Last week saw the start of the journey of the first ten coaches selected to UK Sport’s ground breaking new ‘Elite Programme’.
The first residential of the three year programme took place over three days on an isolated fort in the middle of The Solent. The overarching theme for the first year on the Elite Programme is ‘self’, with the first residential focussing on the coaches’ philosophies, values and ethics, of both leadership and coaching. Throughout the programme, common themes will link each residential together through the supportive and challenging nature of a cohort of world class coaches. The coaches on the Elite Programme will be exposed to specialists from the worlds of business, medicine, aerospace, engineering and motorsport, to assist in their development and initiate thought.
The residential began with an interactive session with Nigel Risner. Nigel was one of the youngest CEO’s of a financial services company in the City of London and since then has gone on to become a respected author, television presenter and public speaker. Nigel talked of taking risks and doing something completely different, he involved the coaches in activities to uncover the point that positive results can come from negative experiences and that we often learn best from situations which are unfamiliar and uncomfortable. Anna Mayes, Head Coach from England Netball commented, that for her the session was about “getting comfortable with the uncomfortable and when you're in the room, be in the room.”
The focus of the evening session was a group task, under the watchful eye of star Chef Nik Boyle, where the group had to deliver a menu on time and to the standard that the Chef would be happy to serve, through completing individual and team tasks from preparation through to presentation and under time pressure. This was not only a team building exercise but more importantly a chance for the coaches to think about their responses and reactions to the situation under pressure and reflect afterwards on their performance as individuals and as a team.
Michel Assouline, Head Coach of Para-Equestrian Dressage at British Equestrian Federation commented that for him the residential was the “setting for the cognitive challenges and stimulation of the ‘self’ discovery which were nursed along by a melting pot of high profile experts. Needless to say we all got back to shore with great motives and momentum”.
UK Sport Coaching Coordinator Chris Stott said: “It was fantastic to have all ten of the coaches on the Elite Programme together for their first workshop. As well as the world class expertise brought in to support the coaches, the real power of the programme is the access the coaches have to each other; they are all world class in their field. Over the summer months, the coaches will see other support mechanisms of the Elite Programme rolled out, such as coach support specialists and individual technical curriculums. These are exciting next steps.
“Crucial to the programme is the support of the Performance Directors and line managers of the coaches, they are integral to the success of the programme and we look forward to taking them on this journey with us.”
The Elite Programme’s vision is for coaches in British high-performance sport to be among the best in the world. The coaches on the programme have proven success in the British high performance system, with the Elite Programme aiming to develop these coaches from world class to world leading. The Elite Programme is a collaborative approach between the NGBs and UK Sport, providing coaches with a three-year development opportunity to hone the skills, knowledge and experiences to deliver results consistently and creating a legacy within high performance sport.
A full list of coaches and their sports are detailed below. The 2013-16 Elite Programme coaches are from a range of Olympic and Paralympic sports, as well as coaches from netball and cricket.
Coach – Sport
Biz Price – Head Coach, Synchronised Swimming (British Swimming)
David McNulty – Head Coach Bath ITC, British Swimming
Peter Moores – Head Coach, Lancashire CC
Michel Assouline – Head Coach Para-Equestrian Dressage, British Equestrian Federation
Anna Mayes – Head Coach, England Netball
Robert McCracken – Head Coach, GB Boxing
Eddie Van Hoof – Head Coach Men’s Artistic Gymnastics, British Gymnastics
Mark Delaney – Technical Coach, GB Canoeing
Paul Thompson – Head Coach (Women), GB Rowing Team
Christian Felkel – High Performance Coach, GB Rowing Team