ATHLETE SUPPORT PROGRAMME

01 ATHLETE SUPPORT PROGRAMME ANNUAL REPORT to 30 September 01

0 HISTORY & BACKGROUND OCTOBER 007 ASP established by Scottish Borders Council (SBC) with an initial 3 year commitment to funding to help maximise the potential of Borders athletes and coaches with a view to their participation in the London Olympic Games and Paralympic Games 01 and the Commonwealth Games in 014. Rather than direct financial aid being provided, the ASP provides and pays for specific support services for athletes who are selected to come on the programme against certain criteria. The ASP is closely aligned to the performance pathway of the sportscotland Institute of Sport (SIS) network. Priority is given to the Borders target sports, however athletes from nontarget sports can also apply if they have the potential to reach, and are progressing towards, SIS entry level or equivalent. Throughout the year the Borders Athlete Support Programme supported a number of our best athletes and is playing a part in continuing the legacy of the London Olympics by providing a range of services and sources of information. Funding for the programme is now channelled through Borders Sport and Leisure Trust who have historically played an active part on the Management Group and continue to do so. Cllr Graham Garvie and Gregor Townsend resigned throughout the year due to changes in their work circumstances and I would like to thank them all for their services over the years. Cllr Vicky Davidson and recently retired rugby star Chris Paterson joined the Management Group and we look forward to their input to our innovative support programme. With the Glasgow Commonwealth Games taking place in 014, our athletes are working hard in order to improve and strive to represent Scotland at these world class multisport games. NOVEMBER 008 ASP externalised. Still funded by SBC but now run by an independent Management Group comprising representatives from SBC, SportBorders, East of Scotland Institute of Sport, and the Winning Scotland Foundation. APRIL 009 Parttime Programme Manager appointed. FEBRUARY 010 SBC in principle commitment to funding through to 014. RICK KENNEY Chairman Borders Athlete Support Programme Management Group JULY 011 Funding responsibility passes from SBC to Borders Sport and Leisure Trust in line with overall handover of sports development. ASP Management Group composition updated accordingly. Callum Airlie (right) at the helm

03 ATHLETE STATISTICS FOR THE 1 MONTHS TO 30 SEPTEMBER 01 The athlete statistics in Table 1 (next page) indicate that the recruitment of new athletes over the year was down on the previous year, perhaps indicative of the beddingdown of the formalised sportspecific entry criteria. The number of athletes losing their support, which is the inevitable consequence of our stated aim that the athletes should be making progress towards the entry level for the sportscotland Institute of Sport (or equivalent) and/or participation in the Commonwealth Games or senior International level, was also slightly down. It is a harsh reality that the pyramid of performancelevel sport means that no matter the high level of commitment of some, more athletes will not progress to the next level than those who do. CALLUM AIRLIE Pleasingly, the number of athletes graduating to receive their support at the next level (whether the Institute, an SGB or NGB performance programme or, in the case of football, a professional club), showed a very healthy increase to seven. Again this is probably a consequence of the improved process by which athletes have been selected in more recent years particularly those from the target sports and the more objective entry criteria agreed with their Scottish Governing Bodies. Whilst ASP support is only one contributory factor in any athlete s progression to the next level (and to varying degrees), this takes the number of graduates since the programme s inception to 18 out of 7 ASP athletes in total. Although the overall graduation rate is likely to fluctuate from year to year, the current rate is at a peak of a highly successful 5%. This year s graduates to the sportscotland Institute of Sport were rugby players Andrew Nagle who made the Scotland Sevens squad and Richard Taylor who was recruited to the SRU Regional Academy, swimmers Ryan Brown and Lucy Hope, netballer Jo Pettitt, and sailor and star of the London 01 opening ceremony Callum Airlie. Footballer Gregor Amos also graduated by obtaining a contract with Falkirk FC. Graduation may be the main aim of the programme, and representation at the Commonwealth Games or senior international level the ultimate measure of success, but there is still considerable value to be gained from the support which the ASP provides to all of its athletes as they strive to be the best they can be, and to showcase the Scottish Borders as a region which delivers sporting success. (See Table 3 below.) The expertise provided to key individual athletes in the Borders through the Borders Athlete Support Programme in sport psychology, nutrition, physiotherapy and a complementary programme of strength and conditioning is essential to the athlete wishing to achieve success and progress from Development level to senior National and International level. Darren Ritchie Assistant Power/Speed Coach, Scottish Athletics

