player lines up a shot at the hoop.
UK Sport makes first awards from NGB Development Fund to support organisational health
22 February 2023
Sport jobs in the UK
Find & advertise UK based sports jobs here
Read more
Funding Partners
  • DCMS
  • TNL partners
Strategic Partners
  • British Olympic Association
  • Paralympics GB
  • english institute of sport logo
  • Sport England
  • Sport Northern Ireland
  • Sport Wales
  • Sport Scotland
Sitelogo
Sitemap
  • Homepage
  • About us
  • Our work
  • Events
  • News
  • Sports
  • Resources
  • Jobs in sport
  • UK Sport editorial policy
  • Freedom of Information Act 2000
  • Website terms
  • Accessibility
  • Cookies policy
  • FAQs
Contact
UK Sport
6th Floor
10 South Colonnade
London
E14 4PU
E: info@uksport.gov.uk
T: +44 (0) 20 7211 5100
Follow us
Twitter Facebook Youtube Instagram LinkedIn

© Copyright UK Sport 2023