World Archery Coaching Seminar
Developing Talent
London, GBR
Ceri Ann DaviesPerformance Programme Manager
What is this lady’s role and who is she anyway??
Role-
To operationalise the Archery GB
Performance Strategy
BackgroundBorn: Port Talbot, South Wales
Moved to Australia
Met Husband and moved to Scotland
Now at Archery GB
Background
High Performance Manager – practitioner services (SIS)
Consultant High Performance Strategy (WIS)
Women in Sport (ASC) strategy & policy
Programme Development & Performance Planning (SIS/ QIS)
Coach Development (ASC/ SIS/ WIS)
Psychology & Neuropsychology Lecturer (South Wales)
Sport Development Manager (Queensland)
Marketing Manager & Head of Corporate Services (Cardiff &
Queensland)
Commonwealth Games Medallist (Australian Captain)
4 Times World Champion -last one when I was 7 months pregnant 
BSc (hons) Applied Psychology
MSc Performance Coaching
2011 World Archery Coaching Seminar
The World Class 2009/13 Archery
Performance Programme (WCPP)
Mission statement
“In partnership with the key stakeholders Archery shall
deliver a comprehensive training and competition
programme of the highest professional standards for worldclass athletes and their coaches with the objectives of
maximising performance outcomes at the London 2012
Olympic Games and building a sustainable legacy for the
sport in the future”
2011 World Archery Coaching Seminar
The World Class Pathway
Pre PM (April 2011)
1X Month Weekend Camps
Large age range 14-22
Larger abilities range
Limited Service Provision
1X Month for ½ day
Purely technical
Some Issues with that Pathway
Entry was via application
Criteria was not clear and process of selection not as open/transparent as
we would like
No clear link to existing ‘system’/ little reach to regions (no cascading of
expertise down)
Archers were arriving technically weaker than we would have hoped for- so
re-building work required
No formal coach education ‘within’ the WCP
Archers were ‘archers’ and few had an athletes mind-set / lack of
education around this
Service provision was not targeted to the age/stage of athlete development
Addressing Olympic Development
Senior Development Training Group
Senior
Development
Training Group
Pushing Podium Athletes for 2012
Midweek 1-2-1 with Olympic Coach
Targeted Service Provision
Development of Athlete mind-set
Leadership group
Leadership
group
Building towards Rio
The athlete ‘voice’
Developing the athlete mind-set
1Xmonth camp with Olympic Coach
Sufficient Service Provision and Benchmarking
Talent
Confirmation
Talent Confirmation
An assessment period of development/work ethic/
coach-ability/ responsiveness
Addressing Talent/ Academy System
Olympic
Development
Regional
Academies
Regional
Academies
Regional Academies
Talent Confirmation will take place through a regional academy system.
Academies will feed the Olympic Development Squad I the future with athletes who
are ready for a ‘World Class Development’ programme
Intelligence and best practice will be cascaded down and out through academies so
that more athletes will access programmes and training systems which promote
performance Development
Addressing Discourse
Terminology
Definition
World Class
Development
Selected Archers are immersed in a highly specialised environment to enable them
to develop as World Class Performers.
Talent
Confirmation
(TC)
An extended assessment phase whereby each Archer’s talent characteristics are
carefully verified prior to formal initiation onto World Class Development
Programme.
Talent
Selection
(TS)
This is the screening of Archers currently participating in the sport using both
qualitative (coaches eye) and/or quantitative (science), to identify those most likely
to succeed at World Class level i.e. existing, experienced talent.
Talent
Identification
(TID)
This is the screening of individuals using selected tests to identify those with the
potential for World Class success. Athletes selected through TID have had no prior
involvement in their sport i.e. raw, latent talent.