04 TABLE 1 ATHLETE STATISTICS No. SPORT 011 010 Number of new ASP athletes 8 Badminton x, Cricket x1, Cycling x3, Rugby x1, Swimming x1. 17 11 Number of athletes graduating (i.e. to receive higher level support) 7 Football x1, Netball x1, Rugby x, Sailing x1, Swimming x. 3 1 Number of athletes whose support ended 9 Badminton x1, Cycling x1, Football x, Judo x1, Rugby x, Swimming x. 1 4 Number of active athletes as at 30 Sep 01 7 35 34 Total number of athletes since inception 7 Archery x, Athletics x8, Badminton x3, Canoeing x1, Cricket x3 Cycling x 9, Football x 10, Gymnastics x 1,Hockey x4, Judo x4 Netball x, Orienteering x1, Rowing x1, Rugby x11, Sailing x1 Skiing x1, Swimming x10. 64 47 Total number of graduates since inception 18 Athletics x1, Cycling x, Football x, Judo x1, Netball x1, Rowing x1, Rugby x5, Sailing x1, Swimming x 4. 11 8 5% 17% 17% 17 17 14 Graduate rate (%) Number of sports represented since inception Lucy Grant on the front

05 SERVICE PROVISION Any service provision which will incur a cost to the ASP must be preauthorised and an ASP approved service provider must be used. As far as practicable, services are provided locally and are sportspecific and athletespecific. The main services provided by the ASP are: medical/physio services, specialist coaching, strength and conditioning, nutrition consultancy, sport psychology, and specialist equipment. Table below indicates the level of service provision for the year to 30 September 01. Whilst this was down on the previous 1 months it is commensurate with the number of active athletes on the programme decreasing slightly and also coincides with a number of athletes moving to University outside the Borders. Although ASP service provision is still available to such athletes, most of them are at a level which qualifies for similar support services during termtime from their educational institution. The ASP and its athletes are very fortunate to be granted free routine access to BSLT facilities, although when exclusive use is called for this is still booked and paid in the normal manner. Some nonbslt facilities continue to be used to ensure provision as local as possible for the athlete. Of particular note is the twiceweekly early morning opening afforded by the Laidlaw Memorial Pool in Jedburgh for swimmer Lucy Hope. Lucy attends Jedburgh Grammar and the local pool access saves her around an hour s travel on these days compared to her home club pool in Kelso or Selkirk where she also has morning sessions with the Borders Elite Swim Team. Despite this valuable time saving on her Jedburgh mornings she is still in the pool at 6.30am! The ASP was also grateful to Ettrick and Lauderdale Sports Council who in providing a substantial grant to Selkirk RFC for amongst other things redevelopment of their strength and conditioning suite at Philiphaugh, made it a grant condition that free access was given to ASP athletes for supervised S&C sessions in the new suite. This accounted for a significant reduction in the number of facility bookings recorded in Table. Lucy Hope Roxburgh Sports Councils Sports Personality of the Year 01 During the course of the year the network of ASP service provision was further extended with six additional service providers assessed and approved specialist skills coaches, physiotherapists and massage therapists.

06 TABLE SERVICE PROVISION ORDERS ISSUED SESSIONS/ITEMS AUTHORISED 011 010 Medical/Physio 85 171 103/08 71/178 Specialist Coaching 11 133 1/11 11/139 Strength&Conditioning 9 108 3/1139 8/81 Nutrition 13 3 /45 17/38 Sport Psychology 14 1 30/49 19/34 Specialist Equipment/Kit 8/7 13/17* Facilities Access 7 1 35/488 18/51 Miscellaneous Others and Agreed Reimbursements 6 6 19/74 15/64 165 1500 61/151 SERVICE TOTAL 19/1533 *(Full kit stock renewal is recorded here as 1 item only) Faye Nicholson leaping ahead

07 ATHLETE PERFORMANCE FOR THE 1 MONTHS TO 30 SEPTEMBER 01 Table 3 below indicates that the number of ASP athletes representing Scotland, whether at Scotland National or Scottish Schools level, remained at a healthy level of 13. Congratulations to Scout Adkin and Faye Nicholson (athletics), Josh Irvine and Rebecca Waldie (cricket), Lucy Grant, Isla Short and Calum Magowan (cycling), Emily Newlands and Sarah Robertson (hockey), Jo Pettitt (netball), Kirstin Maxwell (orienteering), and Ryan Brown and Lucy Hope (swimming). Similarly pleasing was the number of athletes crowned Scottish Champion Scout Adkin and Faye Nicholson (athletics), Lucy Grant and Calum Magowan (cycling), Kirstin Maxwell (orienteering), Callum Airlie (sailing), and Ryan Brown and Lucy Hope (swimming). Callum Airlie and Lucy Grant also went further by being crowned GB Champions. Callum famously was one of the seven young athletes selected to light the cauldron at the London 01 Olympic Opening Ceremony and taking part in her second Paralympics for Team GB was our archer Kate Murray. TABLE 3 ATHLETES PERFORMANCE PERFORMANCE LEVEL No. of ATHLETES 011 010 Scotland representative 13 16 10 GB representative 1 Scottish medallist 8 6 Scottish champion 8 8 5 GB/UK medallist 3 GB/UK champion 0 Euro medallist 0 0 1 Note1: Scotland Representative is either National team or Scottish Schools team. National teams at the UK School Games are included, but not regional teams. Note: Athletes who were Scottish/GB Champion who also attained medals at other Scottish/GB Events are only listed once (as a Champion). Counting events include the UK School Games. The ASP provides my swimmers with all the support they need to further their sporting development. The support provided by the programme s nutritionist, psychologist and physiotherapist has been extremely useful. They particularly enjoy the work they do with their strength and conditioning coach. My job in trying to get my swimmers to the next level is made easier through the input of these specialists. Alex Jordan, Borders Performance Swimming Coach Isla Short on the Hadleigh Farm Olympic course

