At Lee Valley White Water Centre, home of British Canoeing’s High
Performance Centre, a handful of talented youngsters have been
selected and nurtured by the Talent Development Team and have begun
competing in Canoe Slalom both nationally and internationally.
The programme involves the team visiting local schools each
year to identify emerging talent. After running some basic
tests with children regarding their fitness, youngsters who
pass certain criteria then progress to further tests at the Lee
Valley Centre and if they pass, they are put on a two-year
programme.
One of the programme’s up and coming stars is 14-yearold Beth Forrow, who has become the first young paddler
training at the venue to make the national team through
the programme. She was selected for the Junior Great
Britain Team in the World Canoeing and Kayaking Junior
Championships held in Poland this summer, headed out
to Slovenia in August for the European Canoe Slalom
Championships and raced in the under 16s Teen Cup in
Slovakia in late July.
Beth, who was in the Premier Division
last year, was just 11 when she was
‘discovered’ when the Talent Development
Team visited her school through its
annual selection programme.
The British Canoeing
Talent Programme
Launched in April 2013, the England Talent
Programme aims to develop a world leading
talent infrastructure for athletes throughout
England. It is led and managed by British Canoeing
and funded by Sport England. The England Talent
Programme is built on the strong foundations
lai d between 2009 and 2012 when a number of
full time and part time coaches were deployed in
canoeing clubs around the country.
Beth said: “I was surprised and excited to be selected when I
was tested, despite being just 11 and being very small. Had it
not been for that selection, and the Lee Valley White Water
Centre trials, I would never have discovered canoeing and
kayaking. I was thrilled to represent Great Britain in Krakow
in July!”
Beth’s mum, Nikki who coaches netball, added: “Lee Valley
White Water Centre has become our second home! We
are down here every day training and the centre has really
transformed our lives!”
Beth is a keen sportswoman and admits she had to make a
decision after starting canoeing, between her love of netball
and her new sport, as she was playing netball at county level
and was on the verge of being put forward for regional trials.
Now, as well as her sights on the future Olympics, she is
planning a career as an athlete or coach.
To read more about the Talent
programme, click here.
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www.britishcanoeing.org.uk
Canoe Focus Autumn 2016
Another young paddler hoping to make it
to Olympic standard is 16-year-old Jason
Brewer who was ‘spotted’ three years ago
when he was 13 and has never looked back.
He has now been promoted to the Premier Division of the
National League of Kayaking (Men’s) and is one step away
from getting into the England National Talent Squad for
under 18s. Little did Jason know when he went for trials in
canoeing at the venue, having been picked from an initial
1,500 children to make the final 17, that he would now be
aiming for a career in sport and possibly a chance to qualify
for the Olympic Games.
Jason said: “I had never tried canoeing before. If it had not
been for the White Water Centre being round the corner
and the Talent Development programme, I would not even
be canoeing. Now I am hooked, training six days a week and
twice on some days at the Lee Valley White Water Centre. I
am hoping to make it to the England National Talent Squad
this year and on to the Junior GB Team the following year. I
used to play football, but now this has taken over and I love it
and would like to continue with the sport as long as I can.”
Thanks to that day in July 2013 when he was selected,
he is certain that he will make a career in sport and is
already undertaking sport studies at school with the aim of
eventually focusing on coaching or personal training.
Shaun Pearce, British Canoeing’s Lead Regional Pathway
Coach, who has been involved with the scheme from its very
beginning four years ago, said: “Under the scheme we now
have an intake of 20 each year. We have been focusing on
school years 7, 8 and 9 (ages 11, 12 and 13) and last year
we took years 6 and 7 (ages 10 and 11). The programme has
been very successful and we have seen a high number of
youngsters continue with the training – and some exceptional
paddlers such as Beth and Jason who are heading for national
and international status. We have had a very good retention
rate and some promising success.”
Paskell Blackwell, Lee Valley White Water Centre’s General
Manager, added: “We are proud to see all this up and coming
talent being developed at Lee Valley White Water Centre,
thanks to the legacy of the London 2012 Olympic Games that
took place here. Through our venue we hope to nurture new
champions and Olympic successes in years to come.”
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