SPEED, STRATEGY & SKILLS: Prior’s Field School Host The Mintridge Foundation Sport Scholar Day with Heather Cowell OLY, Suzie Liverseidge & Fran Wilson
SPEED, STRATEGY & SKILLS: Prior’s Field School Host The Mintridge Foundation Sport Scholar Day with Heather Cowell OLY, Suzie Liverseidge & Fran Wilson
Wow, wow, wow – there is always something very magical and a great amount of high energy created when sport stars gather together! This was no different when London Mavericks Netballer, Suzie Liverseidge, Somerset Cricketer, Fran Wilson and England & GB Rugby Sevens Player, Heather Cowell OLY made their way to Prior’s Field in Godalming with the Mintridge Foundation.
The three athletes spent the day with the Prior’s Field Sport Scholars as they took to the pitch and courts for coaching sessions in netball, cricket and rugby in the beautiful Surrey sunshine!
The fantastic coaching was only one element of the day as the athletes gathered together to share their Strength & Conditioning and Nutrition knowledge with the girls helping not only their performance in competition but also their GCSE PE too. Thank you to Fran, Heather and Suzie for your insight into these conversations about how you best prepare for training as well as match days…and those long tournaments as well when fuelling in particular is harder to manage.
Relatability is very important with what we do. While a role model can be anybody, as the Lionesses’ effect has demonstrated, people often choose role models that look like and have a similar background to themselves. When young people have a role model that resonates with their own cultural or personal identity in multiple ways, studies have shown that as well as feeling less stereotyped, they are more motivated and engaged at school. This is why the final part of our schedule was extremely important to us as the athletes shared a little bit more about them as the individual rather than them as the professional sports star – the scholars were able to relate to so much of what Suzie and Heather were saying as they shared more about where their sporting journey began through to being part of a team wanting to achieve something together. They delved into a number of important topics, not least how they best cope with nerves which helped the hockey players in the room that went onto win the Girls Schools U16 Tier 2 National Finals the following week – huge congratulations!
“How do you embrace nerves?”
“What is your superstrength within your squad? As women and girls, we shy aware from talking about these!”
“How do you balance sport, training, work and home life?”
Thank you very much to Prior’s Field for welcoming us back for another brilliant day with you all and we hope to see you all again soon!
About Us:
The Mintridge Foundation is a UK-wide charity dedicated to turbo-boosting young people's development and opportunities through the transformative power of sports. Our innovative programs and collaborations inspire, mentor, and guide the next generation to thrive.
