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Gifted Athlete Program (GAP)

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Partnership

The Department of Sport and Recreation (DSR) in partnership with the Western Australian Institute of Sport (WAIS) have developed a life skills education and training program for talented athletes. The Gifted Athlete Program (GAP) Life Skills Education and Training is designed to assist the development of talented sub elite athletes to gain personal development skills through the National Athlete Career and Education (ACE) program.

Athlete Career and Education (ACE)

The ACE program was the first of its kind, developed and implemented in Australia in 1995. It is the leader nationally and internationally in its field and is staffed by a team of fully qualified personnel who are experts in their understanding of the needs of elite athletes. The program operates to stringent quality assurance guidelines which are reported against at a national level. This, combined with the professional requirements of ACE staff, ensures quality control of program development and service delivery and provides accountability guidelines of the highest quality.

The primary objective of the WAIS ACE program is to contribute to the personal development and performance of WA's elite athletes by assisting them to achieve a balance in sport and life without compromising on excellence.

Research

Research into the transition of talented athletes into the elite environment has indicated that many are under prepared and lack a basic understanding of some of the most crucial facets of their development. WAIS have also highlighted the need for a more holistic approach to talent athlete development especially in regional WA.

Objectives

The GAP program aims to provide sub elite athletes with:

  • An increased awareness, understanding and knowledge of the key life skills necessary to successfully integrate sport and life;
  • The opportunity to put this knowledge into practice by providing activities which develop and build skills in an interactive forum;
  • Greater awareness of the availability of resources - who, what, where further information and support can be obtained; and
  • The opportunity to network with other sub elite athletes from a variety of sports to learn and share experiences.

Program

In mid 2006, DSR and WAIS developed a 2 year pilot program to deliver GAP to regionally based talented athletes identified through the Healthway supported Smarter than Smoking (STS) Country Sport Scholarship scheme. The program was officially launched in April 2007 and has been delivered on 10 separate occasions across 7 regions: Mid West, South West, Goldfields, Great Southern, Wheatbelt, Peel and the North West (Kimberley and Pilbara).

125 STS athletes from 31 sports across these regions received life skills training including the workshops, additional resources and a presentation from a WAIS elite athlete. 104 parents of STS athletes attended the "Supporting your athlete" workshop with their athletes and gained an understanding of each others' roles and responsibilities to achieve a balance between sport and life.

In July 2008, DSR and WAIS conducted an extensive review of the initial pilot program to determine its future direction. This culminated in a new 2 year program that includes a number of enhancements to ensure that program delivery continues to best meet the needs of regional athletes and allows for expansion to talented metropolitan based athletes.

The new GAP Life Skills pilot program will be developed and delivered from mid 2008 - 2010 to talented regional athletes as residential camps and to talented metropolitan based athletes as half or full day workshops.

Two levels of GAP workshops will be developed: Introductory and Advanced with the aim being to better cater for the varying age groups and developmental levels of talented athletes in Western Australia.

The Introductory GAP will target 12 to 15 year old athletes offering 4 x 30 minute modules delivered as a half day program. Topics include:

  • Understanding Your Sporting Pathway
  • Sports Nutrition Basics
  • Introductory Time Management and Goal Setting Practices
  • Understanding Injury Prevention and Recovery

The Advanced level GAP will target 16 to 21 year olds athletes and includes 9 x 45 minute modules delivered as a full day program. Topics include:

  • The Elite Athlete Pathway
  • Advanced Sports Nutrition
  • Planning and Managing Transitions
  • Drugs in Sport
  • Developing Self-awareness
  • Athlete Promotions and Sports Media
  • Developing Athlete Leadership
  • Advanced Injury Prevention and Recovery Techniques
  • Parent workshop: Supporting your athlete

GAP athletes will also benefit from working with WAIS's elite athletes who will act as athlete ambassadors and role models for the program.

Contact details for Gifted Athlete Program

Samantha Shields
Talent Development Regional Coordinator
246 Vincent Street, LEEDERVILLE WA 6007
PO Box 329, LEEDERVILLE WA 6903
Telephone (08) 9492 9700
Facsimile (08) 9492 9711
Email Sam

Tim Chambers
WAIS ACE Training Officer
Western Australian Institute of Sport
Challenge Stadium, Stephenson Ave Mt Claremont WA 6910
Telephone (08) 9387 8166
Email Tim


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