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20 Future stars named for 2020

06/12/2019 00:00, In Blog /

Twenty rising stars named on Commonwealth Games Futures programme for support in 2020, the key vehicle for developing the next generation of Commonwealth Athletes. The overall selection includes 41 athletes – a mix of experienced senior athletes like Osian Jones, Sam Gordon, Jenny Nesbitt and Charlotte Arter, and a large cohort of 20 developing athletes, reflecting our stated ambition to maximise the number of athletes delivering their best performances at the Commonwealth Games in 2022 and 2026. Dewi Griffiths, Melissa Courtney, Jeremiah Azu & James Tomlinson are all on British Athletics programmes.

One of the rising stars included is Cardiff Athletics’ Lauren Evans (Coach Matt Wood) who broke into the UK top 10 Heptathlon U20 rankings in 2019:

“I had support last year and found it really helpful, funding for competition entries and then the physio support was great – training for 7 events, 6 times a week is tough! - getting a massage and having the peace of mind that the support is there if you get a niggle helps so much. I’m hoping to break 5000 points this year, with the Home Countries International my main target in August, with some indoor competitions before that as stepping stones.”

Over the past 12 months, Welsh Athletics has been working hard to clarify the offer to our young developing athletes, making sure our ‘Commonwealth Games Futures’ standards are aligned to the equivalent programme at British Athletics level. The hope is that more Welsh Athletes will transition onto their World-Class performance programme in the years to come.

“All the physio, nutrition, strength & Conditioning, and psych support we get is so invaluable, and can be underrated. This, the training camps, and the financial contribution all come together to make such a difference. It helps ensure you can train, recover well and stay injury free meaning you get those marginal gains that can turn a top 10 performance into a top 5, which can be the difference between making a British team or not.”

Jenny Nesbitt, Wales & GB Endurance athlete

“Our programme offers layers of support, both from our own coaches and expert staff, and from specialist colleagues in Sport Wales, that look to raise the bar. We’re looking for an honesty in our approach.  We want to identify and convert more of our top athletes not just into Commonwealth Games athletes, but also increase Welsh representation in GB teams at European level and stretch ourselves to produce Welsh Olympians.” Said National Coach, Chris Jones

As part of our new strategic vision for Athletics in Wales, we have a goal to INSPIRE by DEVELOPING A NATION OF CHAMPIONS WHO INSPIRE THE NEXT GENERATION. Part of meeting this goal includes:

  • Ensuring Wales is represented at every Global and European Championships
  • Increasing the number of top 6 performances at the Commonwealth Games

More details about the different levels in the Athlete Support Programme are available here

Full list of Supported Athletes 2020:

Commonwealth Games Programme

Event

Bethan Davies

20K Walk

Heather Lewis

20K Walk

Jenny Nesbitt

10K; 5K

Osian Jones

Hammer

Jac Palmer

Hammer

Josh Griffiths

Marathon

Natasha Cockram

Marathon

Commonwealth Games Potential

Event

Sam Gordon

100m

Charlotte Arter

10K

Ieuan Thomas

3K s/c

Jonathan Hopkins

3K s/c

Adele Nicoll

Shot Put

Andrew Davies

Marathon

Jake Heyward

1500m

Joe Brier

400m

Associate Athletes

Event

Dai Greene

400mH

Owen Smith

400m

Commonwealth Games Futures Athletes

Event

Lauren Williams

400mH

Hannah Brier

100m

Kristian Jones

100m/200m

Owain Lloyd Hughes

100m

Remi Adebiyi

3K s/c

Cari Hughes

1500m/3000m

Ben Thomas

3K s/c

Oliver Barbaresi

3000m

Ben Reynolds

1500m

Osian Perrin

3000m

David Locke

800m

Harry Davies

Discus (U17)

Jay Morse

Discus (U20)

Tom Hewson

Javelin

Bethany Moule

Javelin

Ffion Palmer

Hammer

Cerys Thomas

Hammer

Bethan Rees

Javelin

Lauren Evans

100mH/Heptathlon