Two Bristol athletes will be given the opportunity of a lifetime following the launch of a new athletic development initiative that will fund them to attend a world-famous training centre developed by one of the Olympic greats.
Funded by the John Rutley Sport Fund, Springboard Plus aims to celebrate and support the emerging talent of young Bristol athletes providing them with the chance to train at the home of two-time Olympic gold medallist and Chairman of the Kenyan Olympic Committee (KOC), Kip Keino.
The initiative, which is part of the Bristol Kenya 2012 project, will provide funding for two middle/long distance runners to experience a week-long training programme at the Kip Keino high-performance training centre in Eldoret, Kenya.
Applications are invited from individuals and through their clubs by submitting an application form, which is available online from the University’s Centre for Sport, Exercise and Health or the England Athletics website. Shortlisted applicants will be interviewed by a panel that includes representatives from the University, the John Rutley Sports Fund and England Athletics.
Karen Harvey, Community Sport Development Manager at the University, said: ”The initiative aims to support the identification and development of young elite athletes in Bristol using the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games and their legacies as inspiration for excellence.”
Richard Gwyn, Performance and Development Co-ordination at England Athletics, said: ”England Athletics fully supports this exciting athlete and coach development initiative through the John Rutley Springboard programme. This is a golden international opportunity to experience the Kenyan world-leading endurance programme in the build up to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.”
The selected athletes will be accompanied to Kenya by a fully qualified UK Athletics accredited coach and mentored by two University of Bristol high-performance athletics team athletes.
The Bristol-Kenya 2012 agreement is a multi-faceted partnership that will see Bristol hosting the Kenyan Olympic Team for pre-Games training for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.