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Today (Friday 27 July) sees the launch of British Curling's Performance Plan for the Winter Olympics in 2010. The Plan aims to ensure maximum success for Team GB in Vancouver.
The Plan has been agreed with all of British Curling's partner organisations and members and it outlines performance targets, the staffing structure and selection process, as well as the key elements of the programme's content and delivery. In addition, the athletes have fully participated in the review process, to ensure the most appropriate content and delivery of the performance programme for the Olympic squads.
After a highly successful 2006/7 season during which curling was the only winter sport to achieve all UK Sport targets, British Curling is looking forward to the next three years with confidence.
Chairman of British Curling, Chris Hildrey, commented, “This performance plan will be delivered with the integrated support of all the partners. The ultimate target of medal success in 2010 is something we all partners look forward to working on together.”
Derek Brown as Scottish Institute of Sport head curling coach and British Curling performance director, whose role is to deliver the world class plans for curling in the build up to the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, as well as the European Youth Olympics in 2009, commented, “The performance plan reflects the collective thinking of our partners and importantly, the players as well. What we have now is a plan that will result in improved quality of coaching and support services through working with smaller, targeted groups of athletes for longer lead in times."
The selection process will continue to be based on individual performance, although following feedback from key stakeholders, there will be some important developments from the Turin 2006 process. To ensure maximum support for the curlers, there will be three full-time coaches in place, men's, women's and wheelchair. In addition the squads will be smaller, a maximum of eight athletes in each, to ensure athletes receive the best possible coaching. Squads will be selected in May 2008, seven months earlier than the Turin cycle, and the squad will then be reduced to five in May 2009, allowing the squads more time to compete as a team in the build up to the Games. Finally, only athletes with a recent international track record will be considered for selection.
