Tuesday 10 February 2015

British Weightlifting Golden Chance Talent Assessment Day! Pathway to Tokyo 2020?!

This seems like a lifetime ago now - annoyingly my original blog got deleted before I published it so starting all over again..!

Well, what an amazing experience it was...despite a 4:45am alarm to leave on the snowy road to Loughborough University! James very kindly drove me all the way there, with the intention of staying and watching my assessments - but upon registration and briefing, we were told this was not possible and that friends and family could stand and watch from a balcony (at the opposite end of the gym!) with only a half hour window throughout the day to talk to them.

The 60 of us that attended were split into 3 group and the day was split into 3 sections; Firstly I underwent a flexibility assessment, measuring my range of motion in an Overhead Squat, my ankle Dorsi-Flexion and my Hamstring Range. Fairly simple tests and all three of which I have pretty good flexibility in - so I was off to a good start!

This however took the best part of 2 hours, at which point, we were itching to get on with things and start training!

The next part of our day consisted of physical assessments; firstly going through Over Head and Front Squats, and then learning the 3 key elements to the Snatch Lift. We were split into 3 further sub groups, each led by a BWL Coach who offered lots of technique and coaching tips whilst assessing our ability to take direction, learn and actually use the advice given to us.

I was very much aware that we were being assessed on everything we did throughout the day - not just the lifting. Constantly noticing the coaches listening to conversations and taking notes, watching us as we helped coach some of the girls that were a little less experienced, so I made sure I was in ''Coach Mode'' as much as I could be, as well as asking us questions about our training history.

This day was not about how much weight we could Snatch, and we didn't even do the Clean and Jerk - the point of the day was to identify those who learn and adapt well, and to spot those with the right qualities that would be needed of a one day Olympian. Being positive all day was a must - we had to show how determined we were to succeed and be selected!

The highlight for me was being told that over the 1 hour session, my coach had seen a 100% improvement with my technique and liked what he had seen, especially as I helped coach one of the other girls who had never snatched before - she managed to Snatch 30kg by the end of the session!

After this, we moved onto a Squat Jump on a force plate, to identify who much force we could generate in that position - one with just a dowel and a second with half our bodyweight on a barbell. These were very strange, especially the weighted one - the jump felt very unbalanced and I remember the bar coming away from my neck and landing back down on the top of my spine - OUCH! But I wasn't the only one to suffer so I won't complain too much...! ;-)

There was also the Isometric Mid Thigh Pull test, which again was done on a force plate to assess  our max force. However, I was advised to not do this as I was less than 2 weeks post surgery, so they said I was best to avoid it. I had my reservations and made them promise me that it would not affect my assessment - so I will hold hem to it :)

After a bit of rest, the three groups all came together for the last assessments of the day - The Jumps!

I don't know if you have ever been to the Loughborough Uni gym, but it was huge!! It's very impressive; rows of Squat Racks, Platforms, Blocks, a Running Track, all colourfully decorated with multi coloured Eleiko Bumper Plates :) it was consistently busy with the students / public training and so we had a few pairs of eyes on us for this part....

To start, it was FREEZING which didn't help with keeping warm whilst we waited in lines for our turns.

Firstly, we had to do a Standing High Jump - on another force pad to gage our explosive power and height gained - we had three attempts at this in a round robin formation, so this took a while! We weren't told what we had scored on this - much like with the other assessments, the guys didn't give much away at all in terms of how well we were doing etc.

Secondly, we all lined up again for the standing long jump - again, three attempts to jump as far as we could, landing on both feet without putting our hands to the floor. My hips were feeling pretty dodgy - despite the constant stretching, the cold was really getting to me! I did however manage a 2.12m Jump which I was pretty pleased with though (secretly a bit gutted as I had managed 2.42 at EBW the week before!) But again, pleased with my performance and ready for the Big Finisher!

To end, it was the Standing Box Jump - a 2 footed jump onto a stack of plates, starting at 24". All 60 girls lined up and took it in turns to jump onto the stack - if you failed or opted out, you were eliminated. One girl failed the first jump, she was just absolutely petrified about doing it and had been saying so all day.

Each time we got round the group, the stack would gain an inch or so and I was doing pretty well, despite my hips being in agony! We got up to 36" (which is lower than my previous PB) and I fell backwards - I landed on my lower back on the floor and was gutted, but kept a smile on my face. However, my saving grace came - they said I could attempt it again as I had landed on the stack with two feet, I just lost balance as I stood up - YES! I attempted it again and got a loud cheer, I was feeling great!

The most off-putting thing was watching others attempt and fail the jumps - crashing their shins, chins and torsos into the neatly stacked plates, accompanied by a chorus of ''oohs!'' and ''ouch!''s each time it happened. In the end, some of the others in my group and I stopped watching those in front of us, the pressure was just mounting too much!!

I breezed through my current PB Height and then the next Jump came - 40" - the background was a sea of noise - cheers and shouts of encouragement, not just from the other girls, but the Coaches too. Then suddenly, silence. I couldn't hear anything, I just jumped....And landed two footed on the stack! Taking a second to balance, I slowly stood up and could hear the applause again - I felt fantastic!

At this point, there were only 6 of us left.....So the next plate was put on - 42" - Every girl in front of me failed, and I was extra nervous. Approaching the stack, I tried not to let my eyes linger on it for too long - it was nearly above my chest! I did a practice jump and felt confident, I could do this...short little me is going to get her feet on top of those plates.....and I tried with all my might, but this was my turn to wrap myself around the plates, smashing both my shins in the process.... The one girl left behind me attempted and succeeded - too easily! She then went on to attempt 46" but failed here.

And it was all over.

We all then piled back up to the athletes lounge for a de-brief and a quick talk from Natasha Purdue, London 2012 BWL Olympian about her journey into weightlifting. To then round things off, there was a presentation of prizes to those that placed top three in the jump assessment - and I came 3rd!! I was absolutely buzzing! What a great way to round off an awesome day!

I met a lot of like minded and talented ladies that day, all of which from different training backgrounds, ranging from Rowing, CrossFit and even the Army - and I hope that I get another opportunity to train alongside them again in the future!

Now it is a waiting game -  we will be contacted in Feb with the outcome of the day and to see if I have been invited to Phase 2B of the process - an interview with the coaches to gauge my suitability for progression to Phase 3 and to ensure the programme is right for me. Fingers are firmly crossed!!

If I am lucky enough to be selected for Phase 3, this will mean being in Loughborough for two 6 Week periods to take part in the BWL Confirmation Programme! This starts on March 23rd - right before my birthday!

Check out the BWL Website for more information on what they do and how to get involved!
 

Despite what may be, I am proud of what I achieved that day having only recently had surgery and not having not been able to train. I am very grateful for the opportunity and wish all the other ladies involved the Best of Luck! xx

Anyway, just thought a little insight into the day was needed - I have had many questions about it! Unfortunately, no photos though as phones weren't allowed in the assessments!

Oh yea, the important bit - how did I celebrate?! With a Thai Dinner and Red Wine, a Share Bag of Malteasers and Ice Cream of course!!!

Keep an eye out for my next Blog - I have even more exciting news to share with all!! It's all coming at once!

Franki xx

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1 comment:

  1. Good luck on getting into Phase 2 :) looking forward to hearing about it! x

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