18 October 2010

Hayley Ginn has been appointed as UKA’s Apprentice Coach – Paralympic: Sprints and Wheelchair Racing.

Ginn, formerly an England Athletics Coach Development Club and Coach Support Officer and UKA Women’s Coaching Advisory Committee liaison, will be based at UKA’s National Performance Centre at Lee Valley from 25 October and will work in partnership with her designated Master Coach Peter Eriksson – UKA’s Head Coach for Paralympic performance – and UK wheelchair racing expert Jenny Archer, coach to Paralympic Games multi-medallist David Weir.

She joins an existing team of six Apprentice Coaches who were appointed earlier this year as part of UKA’s long term commitment to the development of a sustainable coaching structure, and will develop and progress athletes across a variety of track based Paralympic events.

Ginn said: “I’m over the moon to have been offered this amazing opportunity; not only will I get to learn from Peter Eriksson as my Master Coach, I will also have the opportunity to work with some great coaches including Jenny Archer. This role will enable me to further enhance my skills, and coupled with my passion and enthusiasm for coaching will enable me to continue along the pathway towards becoming a world class coach. I’m really looking forward to being part of such a strong team of Apprentice Coaches.” 

Eriksson said: “This is only the second position of its kind within the Paralympic movement in the UK and it’s a step in the right direction. The fact that Hayley will be working across Olympic and Paralympic performance is evidence of our commitment to full integration and further establishes us as a world leading country in the sport.”

Kevin Tyler, UKA’s Strategic Head of Coaching and Development added: “We’ve continually reinforced the point that while we must work efficiently through to 2012, it’s increasingly vital that we serve the sport beyond then through the creation of a coaching legacy. Apprentice Coaches will learn the trade from the world class coaches already in our system and will be well placed to step up and deliver post 2012.”

A significant part of Ginn’s previous role as UKA Women’s Coaching Advisory Committee liaison has been the organisation of this weekend’s UKA Women’s Coaching Conference.

The event, hosted by UKA and England Athletics, is the first in a series of activities to be led by ‘Women in Coaching Advisory Committee’ and will take place on Saturday 23 October at Kents Hill Park Training and Conference Centre, Milton Keynes.

The deadline for registration is tomorrow (Tuesday 19 October). For further information on the UKA Women’s Coaching Conference including booking details, go to www.uka.org.uk/coaching.