The second workshop of the new Isle of Man Sport Aid Academy focused on resilience, determination and persistence, and used juggling to help underline the lessons.

Attended by nearly 50 of the Island’s most promising young athletes, their parents and coaches, the workshop was the latest event in a major initiative to help young sportspeople develop their skills.

Launched last year the Isle of Man Sport Aid Academy is delivering a programme of education and training with the aim of enhancing the skills needed to shine on the world stage. Athletes aged between 13 and 17 from 11 different sports, as well as six students from Queen Elizabeth II High School, are being given the support and knowledge needed to work towards becoming high performance athletes in the future.

During its first year the Academy, which is being funded by sponsors SMP Partners and Newfield in partnership with Isle of Man Sport, is hosting four workshops aimed at young athletes from the tier below those currently supported by Isle of Man Sport Aid. The athletes’ parents and coaches are also taking an active role in the programme.

The second workshop, at Bemahague School in Onchan on Friday, was again introduced by former professional footballer and qualified physiotherapist Paul Jones, who now runs Move to Perform, supported by 10 local facilitators representing a wide range of sports.

These included Jill Gillings, mother of three-time Olympian Zoe Gillings-Brier, who was able to share her experience from supporting her daughter in sport, and Zoe Crowe, who is not only the Disability Sports Development Officer but also a regular member of the Isle of Man women’s hockey team.

Also assisting as a facilitator on the evening was Jack Walton, a regional coach development manager for the English Football Association.

This workshop was delivered through a series of talks and interactive group sessions involving the athletes, parents and coaches.

During the event a number of athletes were also challenged to learn to juggle, and then perform their new skill in front of an audience. The aim of the teaching technique was to demonstrate that new skills can be learned if you persist and are determined, and have the resilience to overcome failure and not give up.

Isle of Man Sport Aid Sports Performance Co-ordinator Chris Quine said: ‘As we reach the halfway point of the first year of the Isle of Man Sport Aid Academy, we are really beginning to see the impact it is making on the young athletes selected to take part, as well as their families and coaches.

‘There is a realisation that this programme provides invaluable education, assistance and support and that opportunity is being seized by the participants.

‘At this workshop we focused on resilience. The work actually started at the end of the first workshop, when we asked the participants to spend time thinking about athletes they admire and to research the obstacles they had overcome to gain success, and the times they had bounced back from failure, perhaps even becoming stronger for the experience.

‘During the evening we introducedall of the athletes to juggling. It may not be immediately obvious what this skill has to do with achievement in sport, but it perfectly demonstrates that persistence pays off, that you need to pay attention to learn, that you need to plan your approach and not to give up when it gets tough. Each time it went wrong as they learned, that wasn’t a failure but an opportunity to improve.

‘That really was the key message of the evening, that success in sport, as in many areas of life, requires resilience. Many of our young athletes may not yet have suffered a setback in their sport and are not fully equipped to deal with failure when it happens. For some that first obstacle can end their involvement in a sport. This workshop highlighted some of the challenges they might face, and started the path towards developing coping strategies which ensure they remain motivated to recover and bounce back.’

He added: ‘I’d like to thank our sponsors SMP Partners and Newfield for their support. They are helping ensure this unique opportunity is available for many young people to learn lessons which can be applied to their sport and used throughout their lives.’

Once again the participants were set tasks to complete ahead of the third workshop, which takes place on April 15 and will focus on self-regulation.

Mark Denton, Managing Director of leading independent trust and corporate services provider SMP Partners, said: ‘Part of the reason we sponsored the Academy was the opportunity to be involved in equipping the Island’s young people with the skills to achieve excellence. Although targeted at sport now, these are skills which will benefit the participants in their future lives and careers however they develop.

‘The first workshop looked at commitment to excellence, and this session taught the young athletes very important lessons about resilience, about remaining determined to achieve your ambitions whatever the obstacles. Failures and setbacks happen, but what you need to do is pick yourself up, learn from the experience and keep pushing towards your goal. Those attending the Isle of Man Sport Aid Academy now understand that and have learned how to develop and use a coping strategy to ensure “failure” is seen as opportunity and doesn’t diminish motivation.’

Newfield Director Mark Reynolds added: ‘Having had the opportunity to see how eager the participants, especially the Island’s young athletes, are to learn and benefit from the knowledge and experience shared at the workshops, I’m sure the Sport Aid Academy is already proving hugely beneficial.

‘The subjects being covered will help them move towards achieving their goals in sport, but will also equip them with important life skills which will be valuable whatever the future holds. As a company which believes in helping our people develop to achieve their full potential, and instilling qualities like commitment and resilience, the aims of the Academy mirror our own ideals.

‘These are skills we value at Newfield, as they are vital to delivering our goals as a business.

‘Developing the ability to move on from setbacks with motivation undiminished or even strengthened is an important skill to have, and using juggling to as a teaching technique was an imaginative and engaging way to demonstrate this to the athletes – and something I’m sure none of them will forget!’