Ever committed to improve our support for young talent, our Regional Academies for talented young climbers are back this autumn with new themes for each day, delivered by the country's best coaches.
The BMC began supporting talented young climbers in 2008 with the launch of the National Academies. The Regional Academies launched two years ago at walls across the country to provide further support for emerging talent.
Children selected for their regional team after the final round of the 2015 Youth Climbing Series are eligible to attend their Regional Academies. This year's Regional Academies are on are on 26 September, 17 October, 7 November and 5 December.
Regional Academies will take place in seven of the BMC areas: NE & Lakes, NW, Yorkshire, Peak, Midlands, SW, and London & SE. Children in Wales will be able to elect which of the Midlands, the SW and the NW they wish to attend. The reason for not having an all-Wales regional academy is because travel east and west out of Wales is easier than travel north and south within Wales.
The price for attending the Regional Academies includes wall entry; all academies are on Saturdays, and the SW, Wales and Lakes & NE academy venues will hopefully reduce travel distance for those attending.
We have also changed the content from last year, so those children who attended previous academies will be shown new ideas to aid their development.
Whilst the Youth Climbing Series is the primary selection mechanism for the Regional and National Academies, the underlying aim of both programmes is to help talented young climbers realise their potential, whether or not they continue competing as they mature.
Themes, dates and venues for each BMC Regional Academies are:
26 Sep - Movement
It's not just about what talent you have, it's about making the most of it! Here we look at different types of movement to show you how to climb more efficiently.
17 Oct - Building the Athlete
How are great athletes built? What separates the good ones from the great ones? Here we look beyond our own sport to find out what we can do to build you as an athlete, and support your future climbing.
7 Nov - Climbing Smart
With the best preparation your performance can still come undone if you make the wrong decision. Understading the 'what', the 'when' and the 'how' are the fundamentals of good tactics. In this session we will look at how to utilise your most powerful muscle.......your brain!
5 Dec - Putting it all together
Bringing themes from the previous Regional Academies together, this day will be more personalised for each child, helping them appreciate their own strangths and weaknesses.
South West and S Wales
(The September and November academies are for both areas)
26 Sep - Bloc Climbing, Bristol
7 Nov - Undercover Rock, Bristol
5 Dec - Quay Climbing Centre, Exeter
Sunday 13 Dec - Undercover Rock, Bristol
London and the South East
26 Sep - Craggy Island, Sutton
17 Oct - White Spider, London
7 Nov - The Castle, London
5 Dec - Reading Climbing Centre
Midlands
26 Sep - The Climbing Station, Loughborough
17 Oct - Boulder Central, Birmingham
7 Nov - Wolf Mountain, Wolverhampton
5 Dec - The Pinnacle CC, Northamptonshire
Book now!
The programme for each Regional Academy is:
9.30 – 10.00 Youth D & E registration at wall
10.00 – 12.00 Youth D and Youth E Girls and Boys
12.00 – 1.00 Lunch & Youth A, B & C registration at wall
1.00 – 3.00 Youth A, B, & C Girls and Boys session 1
3.00 – 3.45 Break
3.45 – 5.15 Youth A, B, & C Girls and Boys session 2
The ages and sessions are split to match the age specific skills being taught and the envisaged attention span of the different age groups.
Youth D and E children and parents are welcome to stay and observe what the other children are doing should they wish to do so, or simply go climbing for themselves.
The cost for attending the four Regional Academies, which includes wall entry, is £48 per child for Youth D & E (£24 for those receiving income support) and £64 per child for Youth A, B & C (£32 for those receiving income support).
The maximum coaching ratio at each Regional Academy will be one coach with six children, in order to provide focused coaching for each child.
Considering how popular the current National Academies have proved, we hope that children, parents, coaches and climbing walls will welcome BMC Regional Academies.
The BMC will also be delivering the National Academies on 12 & 13 September 2015 and 9 & 10 January 2016 for children who qualify in the top ten in the YCS National Final, or who make the final in either the BMC Junior Lead or Bouldering Competitions on 6 June, 27 June, 19 September, 3 October and 21 & 22 November.
On each weekend of the National Acadmies, one will be held in the north and one in the south. Childen will be invited to attend one in September and one in January, two events in total.
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