Dinghy racing sailors selected to join Derbyshire Institute of Sport
by Mike Haynes 27 Feb 2014 13:09 GMT
27 February 2014
Duo Harvey Martin (14) and Will Ward (16), two successful sailors of dinghy racing sailing, who are both members at Ogston Sailing Club, have been selected as elite athletes to receive support with the Derbyshire Institute of Sport.
Harvey and Will have competed together as a highly successful team in dinghies that are designed for two sailors to sail. Their schedule of racing has included many Club and Derbyshire Youth Sailing racing events and they have been regularly at the front of the fleets and in receipt of podium placings. Among their highest achievements they include a National Championship in the National Schools Sailing Association regatta sailing an RS Feva XL, a European Championship in the Mirror dinghy and a bronze place in the RS Feva XL World Championships. They have competed in a host of other events and regattas notching up top placings and podium positions too, both together and with other crews.
Selection as elite athletes in the Derbyshire Institute of Sport recognises them as among the top sportsmen in the county and will provide them with invaluable support to continue making further progress in their dinghy racing sailing. The access to highly qualified and experienced sports coaches, nutritionists, physiologists and psychologists, will allow them to learn about key aspects of their own physicality, preparation and performance, so that they can identify their own strengths and weaknesses to work on for continuous improvement.
Harvey commented "It is brilliant that Derbyshire has the Institute of Sport to provide support and guidance for the county's athletes. The dedicated facilities at the University of Derby are fantastic and the DIS coaches and experts have so much to offer Will and I."
Will added "We've only just started coming to DIS and already it's been great fun and quite a bit challenging as the coaches have put us through our paces to see how fit we are. We can't wait to get going on the strength and conditioning work that will definitely help us to sail at our fittest yet and hopefully get even better results."
Their determination is evident in how they approach their preparation and training through all seasons. They have also been selected by the Royal Yachting Association for pathway squads at both regional and national levels, winter and summer, where they receive training and coaching support helping them to develop their racing skills, knowledge and techniques.
Just last year Will took part in the Ocean Sailing Programme with the Ocean Youth Trust and achieved the Competent Crew qualification. Also in May last year, the duo won the prestigious RS Feva Crown Cup in the Czech Republic beating the 2012 World Champion.
Will and Harvey join sailors Alice and Toby Woodings along with Josh Haynes who are also athletes in the Derbyshire Institute of Sport. James Hadden was also previously selected by DIS and has now progressed to being a member of the RYA British Sailing Team and is in training for the Rio Olympics in 2016 seeking to follow in the wake of Sir Ben Ainslie in the Finn dinghy.
It is clear that the Derbyshire Institute of Sport will be helping these young athletes to go on to achieving some amazing results in the future.
www.dysailing.co.uk