Adrian's message to talented Athletes across Kirklees Schools
As part of the elite athlete support, on Wednesday 25th June, over 60 pupils gathered at the Sports Barn to take part in a Speed, Agility and Quickness session run by SAQ International to highlight the skills required to reach their potential.
They then took part in a motivational workshop with Adrian Moorhouse MBE who shared his experiences of what it took to become an Olympic Gold Medallist as part of his talk on “Aspiring to be the Best”.
Adrian’s main messages, to the athletes, were to have a long term dream which you really want and have the self-believe that you can achieve it. Then, to have short term goals. He decided at the age of 14, after watching David Wilkie win Olympic Gold, that he wanted to do the same.
He worked out that if he could knock 0.003 secs off his time every time he trained then he could win Gold in 1984. He came 4th in Los Angeles and was devastated by the slating by the press. It took him four months to recover from that defeat but it made him stronger and he won Gold in Seoul in 1988. He left the students inspired and hopefully determined to achieve their potential.
The day finished with small network tables led by young sporting professionals from Huddersfield Town (Joe Skarz and Lucas Atkin) to give an insight into the life of a professional sportsman/woman highlighting the transition from a sheltered school life to the expectations put on by clubs, coaches and media.
Gill Hood, Kirklees PE Consultant said: "Many of our pupils in our schools are spending long hours training and competing as well as their studies, for some this is 20 hours plus on top of their school week. The pressures can be immense with coaches, parents, teachers and friends all making requests or demands which can often conflict.
"We have had a year long programme working with teachers, School Sport Partnerships, Sports Colleges, Local Authority, parents and universities to establish talent identification, player pathways and provision and elite athlete support.
"Our elite athletes in schools have had access to mentors, performance and parent workshops and visits to Loughborough University to give them an insight into how the country’s top performers can combine their heavy training schedules for their sport with Higher Education."
For any further information, please contact:
Gill Hood, Kirklees PE Consultant - 01484 225807