Triathlon NSW and the Western Region Academy of Sport are proud to announce that John Hickey, highly experienced and well respected NSW coach, will be head coach at the 2009 Triathlon Rookie Camp. The three day camp will be held from Friday 10 July to Sunday 12 July at Charles Sturt University, Bathurst.

John comes with a wealth of experience being Triathlon NSW’s Assistant Coach, Northern Inland Academy of Sport’s (NIAS) Head Coach and has become very well known for his coaching success throughout NSW.

WRAS’ executive officer, Nancy Haslop said, “It is a great opportunity for Western Region athletes and coaches to train alongside John. His immense experience will allow the triathletes to gain vital skills and training techniques over the three days.”

For more information on the Triathlon Rookie Camp or WRAS program please contact the Academy office as soon as possible on 6338 4821.

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In July 2009, the Western Region Academy of Sport is conducting Rookie Camps for Basketball, Hockey, Lawn Bowls, Netball and Triathlon.

All of these residential camps will provide ‘rookie’ athletes with the opportunity to enhance their skills and knowledge in a fun learning environment. The camps also act as a pre selection trial for the WRAS 2010 squads.

The camps will be held in the July school holidays and athletes and coaches will stay on campus of Charles Sturt University, Bathurst. Ages for camps are set by State Sporting Organisation’s and can be found in the camp information packs on the WRAS website at www.wras.org.au in the ‘download’ section.

Due to clashes with other Hockey NSW events, dates for the hockey rookie camp have been changed. Dates for all camps are; Basketball – 10-12 July 2009, Hockey – NOW 12-14 July 2009, Lawn Bowls – 12-14 July 2009, Netball – 18 to 20 July 2009 and Triathlon – 10 to 12 July 2009.

The residential camps will be run under the guidance of highly accredited coaches, who will be assisted by special guest coaches, coaches from the local region, association/club coaches and senior WRAS graduates. Positions are also being offered for coaches of all levels to attend the camps to improve their skills and increase their experience.

The camp activities planned include physiological testing, body movement, individual and specialist skills, and game sense. Players and coaches will be exposed to the latest playing and coaching techniques and given instant feedback on improving individual performance.

Attendance at the Rookie Camps in 2009 is compulsory for all new athletes wishing to try out for the 2010 WRAS squads. Current WRAS squad members for Hockey and Netball who are still eligible to trial for WRAS for 2010 do not need to attend the rookie camps. Players who don’t wish to try out for the Academy will still find any one of these camps a great opportunity to receive instruction from some of the top coaches in NSW and the western region.

WRAS Executive Officer Nancy Haslop said “these Rookie Camps are a great development opportunity for western region sports people with some of the state’s best coaches heading up the training sessions. They are also a good way for athletes to become involved with the Academy and develop a better understanding of what WRAS does”.

Information and nomination forms are available from the WRAS website www.wras.org.au now. Nominations for both athletes and coaches close Friday 29 May 2009. For more information contact the Academy office on 6338 4821.

In July 2009, the Western Region Academy of Sport is conducting Rookie Camps for Basketball, Hockey, Lawn Bowls, Netball and Triathlon. Rookie athletes from towns right around the region including Bathurst, Blackheath, Blayney, Cowra, Dubbo, Forbes, Gilgandra, Grenfell, Gulargambone, Gulgong, Kandos, Lithgow, Lyndhurst, Mudgee, Narromine, Oberon, Orange, Parkes, Portland, Quandialla, Rylstone, Wallerawang, West Wyalong, Wongarbon and Young will attend the camps.

All of these residential camps will provide ‘rookie’ athletes with the opportunity to enhance their skills and knowledge, in a fun learning environment and to identify talented players, to be invited to apply for a 2010 WRAS scholarship.

The camps will be held in Bathurst with athletes and coaches staying on campus of Charles Sturt University. The camps will commence with basketball and triathlon held on Friday 10 to Sunday 12 July. The basketball rookies and some athletes from the 2009 WRAS basketball program will be coached by previous AIS assistant coach Debbie Cook. Renowned NSW triathlon coach John Hickey will work with budding triathletes from the western region along with athletes from the Northern Inland Academy of Sport.

WRAS hockey head coach and NSW AHL assistant coach Wally Gaynor will head up the hockey camp to be held along with the lawn bowls camp on 12 to 14 July. Lawn bowls rookies will be coached by highly experienced local coaches Bob Townsend and Ross Hunter.

The camps will conclude with the netball rookie camp which will be led by WRAS netball head coach Cate Gardner.

Athletes who attend the camps will receive expert tuition by coaches from the local region, special guest coaches, senior WRAS graduates and association/club coaches. Positions are also being offered for coaches of all levels to attend the camps to improve their skills and increase their experience.

The camp activities planned include physiological testing, body movement, individual and specialist skills, and game sense. Players and coaches will be exposed to the latest playing and coaching techniques and given instant feedback on improving individual performance.

WRAS Executive Officer Nancy Haslop said “these Rookie Camps are a great development opportunity for western region sports people with some of the state’s best coaches heading up the training sessions. They are also a good way for athletes to become involved with the Academy and develop a better understanding of what WRAS does”.
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The Western Region Academy of Sport is on the look for that ‘undiscovered’ talent to participate in the 2009 Talent Search Program for basketball, netball and triathlon.

The Academy offers athlete’s quality sports development programs to help them reach higher levels in their sport. WRAS athletes are provided with excellent opportunities including elite coaching, fitness testing, strength and conditioning, athlete education and individual program monitoring. Over the last few years, the Academy has conducted a broad Talent Search Program through schools in the Western Region in conjunction with the Australian Sports Commission. The focus of this years WRAS talent identification program is on discovering athletes suited to the specific sports of basketball, netball and triathlon.

