SEARCH IS ON FOR GLASGOW 2014 TALENT

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SEARCH IS ON FOR GLASGOW 2014 TALENT
HOY BACKS GOLD4GLASGOW INITIATIVE

This week the sportscotland Institute of Sport launched Gold4Glasgow, a talent initiative designed to identify athletes to represent Scotland at the Commonwealth Games in 2014. The programme is working to fast-track entry and development of more Scottish athletes into existing Scottish programmes to achieve medal success in 2014, and, where possible, work with the UK World Class Talent Team to identify exceptionally talented individuals who may have the potential to join Olympic development programmes. Set up to complement existing talent pathways, the programme aims to use innovative methods to uncover potential competitors.

This novel approach is encouraging Scots with an appetite for sport to consider whether they might have what it takes to represent Scotland on the world stage. Gold4Glasgow aims to identify Scots who, given the right support, might be a step away from high performance sport. Set up to complement existing talent programmes, the initiative aims to uncover potential competitors who may not be formally attached to any sporting organisations. The programme will also involve identifying athletes who currently compete in one sport but may be better placed in an alternative event, like Rebecca Romero who won an Olympic silver medal in rowing and four years later won an Olympic gold in cycling.

Tony Stanger, talent manager at the sportscotland Institute of Sport said: “Working with national governing bodies and other sporting organisations, we will identify sports where Scotland has a real opportunity to win medals in Glasgow and then look at the best approach to ensure we have the quality athletes available to compete for those medals.

“Gold4Glasgow represents an extraordinary challenge and as such we are looking for individuals who are ready to take a life changing step. Competing at an event like the Commonwealth Games will be demanding so we are looking for individuals who are happy to make the commitment required.”

The first Gold4Glasgow event will focus on women’s cycling and takes place at the Stirling Athlete Village on Sunday May 3. Scots aged between 16 and 27 are invited to attend where they will go through rigorous testing on Watt bikes. Those who meet the requirements will then be asked back to a training weekend. They will then receive close monitoring and work with the Institute’s team of experts, such as sports medicine and strength and conditioning, in a bid to find athletes who could represent Scotland and ultimately win medals.

Sir Chris Hoy who has been supported by the sportscotland Institute of Sport since 2002 said: “Gold4Glasgow is an exciting initiative and it is encouraging to see such a proactive approach being taken to unearth Scottish talent. A home Games is very special for competitors and hopefully this will go some way to ensure Scotland is well represented in Glasgow across all sports, not just cycling.

“Competing at the Commonwealth Games is hugely demanding and a massive commitment. The Institute has provided me with invaluable support over the years and athletes identified through this programme are sure to benefit from the range of expertise they provide.”

Gary Willis, performance manager at Scottish Cycling concluded: “Women’s cycling is one area where there is scope to win a number of medals and as such we are keen to work with the Institute to build Scotland’s talent pool. We are still committed to our existing processes in place to identify talent which have proven to be successful but we are always keen to look at new avenues and through Gold4Glasgow we hope to reach additional athletes.

For more information about Gold4Glasgow and the event on 3 May, visit http://www.gold4glasgow.com.

ENDS

Notes to editors
sportscotland Institute of Sport
• The Institute is now known as the sportscotland Institute of Sport (as of 1 April 2009) – this better represents the one organisation approach being taken by sportscotland in the best interests of Scottish sport
• At the sportscotland Institute of Sport the clear focus is on preparing Scotland's best athletes to perform on the world stage. The Institute provides high performance expertise to sport and athletes in Scotland
• As the high performance arm of sportscotland, the Institute is working with its partners to build greater success for Scottish sport. Its vision is Scotland consistently winning on the world stage
• Teams of expert coaches and practitioners work together to manage and deliver cutting edge programmes in high performance management, performance coaching, programme planning, sports medicine, sports science, strength and conditioning, performance analysis and career and lifestyle guidance
• The Institute places performance at the centre of its thinking; teams of coaches and experts work to provide individually tailored programmes for athletes and sports. The Institute continuously endeavors to find new and innovative ways of improving performance and are open to new challenges and fresh ideas that enable world class performance
• The Institute’s high performance network partners include - Area Institutes of Sport, National Governing Body’s for Sport including Scottish Cycling, Commonwealth Games Council for Scotland, UK Sport and its UK World Class Talent Team, British Olympic Association & the British Paralympic Association
• Successful athletes supported by the Institute includes Chris Hoy, Andy Murray, Katherine Grainger and Hannah Miley