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this is talent development, our way

Supported by

Join our multisport team, where talented athletes aged 15-20 will progress under the coaching, guidance and nurture of the SPS coaching Team. Our year-long programme runs from October to the following September, providing a uniquely dynamic and productive training environment for those within it. With British Triathlon's performance services scaling back, SPS Coaching is offering driven young athletes the chance to develop alongside like-minded athletes and coaches. The Athlete Development Programme is an independent, self-funded programme and we will continuously adapt our structure to meet each athlete’s unique development needs — recognising that everyone grows in their own way.

The Athlete development programme is our take on a regional-academy-style structure

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The plan

  • From the first session onward, we collaborate with athletes and their support networks to identify strengths and areas for growth. Rather than dictating decisions, we encourage independence, helping athletes become strong, smart, and self-sufficient, taking ownership of their development.

  • Next, we analyse the underlying factors behind each athlete's strengths and weaknesses, uncovering the reasons behind habits and breaking down key performance elements that drive success or challenges.

  • After identifying the factors behind each athlete’s strengths and weaknesses, we focus on actionable steps for growth. Athlete Development Programme sessions will continuously adapt to support both the broader goals of the cohort and the specific needs of each individual.

  • Our holistic approach prioritises smart, effective training — both physically and mentally — increasing the likelihood of hard work being translated into progress.

benefits of the athlete development programme

  • Group training sessions

    10 sessions over a year long period, uniting highly motivated athletes within our unique environment. Each session is 3.5 hours in duration and will revolve around 2 disciplines at a time, providing training opportunities that are often hard to access such as open-water swimming, race simulations, endurance road riding and video analysis.

  • guidance from the sps coaching team

    Alongside broader instruction and feedback within our sessions, athletes will upload their training data to TrainingPeaks so our team can monitor their training. This will help us to adapt session content and provide more specific guidance. Please note that 1-1 coaching is an optional extra service and is available at an additional cost.

  • exclusive access to a library of session plans

    Plans for each discipline with differing focusses for you to utilise in your personal training. Plans that are specifically designed for developing performance athletes and the content of which can be adapted (to be more personalised) by the SPS Coaching team upon request from an athlete.

  • referrals to further guidance

    Being independently managed, we are able to seek out relationships with companies and professionals who offer trusted high quality products and services in order for our athletes to level-up their performance. These includes kit manufacturers, sports psychologists and insurance.

standards

Times to exceed

These times are to establish a base level ability of our cohort of athletes. Anyone who can exceed these minimum standard times for their gender and age group are of the standard we will work with

  • 200m swimming - 00:02:50

    2000m running - 00:08:20

  • 200m swimming - 00:02:45

    2000m running - 00:07:50

  • 200m swimming - 00:02:40

    2000m running - 00:07:50

  • 200m swimming - 00:02:35

    2000m running - 00:07:30

  • 400m swimming - 00:05:20

    3000m running - 00:11:50

  • 400m swimming - 00:05:10

    3000m running - 00:11:05

£450

core support

per athlete per year

This all-inclusive fee covers the entire programme, giving you access to all 10 of our group training sessions and a standard level of background support from the SPS Coaching team. Payment can be made in full or through 12 monthly instalments of £42 (£504).

£1500

integrated support

per athlete per year

This all‑inclusive fee covers the entire programme, giving you access to all 10 group training sessions as well as full and completely personalised 1‑to‑1 coaching delivered by Harry Horsman and the SPS Coaching team. This is our new, comprehensive development package designed for athletes seeking complete guidance and support. Payment can be made in full or through 12 monthly instalments of £125 (£1500).

FAQs

I am a duathlete or single discipline athlete, can i join the athlete development programme?

Although the programme is predominantly focussed on triathlon, we can cater for duathletes and single discipline athletes. Depending on which disciplines you compete in and how many of our sessions cover your sport, there are different concession prices available. Please contact us directly for further information if this applies to you.

Where are athlete development programme sessions likely to be located?

We aim to host our sessions at top class training facilities in and around south London and the south east of England. the venue(s) for each session will vary in location with the aim of being fair to athletes within the cohort who are travelling from different parts of the south east region.

I’ve been selected for a british triathlon regional academy, is this programme still for me?

Yes, we encourage any athletes who are/might be selected for regional academies to join our programme. We operate in a different way and believe that our development structure operates strongly both alongside and independently from British triathlon organised programmes. Although we will go to great lengths to ensure that clashes between regional academy sessions and athlete development programme sessions do not take place, if this does occur, athletes can be compensated for missing sessions if they favour attending British triathlon organised programmes. This also applies to England Next Generation sessions.

I have only just found out about the athlete development programme, can i join part way through?

You can apply to join part way through the year long programme. Any belated applicants can come into the programme* and will pay an additional £50 joining fee on top of the pro rata price for the remaining duration of the programme.

*subject to availability

applications for the athlete development programme

COMPLETE APPLICATION FORM HERE