Disability Sport Wales
Chwaraeon Anabledd Cymru

The Federation of Disability Sport Wales (FDSW) is a pan-disability National Governing Body of Sport Which aims to promote and develop quality sports opportunities

COACH OF THE YEAR FINALISTS UNVEILED

The Sports Council for Wales has today unveiled the 2009 Coach of the Year Awards shortlist for the six categories, as the countdown to the prestigious ceremony begins.

The winners will be announced at the Welsh Institute of Sport in Cardiff on Thursday 12th November, 2009 – one of whom will receive the coveted title of the Sports Council for Wales Coach of the Year.

(pictured – Last years Coach of The Year Disability Swimming High Performance Coach, Billy Pye from Swansea)
The candidates are:

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TIM HAZELL (ARCHERY) Newbridge, Gwent

• Tim has been coaching for 10 years and is the team coach of the GB Paralympic team as well as Wales’ able bodied team, development squads and the GB Talent Identification Programme.
• He is also personal coach to Pippa Britton – Wales’ own Paralympian who hopes to compete alongside able bodied archers at the Commonwealth Games next year.
• In 2009, Tim helped the GB Paralympic women’s compound team (which includes Pippa Britton – originally from Cowbridge, now based in Newport) win gold at the World Championships. The women also took two world records en route.
• Meanwhile, Danielle Brown took gold in the Ladies compound individual event while team-mate Mel Clarke took silver and Pippa Britton finished in fourth place.
• The men’s compound team stormed to silver and Fred Stevens also won bronze in the individual event.
• In 2009, Tim has also travelled to Arizona with the ladies compound team to compete in the Arizona Cup – an important able bodied event in the archery calendar. The women’s team collected silver while the men’s compound team won bronze and the men’s recurve team completed the hat-trick with yet another bronze.
• Under Tim’s wing, British archers have picked up six medals in archery’s Grand Prix circuit.
• Tim has a first-class track record and in 2008, his team picked up the highest number of medals ever won by a Paralympic archery team at a Paralympic Games
• Tim has been responsible for building a coaching structure within Paralympic archery. The current team is the most successful team ever in GB archery in all disciplines – able bodied and disabled – with two Paralympics champions, world record holders and world champions in both team and individual events.
• Tim was the team manager for the Paralympics Archery team in Beijing as well as coach.
• He has recently identified some talented juniors (including Wales’ own Jemma Morris, from Carmarthenshire) and under his influence she is rapidly improving her skills, putting in personal bests all the time. He has introduced a mentoring scheme and she is benefitting from this, having access to a member of the elite squad. His hope is that she will be in London 2012 and a medal prospect for 2016.

JIM MUNKLEY (WHEELCHAIR TABLE TENNIS) Llandaff, Cardiff

• This former Paralympian has been a volunteer coach for 15 years.

• Having competed for more than 40 years and at five Paralympic Games, he is now a coach to six players (including two Paralympians, Clare and Scott Robinson, from Deeside).

• He coaches up and coming talents including Sara Head who is rocketing up the rankings this year. She is world no.6, Europe’s no.5 and British no.1. In fact, it was Sara who nominated Jim for this award.

• Jim also coaches at a club based in a spinal injuries hospital (Rookwood).

• Scott and Claire Robertson are both ranked just outside the world top ten and British no.1 and no.2 respectively.
• His protogés have travelled to Slovakia, Slovenia, Poland and Germany where the team have picked up medals at every event. The team also battled to bronze at the European Championships and most players have qualified for next year’s World Championships.
• Jim has an excellent track record – he has coached players to World Championships level. He has been the coach for two Commonwealth Games with Claire and Sara reaching quarter finals at both. Claire and Scott also competed at the Beijing Paralympics.
• One player, Ashley Davies, said: “Jim has helped me in a massive way- not only spending hours upon hours a week training with me and others but he is also there for advice. I haven’t known Jim for long but I’ve known him long enough to know that he is motivated and finds happiness in motivating people to get into sports and making a horrible accident that little bit easier. I could never thank him enough – he has changed my outlook on life.”
ANDREW WILLIAMS (ROWING) Swansea

• Andrew is coach to Adaptive Rowers City of Swansea Rowing Club
• With more than 20 years of coaching experience, Andrew is currently working with four rowers, including Paralympian James Roberts from Prestatyn.
• James finished fifth at the 2009 World Rowing Championships and has made excellent progress in recent years – the highlight being a fifth place finish at the Beijing Paralympics.
• Andrew has made it possible for disabled athletes to have access to rowing in an area that had very few suitable facilities. This has not hampered him in any way and has shown how easy it can be to use makeshift equipment to ensure disabled participants can have new experiences.
• Andrew is also working with Welsh Rowing to make sure that disabled people across Wales have the opportunity to row. As a result of his work, two more clubs have welcomed disabled athletes.
• If he’s not on the water in Swansea, Andrew will probably be found travelling to competitions with James. Providing support at most major championships, Andrew always brings back new knowledge to share with coaches and athletes in Wales.
HIGH PERFORMANCE COACH

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DR KYLIE WILSON PHD (RUGBY) St Mellons, Cardiff

PAM RICHARDS (HOCKEY) Wrexham

SARAH THOMAS (ROWING) Llandaff, Cardiff

The Coach of the Year Awards recognises and honours those coaches who work tirelessly on the sidelines to inspire success.
Last year’s winner of the prestigious Coach of the Year award was Wales swim coach Billy Pye. The former miner from Blaengwynfi recorded a phenomenal year, winning coaching gongs aplenty at the Beijing Paralympic Games.
[Ends]

For further information or requests for interviews with any of the candidates, please contact Jane Williams at the Sports Council for Wales on 029 2033 8274 / jane.williams@scw.org.uk

Notes to Editors:

SPORTS COACH UK

As the lead agency for sports coaching in the UK, sports coach UK works alongside government agencies, governing bodies of sport, many more key partner organisations towards the establishment of a world leading coaching system. Supporting coaching and coaches through the ongoing development and provision of tailored workshops and resources, sports coach UK leads the way in terms of coach education and associated coaching qualifications.

TOTAL TEAMWEAR

In recent times, Total Teamwear had generated the enviable reputation of supplying universities, governing bodies and teams across the sporting spectrum with a wide range of bespoke quality team and leisurewear. Total Teamwear prides itself on giving customers exactly what they require and can include a full range of personalised decoration options including embroidery and printing. UWIC, Sports Council for Wales, Commonwealth Games Council for Wales and Pontypridd Rugby are just a few that are part of the ever increasing Total Teamwear Family.

UNIVERSITY OF WALES INSTITUTE OF CARDIFF (UWIC)

UWIC’s Cardiff School of Sport is a recognised centre of excellence within the UK. It has established a national reputation for the quality of its academic, sporting and professional work – a reputation maintained through the quality of the academic staff who support our students in both the academic and sporting disciplines. A junior Sports Academy system in the Cardiff School of Sport provides sport development and coaching opportunities for over 1500 children every week, with most of the coaching being delivered by current UWIC students under the guidance of academic staff.

SKLILLSACTIVE

SkillsActive is the Sector Skills Council (SSC) for Active Leisure and Learning, licensed by Government to be the voice of skills issues and solutions for the sector. Working in partnership with employers and key stakeholders, SkillsActive leads and supports the industry’s drive to succeed, by ensuring the supply of skills to meet the needs of industry.

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COACH OF THE YEAR FINALISTS UNVEILED

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