Talent Transfer
(TT)
This is the structured re-assignment of athletes across sports which have similar
and transferable talent characteristics i.e. Gymnastics to Diving. Athletes selected
often develop in compressed timeframes, having developed many ‘ready-made’
skills courtesy of the first (‘donor’) sport
Coach Development
Olympic Development Coaches & Academy Coaches to undergo formal recruitment process
(improved accountability, responsibility and credibility of these coaches)
Experts involved in recruitment
Olympic Coach
Programme Manager
Performance Director
Lead Bio-mechanist
Performance impact Coaching Consultant (external)
High Performance Manager (EIS)- expert in practitioner recruitment
Coaches now receive CPD, holidays, sick pay, support and line management just like other staff team
membership
Since May 2011 we have recruited:
 Four Olympic Development Coaches
 Seven Academy Coaches
 Scottish Archery Association offered use of recruitment and CPD
opportunities for two Coaches which was taken
Coach Development
• Academy Coaches receive CPD from Performance
Impact Coach Consultant (external) to explore issues in
coaching theory and practice
• Coaches receive some CPD through leadership
programme working alongside athletes on various
projects
• Coaches encouraged to take knowledge from various
domains and apply it to coaching practice in Archery
(touch upon this later…)
Addressing Technique
Olympic Coach leads Olympic Development Strategy and Key
Messages for Academies
All Coaches empowered to make own decision regarding planning and
athlete tracking systems
Coaches are offer education around service provision and programme
design and management- shortly…
All Coaches to work alongside Olympic Coach for each athlete’s
technical assessment to gain insights into technical coaching, ensure
quality control in delivery and enhanced athlete experience
Addressing Service Provision
• Targeted service provision coordinated by Programme
Manager as a function of each athletes needs and
development stage
• Enhanced levels for Senior Development Training Group
• Individual provision for leaders
• Group delivery for Talent Confirmation
• Some Group Delivery for Academy athletes
Addressing the athlete Mind-Set
World Class Athletes who are Archers!.....
TRUST + RESPECT = EMPOWERMENT
+Leadership Programme Established
+‘Athlete Voice’
+Values & mission agreed
+Behaviours agreed
+Code of Conduct evolves
+Projects & Community of practice established
+Squad Identity grows stronger
+Collaboration & creativity
Leadership Projects: Some examples….
What is meant by open source in knowledge- sharing. How can we
learn from this in Archery?
What does it mean to be British?
Draw a table showing the top 10 Recurve Archers in the World for
each category and gender, what their PB is and what nation they are
from?
Provide an example of a community of practice that would help inform
how we could work as a group?
Describe the phases of periodization & how could we vary the volume
& intensity of training in Archery
Addressing Criteria and Transparency
Criteria to be constructed and driven by
those who develop World Class Athletes.
What talents do we look for when screening/
selecting archers??
What they have said…
Olympic Coach
‘love of the sport and willingness to do the work’
Lead Practitioners
‘ Hard work, ability to work in isolation, perseverance, determination : Personal
and Cognitive Factors ….very few physical factors’
Consultant
‘luck – born to right parents, in the right place at the right time to access
coaching, equipment and facilities…with a developmental approach to learning’
UK Sport Talent Team
Exploring examples from other sports and domains (such as military (snipers),
music (School in New York)
Me
Coping with adversity, an athlete mind-set, intelligence in performance,
leadership
Criteria
•
Open door policy to screening
•
Clear objectives from Talent Confirmation process (evolving)
•
Concentrated financial and service support only after successful
confirmation
•
Moving towards an X Factor style Road Show
•
Offer real time feedback to regional coaching committees on how their
talent is stacking up against the rest of the UK and on which technical
elements

Defining Our Pool
Total number of juniors?
Total Members: 33,765
Junior Members: 7732
23% of our membership are 18 or under (not counting scouts/ holiday goers)
Juniors of a particular age or stage?
Grand Master Bowman: 5
Master Bowman: 13
Junior Master Bowman: 70
FITA Star: 74
FITA Target: 104
Those who attend nationals?
Those who apply?
A 6-Month Journey
Discourse
Talent
Selection
Academy
Launch
Coaching
Service
Provision
Building
Capacity
Our own
house
Latent
Talent
Regional
input and
output
Athlete Centred Programme
The Programme Curriculum
What next?...
World Class Development
Selected Archers are immersed in a highly specialised environment to
enable them to develop as World Class Performers.
Are Camps highly specialised?.......
Answer…. Somewhat.
Centralised, residential- style programme would be a truly specialised
environment
Therefore- As much talent confirmation as possible MUST take place prior to
induction to World Class Development
Crossing Knowledge Domains
• Different landscapes
• Scary or exciting??
The Edge
Finding Knowledge (theory)
And applying it (practice)
All
Knowledge
All Sports
Knowledge
All Archery
Knowledge
Archery GB
Where are we looking
• The Arts (music, literature, theatre, art etc.
• Military (sniper training, leadership training etc.)
• Medical Science (neuropsychology, heart
surgery etc.)
• Pop Culture (t.v. production, internet open
source etc.)
• ALWAYS STAYING TRUE TO YOURSELF AND
YOUR CULTURE…..
Thank you…
Ready to answer your questions!