LEARNING THE LESSONS

by James Skitt - 24.10.08

Managing time effectively is a big challenge for elite athletes. Unsociable training hours, time spent away at training camps or competitions and even the demands of part time work can combine to make prioritising other things, such as education, extremely difficult. Just ask Great Britain’s 2012 synchronised swimming hopefuls.

The team of 13, based at Aldershot in Surrey, are embarking on their second year of full time training with their sights firmly set on being competitive on the international stage by the London Olympics.

Yet whilst they will have learnt much in the water during their first year together, many will be hoping to have learnt from their experiences out of the water as well as they embark or continue on higher education courses alongside their training.

Last year, 9 of the 11 girls who arrived in Aldershot ready to continue their education alongside their new high performance commitments had, for a variety of reasons, either withdrawn from or suspended their studies by December. However, with lessons learnt and still undeterred, they have again committed to various education programmes now much wiser in how to manage these competing demands, according to Abi Ashby-Burns, their English Institute of Sport (EIS) Performance Lifestyle Advisor.

“They have learnt a lot from what’s happened over the last 12 months and we have worked extremely hard to ensure they are enrolling on courses which they can commit to whilst continuing to satisfy the demands of their training schedules” she says.

“In most cases, they simply took on too much last year and couldn’t cope with the timetables being asked of them, something we have worked hard to address.”

The problems are understandable. Training is scheduled daily between 7am and 1pm with a number of additional afternoon sessions, whilst some need to supplement their UK Sport funding with part time work. Then there are training camps or competitions which take them away for several weeks a year, factors which all need to be considered when choosing the right course.

With this in mind, Ashby-Burns has worked closely with the girls to form a fresh plan of attack for the new academic year.

“This year we have explored other options such as distance learning, evening classes and personal tutors” she says.

“We have a couple enrolled on Open University courses, others are doing A-Levels at evening classes, and another has started a course at a local university where she need only attend in person once a fortnight.”

“We have been very careful to select which courses they do, how many they take and where they do them” she says.

And whilst the girls will get continued support from the EIS throughout their studies, Ashby-Burns has also been working hard to help on the job front.

“We are building excellent relationships with Aspire, who employ lifeguards at the same venue where the girls train” she explains.

“Many of the girls have now taken their lifeguard qualifications, so four of them have already started taking on lifeguard shifts which suits them really well because it is so easy and convenient for them.”

Two of the squad, Jenna Randell and Olivia Allison, competed as a duet at the Olympics in Beijing this summer, finishing 14th overall. They will join the rest of the squad in making their international team debut in December this year, hoping to add medals to their qualifications by 2012.
 
The British Synchronised Swimming Championships & ASA National Age Groups Championships take place in Gloucester between 5th - 7th December. Click here to view the British Swimming website.

To download the 2007 World Class Athlete Survey from UK Sport, which includes statistics on the number of athletes involved in full and part time education, click here

Photography courtesy of British Swimming