CYDI and Winter Coaching Series Update December 2019
CYDI and Winter Coaching Series Update - December 2019
Report by Colette Kelly
Report on the 2019 CYDI/Winter Training Programme
This year has seen the completion of another successful year for Cork Athletics Youth Development Initiative (CYDI)/Winter training programme.
Eleven sessions were held throughout the year, three took place in the early spring, with a further eight in the autumn/winter period.
Eight event groups were covered in all, with 181 individual athletes, from 21 different clubs across Cork City and county, attendeed, supported by eleven coaches, and two administrative helpers, across the programme.
This has been a big commitment, on the part of both coaches and athletes, and Cork Athletics would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge and thank each and every one, along with the athlete's parents, for their time, effort, cooperation and committment in making this an outstandingly successful venture.
The primary aim of this programme is to raise the technical standard across the eleven event groups. To this end, it has been a great success.
The past year has seen one participant achieve the qualification standard and selection to the European Youth Olympic Festival (EYOF) Championships, in . Others were selected for their first underage international in both schools (SIAB) and the Nation’s cup. Many others again won medals at county, provisional and National Championships. While others set PBs in competition, or just discovered new events and found they had a previously unrealised talent at them.
At our end of year review meeting, all coaches expressed the opinion that they could see a big, and enduuring, improvement in standards and technical ability over the last couple of years, from athletes who had taken part in the programme.
Many reviews of athletic participation have mentioned the worrying trend of the drop off in athletics during the teenage years, and many suggestions have been put forward as to why this happens and how to arrest/prevent it. [This drop-off is not confined to athletics, and has been noted across the entire sporting spectrum, both in Ireland and abroad]
The CYDI/Winter training programme has seen a reversal of this trend. Over the eight autumn/winter sessions a group of 15 to 18 year olds attended all sessions, in their chosen events, and formed friendships and training partnerships across a wide range of different clubs. They now are all looking to competing against each other in the New Year, and meeting up again, at the Spring sessions. This is great to see, and is something Cork Athletics wishes to foster and encourage.
Spring 2020 Sessions
For the spring of 2020 and as a request of many who took part in 2019, three further sessions are scheduled:
Saturday Jan 11th
Saturday February 8th
Saturday March 14th
Following the end of the Cross Country season the distance group will be joining us on the track.
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