WRAS have identified sport specific attributes necessary for performance in basketball, netball and triathlon. For basketball and netball the suitable requirements include exceptional height, head and shoulders above friends, with an interest in these sports. Exceptional fitness and ability in swimming and running is required for triathlon. If this sounds like you and you are in years 7-9 at school, then the Western Region Academy of Sport wants to hear from you!

The 2009 Western Region Academy of Sport Talent Search process will involve the submission of expression of interest forms, available on the WRAS website. Identified athletes will then be contacted to arrange specific exercise testing conducted by the experienced exercise science team from WRAS. Once testing data has been collected selected athletes will be invited to attend the 2009 WRAS Rookie Camp in the July school holidays. Athletes attending these professionally run camps will be eligible for selection and scholarships in the 2009/10 WRAS program where focus will be on athlete development aimed toward state and national representation.

WRAS executive Nancy Haslop has said that “athletes identified through previous talent search programs run by the experienced WRAS team have had some exceptional results. These include the success with triathlete Nick North who was identified through a WRAS Talent Search Program in 2005. Since his discovery and WRAS selection Nick has risen to the top of the ranks in triathlon. He has attended the Australian development camp with the National Junior Squad and continues to show great promise”.

Western Region Academy of Sport is excited about the prospect of finding and helping western region athletes achieve things that they have never even thought possible. For more information visit the WRAS website at talentid@wras.org.au or alternatively call the WRAS office on 6338 4821 however the expression of interest forms must be completed and returned before 17 April.

This Saturday the Lawn Bowls squad will head to Dubbo for a training day at the Railway Bowling club. It will be a smaller group than usual for the training session with several athletes away at tournaments around the region. This will allow those who are attending the day to get some invaluable one on one coaching from the Academy’s experienced coaches and focus on particular areas needing improvement. The training day will commence at the club at 9am. Local bowlers and coaches are welcome and encouraged to attend the day and watch some of the region’s best junior bowlers in action.

Several WRAS bowlers attending the day received selection this week in the western region school sports secondary lawn bowls squad. Thomas Staff from Rylstone and Alex Milgate from Gilgandra were both selected in the squad and Ashlee Meyers from Dubbo is 1st reserve.

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As the new sporting season fast approaches some Mums and Dads may find themselves in the daunting situation of having to coach their child’s team. The Western Region Academy of Sport has the answer to this challenging and intimidating prospect. COACH the COACH, is a coaching conference being held on 1-3 May, proudly supported by NSW Sport and Recreation and CSU School of Human Movement Studies.

During the Sunday morning of the conference there will be a three hour session targeted specifically for beginner coaches entitled ‘Survival Guide for Mum and Dad coaches’. This can be attended separately from the rest of the conference and will equip attendee coaches with the necessary skills to foster and develop the talent of their athletes.

Simon Woinarski, a highly qualified sports scientist from NSW Sport and Recreation will conduct the first hour of the ‘Survival Guide for Mum and Dad coaches’ and will provide participants with an overview of how to effectively undertake their role as a coach. Simon has a background in coach education and will place a strong emphasis on providing coaches with a complete system for “best practice” teaching of sport.

For the following two hours, attendees will separate into specific sports for a practical workshop. From this session coaches will take away skills and drills to put together their season training plan. Experienced coaches from the Academy will conduct the workshops in Basketball, Hockey or Netball.

WRAS Executive Officer Nancy Haslop said “many new coaches find themselves with little resources and support when faced with the prospect of coaching a child’s team. The Survival Guide for Mum and Dad coaches will provide attendees with the confidence to utilise what they have learnt in the session as well as drawing on their own personal life experience in order to become effective coaches”.

At just $55 including morning tea and resources, this is one session beginner coaches can’t afford to miss. For more information and to register please visit coachthecoach.com.au or call the Western Region Academy of Sport on 6338 4821.

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On 1-3 May the Western Region Academy of Sport is again hosting the highly successful COACH the COACH conference at Charles Sturt University, Bathurst. The conference is proudly supported by NSW Sport and Recreation and the CSU School of Human Movement Studies and will present a program suitable for coaches all levels from beginner to elite.

The theme of the 2009 conference is ‘The Competitive Edge’, focusing on things to help coaches and athletes achieve the extra 1% improvements. COACH the COACH will offer sessions in three streams – advanced sports science topics for the experienced coach, practical based workshops for newer coaches and modules from the Intermediate General Coaching Principles course for those wanting to gain accreditation.

On the Sunday morning there will also be a section which can be attended separately from the rest of the conference called the ‘Survival Guide for Mum and Dad coaches’. This session is particularly aimed at those coaches with little or no experience who have suddenly found themselves in the role of coaching a team. The session is presented as a 1hr general workshop and 2hr practical session in either basketball, hockey or netball. Survival Guide attendees will leave with the skills and knowledge to put together a season training plan and the practical skills to run a well organized and interesting training session that is fun for the athletes.

Sessions will be presented by professionals within their field of expertise through a variety of suitable learning formats. Participants will improve their coaching skills and knowledge and form new networks.

WRAS Executive Officer Nancy Haslop said ‘the conference will provide a fantastic development opportunity for country coaches and subsequently will help to reduce the inequality that exists between those in rural and metropolitan areas’.

For more information please visit coachthecoach.com.au or call the Western Region Academy of Sport on 6338 4821.

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