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Meet the Experts
Read on to find out a little bit more about some of the people who are working hard behind the scenes providing high performance expertise to the athletes heading to Vancouver...
Mike Whittingham
Mike Whittingham is the Director of High Performance at the sportscotland institute of sport. Within the new organisation he has both strategic and operational responsibility for leading sportscotland’s investment, strategic input and operational delivery of high performance.
In his role he is responsible for driving success and to ensure that Scottish athletes are given every opportunity to perform to the highest level on the world stage. Planning and process are essential pre-requisites of his job and Mike has a strong varied background of senior management within the educational, public and private sector. Every organisation needs a strong figurehead with both a sporting and business brain; and Mike is that man. In addition to this, he is well versed on the political and corporate issues affecting sport in the UK and is able to discuss the different elements these present
Mike has far reaching experience in sport. For fifteen years Mike built up a company that provided consultative advice and support world wide to organisations including Lloyds/ TSB, IAAF, IOC, Kenyan Government, ODA, UK Sport Millennium Dome, UK Athletics and numerous National governing Bodies such as British Swimming and British Triathlon. Mike is an adviser to the Minister of Sport and a Winston Churchill Fellow.
He was a former GB International at 400m hurdles and 800 metres. He has coached and managed a very successful group of athletes that won over 35 major medals at major Championships including Roger Black, Kris Akabussi, John Regis, Jon Ridgeon, Maria Akara and also his own Scottish wife Christine.
Liz Mendl
Liz Mendl, high performance manager, has been with the sportscotland institute of sport for 10 years, ensuring a seamless delivery of valuable services to athletes. Working closely both with Olympic and Paralympic athletes, Liz knows all there is to know about these competitors.
Athletes work with an ever-increasing number of individuals and organisations, from their personal coach to their sport’s National Governing Body, and it’s Liz’s job to make that process easier for them. She ensures that complications are minimised, and identifies issues and gaps to make sure all the athlete’s needs are met. Liz is also coordinating the expertise around the athletes in the run up to and throughout Vancouver.
Liz is working with the Scottish Winter Olympic athletes across a range of the winter sports including, wheelchair curling, cross country skiing, ice dancing, bobsleigh, alpine skiing and snowboarding.
A former physiotherapist, Liz has played a role in four Winter Olympics including, being head physiotherapist for the GB team and former physiotherapist to the GB ski team.
Dave Clark
Dave Clark has been head of strength and conditioning at the sportscotland institute of sport for over a decade. Dave is responsible for an ever growing network of professionals who help Scotland’s athletes ensure they are in the best physical shape for competition. Using a range of innovative technologies, including the Muscle Lab used to determine muscle strength and Silicon Coach, a video analysis tool, Dave works with athletes to make sure they are in peak physical condition.
Ahead of the Vancouver Olympics 2010, Dave’s role includes overseeing preparation of the ice dancers, skiers, curlers and wheelchair curlers.
Brought up in Zululand, Dave has an MSc in Exercise Science and is an accredited strength and conditioning coach. His previous roles include national fitness coach to the South African and the Welsh rugby teams. His career highlights include coaching Chris Hoy when he won Olympic Gold in the kilo, Dave Florence when he won silver in Beijing and Campbell Walsh when he won Silver medal in the canoe slalom in Athens.
Dr Brian Walker
Dr Brian Walker joined the sportscotland institute of sport over six years ago as head of sports medicine. It is Brian’s job to help mend athlete’s aches and pains ensuring they stay healthy whilst in training and during competition. Brian, with colleagues, works to prevent injury and illness but if they do occur then intervenes to restore health as quickly and safely as possible.
Brian and his physiology partners lead the way when it comes to incorporating technology into sports medicine. From sleep watches to heart rate variability, these technologies all contribute to keeping our athletes in tip top condition in order to compete at the top of their game.
Ahead of Vancouver, Brian has been analysing athlete blood and saliva samples to ensure health and wellbeing during training. He has also been working closely with athletes to monitor their sleep patterns ensuring that they will be able to adjust easily to life over the Ocean, devising solutions such as travel and jet lag strategies. Brian works alongside other institute service providers to ensure the ice dancers, skiers and curlers receive the best support required to compete in their sport.
With 25 years experience as a general practitioner, Brian has also worked as a sports doctor at Edinburgh University, Scottish Rugby and Heriot Watt University. He has a number of medical achievements including a Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery, a post graduate degree in Sports Medicine and he is a Founding Fellow of Faculty of Sport and Exercise Medicine.
Neil Crosbie
Neil Crosbie is the sportscotland institute of sport strength and conditioning coach for ice dance couple John and Sinead Kerr.
In the run up to Vancouver 2010, Neil met the challenge of delivering S&C support remotely to the Kerr’s based in the USA, monitoring and informing their training program design and delivery using Muscle Lab technology and video analysis. Neil also teamed up with experts at Sheffield Hallam University to deploy a portable vibration training device to assist in developing the Kerr’s extreme range flexibility.