08 MISCELLANEOUS MATTERS FOR THE 1 MONTHS TO 30 SEPTEMBER 01 Entry Guidelines The sportspecific entry guidelines for the Scottish Borders target sports are open to ongoing review in conjunction with the relevant NGB to ensure that they are the best fit possible for that sport s athletes needs. This takes account of the sport s entry level to the sportscotland Institute of Sport (SIS) such that graduation from the ASP to SIS is potentially achievable within a reasonable timeframe. Specifically the criteria for athletics, cycling and cricket were updated during the year. Policies and Procedures on Service Provision There were no new or changes to current ASP policies or procedures on service provision during the year however an issue has arisen which may require to be examined in the near future. With the sportscotland Institute of Sport moving away from all SIS athletes receiving a standard support package and now operating budgetlinked sportspecific support packages as agreed with the sport s governing body, it is now possible for athletes from some sports to graduate to SIS but then not receive as much individualised or local support as was provided through the ASP. PR Excellent publicity has been achieved through the Southern Reporter continuing to run profiles of ASP athletes entitled Me and My Sport which give an insight into the lives and thoughts of the ASP s new athletes. ASP information also continues to be made available on the SportBorders website www. sportborders.org.uk/asp Coach Development Working closely in partnership with sportscotland and the Institute of Sport talent team led by Tony Stanger, a pilot coach education project on growth mindset was progressed with Caroline Brown, Kelso ASC swimming coach, upskilled as the mindset tutor for the Borders. The opportunity to attend group and then individual tutorials with Caroline was then made available to ASP coaches and to the target sports. Four coaches were identified for the programme. The pilot project and possible ongoing rollout of the programme will be reviewed amongst the partners. Scout Adkin on the way to the top It has been encouraging to see Borders athletes flourish and succeed on the national and international stage in their chosen sport over during the year. The ongoing support they receive from the ASP has helped them along the performance pathway by providing a very specific and personal support that they have not received elsewhere and we look forward to seeing many of these athletes competing in Commonwealth and Olympic/ Paralympic Games in the future. Jo Bell Partnership Manager, sportscotland

09 FINANCE MEASURING THE SUCCESS OF THE ASP The balance in hand remains relatively healthy however as the spend rate continues above the level of annual grant from BSLT, deliberately so, the balance in hand at the end of the last financial year to 31 March 01 was down by 10,93 to 3,08. Whilst the balance in hand and the number of athletes on the programme continues to allow the current level of service provision and spend to be maintained, greater prioritisation of service provision will eventually be required unless other income streams can be found to maintain the current expenditure level. A supporters scheme was launched to provide a mechanism for interested parties to make donations to the ASP but with limited success. Whilst the foregoing report and statistics demonstrate the ongoing success of the ASP, the ultimate indicator of the overall success of the programme is likely to be measured by how many current or former ASP athletes achieve selection at Commonwealth, Olympic or Major Championship level. The ASP remains comfortable with its previously stated hope that the Scottish Borders representation in the Scotland team for Glasgow 014 will increase by 50% to 6 as a result of at least two ASP athletes being selected. Currently there are three ASP graduate athletes in 014 training squads supported by SIS. **Targets 014 18 ASP/*Borders athletes in 006 008 010 01 014 016 018 Team Scotland, Comm Games (0)/4 0/4 /6 3/7 Team GB, Olympic/Paralympic 1/3 1/3 /4 *Current residents or resident in their formative sporting career. **Forecasted targets will be reviewed annually. 018 targets subject to any review by CGF of core sports and host nation decision on other sports. Many thanks for your support this year. Abbi really has made a huge step forward. The ASP is in my opinion one of the most effective performance programmes for athletes in Scotland and gives athletes and coaches direct access to first class support services. There is no doubt that the ASP has had, and will have a huge influence on their ability achieve their potential. Peter Gardiner, coach to ASP judoka Abbi Blackie. Sarah Robertson in full flow for Scotland

10 ASP MANAGEMENT GROUP AS AT 30 SEPTEMBER 01: Rick Kenney Cllr Vicky Davidson Derek Armour Max Arthur Jo Bell Bill Noble Chris Paterson Neil Renton Duncan Sinclair Gregor Nicholson Prof. Donald Macleod (Retired SBC Head of Sport/Performance Sport Expert) (SBC: Exec Member Culture, Sport, Youth & Communities) (Treasurer) (SBC) (sportscotland) (Strength & Conditioning Expert & Schools) (Performance Sport Expert) (BSLT/ High Level Coach) (BSLT) (Programme Manager, parttime) (Honorary Medical Adviser) Ryan Brown flying to success