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Woodward announces elite coaching plan for 2012
The British Olympic Association’s (BOA) director of Elite Performance, Sir Clive Woodward, has announced the next steps towards finalising the BOA’s elite coaching programme.
The scheme will see experts working around individual athletes and their coaches to help deliver the BOA’s goal of fourth place in the medals table at the London 2012 Olympic Games.
The BOA will seek to raise up to £20m from London 2012 and Olympic sponsors to fund the concept, which will complement the athletes’ existing programmes with the permission of a sport’s performance director.
Woodward has sought advice from Olympic sporting bodies and has had lengthy discussions with medal-winning athletes and coaches, both home and abroad, during the programme’s development. He has also drawn on his own knowledge as the former England Rugby coach during the 2004 Rugby World Cup Championship.
Highlighting the success of the programme’s initial nine-month trial with the young, newly–turned professional golfer Melissa Reid, Woodward said: “My brief from the BOA was to look at how we might provide talented young athletes, coaches, performance directors and their national governing bodies with a service that could add value to the work being delivered by UK Sport and our Olympic governing bodies.”
The programme is based around a three-point plan, which focuses on ‘profiling’, ‘pressure’ and ‘obsession’.
“We will profile each potential medal winner on their desire to win and their ability to absorb information, then help them think correctly under pressure,” said Woodward.
With the athlete and their coach in the centre of the programme, a team of 10 experts in wellness, athletic development, physiology, nutrition, performance movement, sensory motor skills, performance analysis, performance under pressure, visual performance and kinesiology will work around them to help them reach their full potential.
Each team member will have direct access to the athlete’s progress via a comprehensive website that will allow real-time video conferencing – wherever they are in the world.
Commenting on her involvement in the programme, Reid, who was recently crowned British Amateur Ladies champion, said: “I’m working with some very good coaches and know that even the smallest detail can give me an edge over my competitors.”
The pilot project will now be extended to the Olympic sport of Judo.