A Leeds student has his sporting career mapped out with his dream of competing at the 2016 Olympics becoming a real possibility, which he attributes to the inspirational guidance he has received from the Advanced Level Apprenticeship in Sporting Excellence (AASE).
A Leeds student has his sporting career mapped out with his dream of competing at the 2016 Olympics becoming a real possibility, which he attributes to the inspirational guidance he has received from SkillsActive’s Advanced Level Apprenticeship in Sporting Excellence (AASE).
Jack Bateson from Pool In Wharfedale, near Leeds has been boxing since he was 9 years old, encouraged by his Dad and Uncle who have been coaching the sport as far as he can remember. He recalls the day a letter arrived to invite him to apply for the AASE programme and never looked back, making the move from his new sixth form college to join Bradford College.
“The programme has helped me so much, I’m really sad to be leaving at the end of this year; I’ve had such a strong network of support. I have learned a huge amount about what it takes to reach the top and perform to the best of your ability, the coaching team have been fantastic.
“AASE has helped me to plan for the future and set my career plans, with short, medium and long term goals through to the 2016 Olympics.”
Created by SkillsActive and funded by the Skills Funding Agency, AASE is a sports performance programme for young talented athletes. It’s designed to directly measure an athlete’s ability to plan, apply and evaluate their development in the appropriate technical, tactical, physical and psychological aspects of their sport. It also addresses wider issues such as lifestyle, career development, communication and health and safety.
Jack enjoyed a unique trip to Tenerife through the AASE Boxing programme last August, training at high altitude with young boxers from all over the UK. They experienced firsthand a different training environment that opened his eyes to training in different ways, including running up mountains.
He is currently training in the England Youth squad and is looking forward to the second stage trials for the GB Senior Development squad that will be selected over the next few months. The GB squad will meet regularly in Sheffield with the ultimate goal of competing at the 2016 Olympics and beyond.
Alongside his career in boxing, Jack Bateson 17 explains that the AASE programme has helped him plan for a career as a PE teacher and he hopes to secure a place at University for the end of this year.
His advice for other young athletes considering a place on the AASE programme to boost their chances of a successful sporting career? Jack said, “I would definitely recommend the AASE programme to anyone, but it’s not an easy ride. It has helped me to juggle my boxing and education in the best possible way and realise that it is only hard work that gets you to the very top.”
