Stepping Stones: Is University an option for Junior triathletes?
When October rolls around, thousands of students around the country will be starting to think seriously about their options after leaving sixth form. Whilst the UK does not have anything that even closely resembles the US college sports scene, for all the young triathletes out there, there are some specific institutions with the facilities to cater for the needs of a young athlete. We spoke to three first year athletes after 12 months at Cardiff, Stirling and Bath Universities, all of which run high performance triathlon programmes, to learn a little about what it’s like be a student athlete.
Dom Coy – Cardiff University
I chose to go to Cardiff primarily because I believed that the setup here would offer me the best balance, allowing me to pursue both triathlon and my degree in Civil Engineering as easily as possible. I can confidently say that I am now very happy with my decision.
The NTPCW (National Triathlon Performance Centre Wales) squad is great. My favorite thing about the squad is the mix of athletes there, with a range of different athletes and disciplines. Each athlete has individual goals, but everyone works together to help improve our day-to-day training, with some good banter along the way too.
Despite Covid-19 limiting training for a large part of the year, I have thoroughly enjoyed training in Cardiff so far. It took a bit of time to adapt to the new environment, but not as long as I expected. I have stayed on top of my work whilst also making some headway with my training, even improving areas that due to lockdown haven’t been so easy to work on, such as swim technique. That is due to the support I have had from the squad. I would say overall my first year has been a positive experience and I am really looking forward to the next couple of years here.
Eva Edwards – Bath University
I chose Bath as I wanted to go to a university which offered me a chance to pursue my love for triathlon but also had a course that I liked and could provide me with a viable future. Bath has great facilities for all three sports and offers a huge variety of locations to train, which makes it enjoyable and exciting on a weekly basis. The university itself has a 50m pool, gym, track and loads of soft surface trail options which makes preventing injuries a whole lot easier. We are also very fortunate when it comes to options for cycling, with a huge variety ranging from 17% gradients to a closed cycle circuit all within a few miles of campus, making it ideal for any kind of session.
As the Uni is home to the Bath Triathlon Performance Centre, I have been able to study whilst also improving my fitness with access to great coaching and facilities. Although, due to various lockdowns and COVID guidelines, I haven’t experienced a normal year of training, for the amount I have done, training with the squad has been great. You are surrounded by top-level athletes, which is inspiring as you can see the hard work and determination to succeed, which motivates me to train harder. Having a squad around you also keeps you accountable and makes completing the hard sessions a little easier.
Tom Brew – Stirling University
First and foremost, my initial year at the University of Stirling was fantastic. The campus and surrounding area are a triathlete’s paradise. With the National Centre pool and new gym facilities – along with the loch and a Parkrun course all located on campus, it has been easier than ever to train at my full potential.
The squad has been through a tough year with Covid-19 restrictions, but the motivation shared between athletes and the support of the coaching team has been better than anything I have ever experienced before. Andrew Woodroffe (Head Coach) is central to the smooth running of the programme and has been a hugely supportive through the difficult year we have had, helping us to train together as much as possible and prioritizing keeping team spirit high.
I would highly recommend Stirling to any triathletes who are serious about becoming the best they can be.
We hope that these accounts of a first year as a member of a Performance Programme have been helpful to all athletes looking at what to do next! For more information on the following programmes, click on the links below to see if this could be the right move in your triathlon career!
