Gymnasts spring into action with sportscotland funding

Wednesday 3 August 2005

The Scottish Gymnastics Association (SGA) have a spring in their step this month with the announcement of sportscotland funding totalling £294,000.

The investment is a combination of £159,000 from the sportscotland Lottery Fund, and £135,000 of sportscotland Exchequer funding from the Scottish Executive. It will give SGA the means to build on their recent successes and will strengthen the structure and support to gymnastics clubs, encourage participation, and help to place more gymnasts on the international stage.

Today’s announcement comes as Scotland’s leading men’s gymnasts head to China for a Commonwealth Games training and competition camp later this month (18 August – 8 September), which has been supported by the Scottish Institute of Sport, in preparation for the Games in Melbourne in just six months time.

At elite level, £66,000 of sportscotland’s investment will come from the athlete support programme which will target the three disciplines of men’s artistic, women’s artistic and trampolining.

Men’s gymnastics has enjoyed its most successful years since 2002, when Steve Frew was crowned Commonwealth Champion on the rings in Manchester. Frew, who has been identified to benefit from athlete support funding, announced his comeback to competitive gymnastics this year. He will be hoping for another good performance in Melbourne next March.

Adam Cox, who has been inducted into the Scottish Institute of Sport with Steve Frew, will also benefit from sportscotland funding through athlete support. The youngster won two gold and three bronze medals at the 2004 Commonwealth Youth Games and he is now focusing on success at the British Championships on 24 September.

"This is fantastic news for the sport of gymnastics and will enable Scottish Gymnastics to carry through its strategic plan which focuses on increasing participation, improving coach education and ensuring the best possible support for our performance gymnasts."

The investment from sportscotland will also support the core infrastructure of SGA, to focus on increasing and developing membership levels across the country. The SGA recognise grass roots participation as key to the future health of the sport, and so will work closely with schools, local authorities and volunteers to help raise awareness of the health and education benefits of the sport. Gymnastics activities is currently very popular within schools and will be a key sport in the delivery of Active Schools. Key to increasing participation is ‘Schools Gymfest’, an initiative which was started last year to encourage participation amongst children. Involving young gymnasts, the event follows on the back of the SGA’s main ‘Gymfest’ which is one of the largest indoor sporting participant events held in Scotland, attracting over 1300 gymnasts from across the country.

Another key focus of the SGA will also be to establish and introduce Long Term Player Development (LTPD) framework for all gymnastics disciplines. They will identify and nurture talent to feed the performance structure and also increase retention of gymnasts within the sport by ensuring they are training at a level to suit their needs and ability. £9,000 of sportscotland’s investment will support SGA’s implementation of LTPD coaching, development and competition principles.

Mike Roberts, Chief Executive, Scottish Gymnastics Association, said: "This is fantastic news for the sport of gymnastics and will enable Scottish Gymnastics to carry through its strategic plan which focuses on increasing participation, improving coach education and ensuring the best possible support for our performance gymnasts."

Stewart Harris, Acting Chief Executive, sportscotland, said: "We are delighted to award £294,000 to the Scottish Gymnastics Association. The investment will help the sport encourage participation at a recreational level, whilst nurturing the talent of those who show the potential to perform on the international stage.

"All elite athletes aspire to represent their country at major international events such as the Commonwealth Games. The funding from the athlete support programme will make a significant contribution towards the gymnasts preparation ahead of Melbourne. I look forward to seeing some of them performing at the 2006 Games, where hopefully, they will once again make Scotland proud."

• Athlete Support, which is now largely administered through the governing body, supports the training and preparation programmes for elite athletes who have demonstrated the potential to win medals or equivalent, in significant international competitions and events such as the Commonwealth Games. A list of the athletes benefiting from Athlete Support is detailed below.
• All athletes who receive Athlete Support will be supported by the sportscotland medical scheme.
• The XVIII Commonwealth Games will take place in Melbourne, Australia 15-26 March 2006, with the gymnastics event taking place 16 – 21 March.
• The selection period for athletes will run from 1st January – 16th September 2005. Athletes achieving the selection standard will be nominated to Commonwealth Games Council Scotland (CGCS) by their respective governing body of sport.  CGCS will then consider all nominations against the sport’s selection policy and the full team will be announced by 3 November 2005. However meeting the selection standard does not in itself guarantee a place on the team. All selections and final entries will be dependent on evidence of form and fitness from 1st November 2005. A copy of the overall team and individual sport selection policy is available from CGCS.
• The Scottish Institute of Sport is performance focused, coach led and athlete centred and is dedicated to assisting over 240 of Scotland’s to athletes in their quest for world class achievement. The Institute provides individually tailored support programmes and services including sports science, medical support, nutrition, strength and conditioning, performance lifestyle guidance and expert technical coaching which are designed to enhance performance and create winners.

Identified athletes by Governing Body receiving Athlete Support August 2005

Jordan McKee, Ardrossan, KA22
Andrew Mackie, Bridge of Allan, FK9
Steven Bruynseels, Clydebank, G81
Kyle McGeoch, Glasgow, G13
Craig Wallace, Kirkcaldy, KY2
Steve Frew, London, SW7
Adam Cox, Livingston, Eh54
Neil Robertson, Midlothian, EH54
Daniel Keatings, Northants, NN18
Christopher Chalk, Stirling, FK9

Danielle Jenkins, Clackmannanshire, FK10
Brogan Archibald, Dundee, DD2
Lynne Donaghy, Glasgow, G51
Rosalie Hutton, Kings Lynn, PE34
Lauren Beck, MotherwelL
Jordan Lipton, Notts, NG12
Rachel Wood, Perth, PH1
Emma White, Peterborough, PE2
Jennifer Hannah, Shropshire, TF1
Carol Galashan, Warrington, WA3
Helen Galashan, Warrington, WA3

Keir Stewart, Dundee, DD5
Cara Jamieson, East Kilbride, G74
Kirsty Waddell, East Kilbride, G74
Catherine Kane, East Kilbride, G74
Caitlin Thomson, Fife, KY15
Rebecca Ogilvie, Glasgow, G72