Weekly Updates Saturday 4th April

We really do hope everyone is keeping safe and well. We are very proud of our volunteers, senior members and parents of the juniors, that are on the front line of fighting the coronavirus. Please don’t forget to get in touch if you want or need help or support with anything at all.

Here are some updates, challenges and information for you:

Fixtures:

The annual fixtures page continues to be updated with cancellations and postponements as and when information becomes available.

Coaching:

There is a plethora of ideas and resources out there for coaches and athletes to use in lock down. Here we’ve picked out four of our more athletics specific favourites for you:

1. Last week we showed you the link for Athletics 365 challenges. This week all our UK Athletics qualified coaches can now also get free access to download the resource onto their mobiles or I pads, click here for details.

2. A fantastic website is https://www.brianmac.co.uk/ which is the place for anything and everything you could want to know about coaching. There are lots of fitness tests to choose from too, however we urge caution that you select those that are appropriate for your age and ability.

3. The Welsh Athletics You Tube Channel if you scroll down the page, has almost 30 clips on physical preparation challenges and tests for athletes, most of which you can do at home.

4. England Athletics have a regular programme of online coaching webinars, focussing on a range of event specific themes, and are free to register. The latest webinars on offer are featured on the link, keep checking back as details of more webinars which will be added over the coming days. Click here to see the menu of webinars.

Competition:

Whilst its relatively easier for our endurance runners to adapt their training for lock down, Strava seems to be one of the more popular. It can be a little trickier for the other event disciplines. For our junior members here is your Run Jump Throw challenge for next week to complete Swansea Harriers Lock down Run Jump Throw Challenge Score Sheet.doc results will be posted next weekend, and please send any images of you doing the challenge to https://twitter.com/SwanHarrierDev 

Trustees/Committee:

Whilst you couldn’t wish for a better set of trustees/committee, next Monday their mixed ability set of IT skills will be tested, as they try to hold for the first time in the clubs history, an online video conference committee meeting! What are the chances of getting them all set up and logged on?
A: None
B: Slim
C: Have faith miracles do happen
D: It’ll be easy for them.
Answers on a postcard to the club secretary!

Team Managers:

Did anyone get in touch with your team managers here, to introduce yourself? At the moment they are all playing fantasy athletics, imagining how good their squads would have been if all athletes were fit, willing and available!

Officials:

Did anyone get in contact with Christina our officials secretary here, to join her team ready for when the season recommences? We always need all the help we can get in this multi discipline sport to fulfil our club officiating duties at home and away matches.

Know Your Coach Quiz:

Can you correctly guess which of our coaches in the answer to these questions below? The answers will be revealed in the next weeks news update:

1. Hayley Tullett won a bronze medal over 1500m in the 2003 world athletics championships in Paris, which of our coaches is her uncle?
2. Which of our coaches had the fortune/misfortune (delete as you see fit) and demonstrated the patience of a saint, whilst trying to coach hurdles to Jedward at the 2012 Swansea University star track camp?
3. Which of our coaches used to share a flat with 007 Daniel Craig when they were in university together?
4. Which of our coaches up until a couple of years ago could still do a backflip and land safely (more or less) after being a former welsh international gymnast?
5. Which of our coaches was the team manager for Wales in the Commonwealth Games of 2002 in Manchester?
6. How many of our coaches are current school head teachers and who are they? Half a point for each.
7. Which of our coaches was also an Aikido coach?
8. Occasionally one goal for an athlete maybe to try and beat their coaches PB. Which of our coaches has a 400m Hurdles time of (56.77) who Owain Clarke & Charlie Brown are trying their best to beat/will beat?
9. Which of our coaches used to be the editor of the South Wales Evening Post?
10. Which coaches name is missing from this team, of our clubs infamous slowest ever mens 4 x 400m league relay result from the year 2000? Terry LalleyJohn OwenJonathan Clarke & ?