National Youth Development Camp Report 6-10 Jully

NATIONAL YOUTH DEVELOPMENT CAMP REPORT JULY 6-10 2016 AIS COACHING STAFF:
Head Coach- ANTHONY REDWARD
Coach Mentor/Athlete Mentor- JAMIE PITTMAN
Coach /Presenter- ADAM NAHAL
Coach- MARK EVANS

ATHLETES:
1.    Tai Waterman
2.    Dylan Mallia
3.    Kane Jeakings
4.    Julian Jeakings
5.    Presley Wilcox
6.    Jack Gipp
7.    Justis Huni
8.    Lachlan Higgins
9.    Sam Goodman
10.    Mark Borg
11.    Jack Bowen
12.    Sam Cameron Hands
13.    Bailey Seabourne
14.    Tyler Blizzard
15.    Furkan Demirkaya
16.    Damien Vaughan
17.    Jayden Vella
18.    Elias Awad
19.    Tommy Aldous – (Sports Draft)
20.    Antonio Labbozzetta – (Sports Draft)

The NYDC (NATIONAL YOUTH DEVELOPMENT CAMP) was attended by selected athletes based on their results at the BAL Nationals (gold/silver) and/or recommendations from the BAL selection panel which assessed every bout at the Youth Championships.

The Camp content, including boxing sessions, presentations and testing by AIS Sports Scientists was conducted over a 5-day period. The Boxing sessions content was set out on the daily session plan which worked in with the schedule set out by BAL and the AIS Combat Centre Administration.

The NYDC began with a welcome and introduction outlining the camp, its content and the expectations of Coaches and Staff of athletes at the camp. This was received well with the athletes showing excellent enthusiasm and positivity. Tyler Blizzard was selected as Team Captain and was responsible for team organisation and he did an outstanding job. Congratulations Tyler!

Participation in all activities including, presentations, group training, sports science testing, mentoring and recreation was a prerequisite as is the case in any BAL camp.

The selected athletes responded with enthusiasm, effort, a high level of respect and keen attention to Coaches delivering the camp content.

The level of participation was excellent. There were some natural leaders in the group that took the lead in group discussions, liaising with coaches for their group and encouraging decision making. Jack Gipp was a stand out in this regard.

The NYDC included condition sparring sessions. These sessions are designed to encourage skill acquisition and build the boxing brain. The talent within the NYDC was obvious, with each athlete putting their best foot forward, whilst working with their team mates to achieve the best possible result, and get the most out of each session.

Team bonding was encouraged by interactive sessions and recreation activities. The boxers participated in a special activity which was facilitated by National Regional Development Coach Jamie Pittman, where the athletes were invited to write words which held special significance to them on a boomerang that was then decorated and taken with them to their homes/gyms. This had a huge impact on the athletes.

BAL CEO Paul Grogan delivered 2 presentations – an anti-Doping education session and a Professionalism and Expectation session which highlighted their obligations under the BAL Social Media Policy.

Coach Adam Nahal delivered 2 presentations on Coach/Athlete relationships and Skills acquisition and recognition.

Sports Nutritionist Bronwen Charleson then delivered a seminar on proper nutrition for athletes, pre and post competition as well as education on proper fuel for the body during training and recovery. The athletes felt this was highly valuable information.

Hamilton Lee, AIS Sports Science Team member, delivered a seminar on competition warmups which was very practical in educating the athletes on warmup protocols and their effect on competition.

These presentations are a vital part of athlete education, and form the basis for elite athletes learning about what is expected of them. It was very encouraging to have very experienced sports people delivering both on an executive and coaching level.

Athlete education is an ongoing initiative of BAL and the AIS, and forms a strong basis for any high performance athlete in their understanding of their professional career.

The NYDC finished on the Sunday with 2 sessions, a camp wrap up and goodbye with all athletes offering positive feedback on the camp and experiences they had over the duration.

We are confident the athletes have strong messages to take back to their home and training environments that will benefit their everyday training and planning.

We look forward to seeing these developing high performance athletes representing their country in the near future, and striving for Olympic glory.
I would also like to express my sincere appreciation to my fellow coaches Jamie, Adam and Mark who were a great team to lead the camp.

Report by NYDC Camp Head Coach Anthony Redward