With a BSc in Biological Sciences from Heriot Watt University, Neil’s first job was as a diver working in the North Sea oil industry before turning his enthusiasm and passion for strength training into a career. Neil is now an Accredited Strength and Conditioning Coach (ASCC), tutor and assessor with the UKSCA (UK Strength & Conditioning Association) and has worked at the institute for eight years.
As well as working with the Kerr’s, Neil’s career highlights include working with: Libby Clegg who won a silver medal in Beijing, Kenny Anderson who won Commonwealth Gold in Melbourne and the hockey players that represented GB in the Athens and Beijing Olympics.
Ryan King
Ryan King is a strength and conditioning coach at the sportscotland institute of sport. As lead strength and conditioning coach for the Curling Team, he is responsible for preparing the GB Men’s and Women’s teams for the Vancouver Olympics 2010.
Ryan’s role is to ensure the athletes are in peak physical condition, working closely with technical coaches to create strength and conditioning programmes that integrate fully with their competition schedule.
To help prepare for Vancouver, Ryan has worked with Kenny More (Elite Sports Analysis) and physiologist, Vanessa Zucco, to gather video analysis and heart rate data from a series of games in order to understand the physical demands of competitive curling. Coupled with further lactate test results gathered by Vanessa, Ryan has used this information to build bespoke cardio vascular aerobic and anaerobic conditioning specific to the curlers needs.
Ryan also works closely with physiotherapist, Mandy Belch, to ensure each athlete is physically screened and that the programmes are individualised and relevant to the athlete’s physical needs.
Holding a BSc (Hons) Sports Coaching and Development degree, and having lectured, coached and trained a wide range of individuals in a variety of sports and subjects, Ryan’s approach is based on a valuable combination of scientific knowledge and practical experience. His career highlights include coaching European and World gold and silver medalists (men’s Curling) and supporting GB swimmers based in Grampian to the Beijing Olympics.
Rebecca Joyce
Rebecca Joyce is the sportscotland institute of sport physiotherapist providing support to the GB Alpine skiers - Ed Drake, Dougie Crawford, Noel Baxter, Dave Ryding, Andy Noble.
In the run up to Vancouver 2010, Rebecca is responsible for providing physiotherapy support to the skiers at home and abroad. This includes injury management, prevention and developing sports specific testing in order to enhance performance.
Rebecca previously worked with the NHS for seven years but built on her own interests as a keen skier and snowboarder to focus her career in the Winter Sports arena. She has been with the institute since September 2008.
She has been working closely with the Alpine skiers on return to snow protocols and developing a measurement tool for return to sport post injury. Rebecca also works with cross country skiers and snowboarders.
Malcolm Fairweather
Dr Malcolm Fairweather is the sportscotland institute of sport’s head of science and innovation. Responsible for bringing a wealth of science expertise and hi-tech equipment to Scotland, he manages colleague’s skills in exploring their support knowledge; as well as impressive gadgets and gizmos to give Scottish athletes and coaches the competitive edge. Natural talent is just the starting point for a world class athlete. The cutting edge innovation provided by Malcolm and his network of scientists helps the athletes make the most of their talent.
Pioneering the application of specialised knowledge and use of advanced technology such as state of the art testing and monitoring equipment, sport science is able to make a valuable contribution to the coaching process.
Ahead of Vancouver, Malcolm has been working closely with wheelchair curling head coach Tom Pendreigh to improve skill acquisition and technique of the Paralympic athletes. Adopting new techniques is not easy and this work has been carried out with John Marchant (psychology) to help mentally prepare the athletes. Malcolm, John and Tom have designed bespoke training scenarios for each athlete in training to ensure continual progression of technique and strategy. The decision to move the athletes position on the ice, from the ‘front’ line (as near to the target as rules allow) to the ‘back’ of the ice sheet, near the hack and further away from their target was a challenging one. They have introduced, through Tom’s innovation, back of house delivery techniques over and above front of house techniques. As a result of this work, the GB athletes will be the only nation applying back of house techniques at Vancouver.
Prior to his role at the sportscotland institute of sport, Malcolm was a school teacher and then a university lecturer/researcher before embarking on career in sports science and innovation. He received his PhD in Motor Behaviour from Louisiana State University and has published in numerous national and international journals. He is well recognised as a leader in the field of sports acquisition.
Susie Elms
Susie Elms has been head of performance lifestyle at the sportscotland institute of sport since 1998. In her role Susie provides advice on achieving the all important sport-life balance by helping athletes to juggle their education, job, lifestyle and training demands during and after their career in sport.
From choosing the right university course, to helping athletes manage their lives at home while they compete abroad, Susie is on hand to provide support and advice 24/7.
Prior to this role, Susie was a lecturer in Sports Coaching and Sports Development at Edinburgh's Telford College. She holds a degree in Physical Education from Dunfermline College of Physical Education and a post-graduate degree in Athlete Career and Education Management from the Australian Institute of Sport.