Our mentoring programme helps young people to broaden and deepen their development through sport. Our five-themed training programme (1. Performance, 2. Identity and Values, 3. Mindfulness, 4. Community Responsibility, and 5. Nature and Connectedness) shows how performance, wellbeing and creating a more compassionate world through sport do not have to be mutually exclusive.
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Ken Doherty & Jack Hunter-SpiveyA wonderful segment on BBC Two about Ken Doherty mentoring Jack Hunter-Spivey through our global athlete mentoring programme!
Jack was so thrilled when we paired him with Ken. Ken is supporting Jack for a year, passing on his wisdom and helping Jack take on the challenges of life & sport. They clearly get on like a house on fire! |
Elliot Barratt, Road Cyclist
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"When I joined Sussex university, there was no cycling club. I made a promise to my scholarship coach (Terry Cooper) that I’d try to get more people on bikes...
During one of my first conversations with Alex (my TAP mentor) he shared with me this quote “inspire and be inspired”. He spoke of how he’d never understood it whilst he was competing, but how on reflection he sees inspiring others as one of the most valuable parts of his career. He encouraged me to take people along with me on my journey. The term “inspire” feels quite uncomfortable, however, he said that even though I don’t have a world title or a professional career yet, I can inspire people with my dedication. This all resulted in me setting up a cycling team with a friend (and training partner) at university. We had four people on our first ride, with four more interested to join on the next one! At the heart of it, it’s sharing our love for sport, eco- friendly travel and coffee with others!" |
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Philippa Draper, Speed Skater
"I had always thought that the only way to perform well in competition was to train to constantly push my physical limit. However, mindfulness highlighted how I could train for those intense moments in races without actually training intensely. Practising being present and in-tune with my body helped me develop mind-muscle connections which allowed me to focus on the muscles used in my movements and control them even when they were shaking from lactic acid."
Click here to learn more about our Global Mentoring Programme
Souleyman Bah, Sprinter
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“I don’t know where I would be without this programme. All those pressures of performance, education, social media and peer pressures, with a disability to add to it! All it takes is for someone to listen and understand."
Souley had two years of mentoring with us, and was paired with Laurence Halsted, former British Olympic fender. Souley developed a regular meditation and visualisation practice, achieved a personal best 100m time, started a university degree and set up his own organisation called “2020 Vision" in recognition of his eye condition and ambitions for Tokyo 2020. He has already spoken to over 100 schools – inspiring school children in his area to overcome adversity. In the words of Souley: “I may not have sight, but I have vision!” |
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Rachel Smith & Rebecca BlakeRachel Smith (British Olympic gymnast), and her mentee Rebecca Blacke (cricketer), met up to talk about their social action project, and decided to raise funds for future athletes applying to be on The True Athlete Project who can't afford the cost of the programme. Rachel will be cycling 1000km from her house in Switzerland to Rebecca in Southampton! And, every day Rachel is cycling, Rebecca will be hosting a Zoom workshop on the different topics she has explored through The True Athlete Project!
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Leo Harland-Sendra, Basketball Player |
Sophia Potter, Fencer |
Leo has taken a keen interest in the state of public sports facilities in his area. Because he deeply understands the importance of sport for young people, he has used all his passion and determination honed as an athlete to petition the council to row back on their price hikes of basketball court hire.
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Sophia loves giving back through coaching younger girls at her fencing club. Since her involvement with TAP, she has begun introducing the girls to mindfulness. A wonderful example of the ripple approach of being a #TrueAthlete.
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Hattie Taylor, Rower
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"After learning more about The True Athlete Project, I realised very quickly this was an organisation I would love to be part of. I’ve never before been part of a project that takes into account all of the different parts of being an athlete. In my experience, organisations have solely focused on the athlete as our only identity, which is really the only part of me that I understood until recently. Now I know that I am a better athlete and individual when the rest of me is looked after too, mental health, well being and other interests that I can nurture outside of my sport."
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