Team Leicestershire Talent is a Talented Athlete Support Programme.

It aims to support young talented athletes and sportspeople across Leicestershire, Leicester City and Rutland to achieve their potential through the delivery of a bespoke annual programme of workshops covering subjects such as Strength & Conditioning, Sports Psychology, Nutrition for Sport and Mental Fitness.

The programme is open to all young aspiring athletes and sportspeople, whether they are already performing at Regional, National or International level, or still at the start of their sporting journey locally, aiming to "be the best they can be", either as an individual or as part of a team, through talent pathways and performance programmes.

Team Leicestershire Talent launched during the summer of 2021 to coincide with the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games and aims to to identify, engage and support the development of athletes & sportspeople of the future based in Leicestershire, Leicester and Rutland.

PLEASE NOTE: Before beginning the application process, consider carefully all the points below as applications which don't fully meet these criteria will not be considered.

• Athletes accessing Team Leicestershire Talent (TLT) should be 11-23 years by 31 December 2022 with discretionary flexibility at the top end of the age group for athletes taking part in Para-Sports.
• Athletes must live in Leicestershire, Leicester or Rutland (i.e. pay council tax) and attend the local education system. If athletes are currently studying away at College/University, their parent's/non term time address should be in Leicestershire, Leicester or Rutland. We will not accept applications from athletes studying at any Further Education or Higher Education establishment if they are not from Leicestershire, Leicester and Rutland.

There are 3 "Levels" of the Team Leicestershire Talent programme available for you to access. (Outlined below)

However, at this stage you are simply applying to be a part of the programme. Allocation of "levels" will be made once all applications are received and have been assessed.

A small number of funded athletes of whom there will be expectations in terms of Active Together involvement given the level of funding provided.

In addition to funding, Ambassador status will also include:

• Complimentary access to the Team Leicestershire Talent athlete support package (outlined below under the 'Athletes' level of support)
• Provision of additional resources such as training kit for branding purposes such as use in social media posts

Ambassador expectations will include elements such as:

• Monthly website blogging and regular social media engagement
• Promotion of the TLT programme of support and the impact it has on their progress / development
• Support / mentoring of aspiring athletes in the programme including engagement in workshops
• Attendance / support at local Active Together competitions / events
• Support with the continued development and promotion of 'Virtual Together' platform

NB: Un-funded "Ambassadors" may also be selected if they are in position personally and within their sporting career to be an advocate for Active Together& TLT without the financial incentives

Selections for Ambassadors may take several factors into consideration including, but not limited to:

• validated by their NGB as being current or likely potential to achieve elite status
• high level athletes relative to their standing within their sport
• representative of the local community in LLR

Supported Athletes will receive complimentary access to a range of ongoing support structures and an annual support programme outlined below.

Athlete Support Package:

• Online
• 6 x Mental Fitness sessions (Approx. 1 per month between Nov – May)
• NB: A Doodle poll will be conducted to ascertain most popular evenings for sessions (Mon – Fri)
• Face to Face
• 8 x Sat morning sessions
• 10am – 1pm
• Approx. 1 per month between Oct – June
• These will have S&C focus with elements of Psychology and Nutrition embedded
• Venue: TBC
• Plus, access to any additional workshops that may be added to the programme
• Elite Athlete and Former Athlete Keynote and Q&A sessions
• Group mentoring from TLT Athlete Ambassadors and previous Alumni
• Opportunity to submit applications to a funding pot available for small scale and ongoing / additional requirements such as physio, travel, equipment, etc. or CPD opportunities such as coaching bursaries, to those in need of financial support (Evidence of financial need, as well as evidence of expenditure, required)
• Possible provision of additional resources such as training T-shirt for branding purposes such as use in social media posts

Any athletes not attaining Ambassador or Athlete status will be offered access to the Futures level.

These athletes will be given the opportunity – availability allowing – to attend the workshops outlined above. For this level of the programme, there will be a small cost – Outlined below.

Mental Fitness Workshops*: £60.00 for the series of 6 sessions

Saturday Morning Sessions**: £10 per 3hour session (or £75 for all 8)

Or sign up to all 14 sessions at the start of the programme for a total cost of £120.00

*=Online sessions / **=Real life sessions (Venue TBC)

NB: For athletes that can demonstrate the financial need, a subsequent funding application can be submitted to Team Leicestershire Talent to cover the cost of accessing the sessions through the Futures level.

The Team Leicestershire Talent Ambassadors & Athletes aim to blog about their competitions and training sessions at around once a month to keep us at Active Together updated on their progress.

For more information, or to view the profiles & blogs, please click the links below.