How do people in the U.K. get their children into winter sport?

[Mrsknackered]

Was thinking about this today, we have been watching a lot of Winter Olympics this half term.

When you see people from team GB competing in the lesser known sports such as skeleton, and the one bowls on ice (I've completely forgotten the name) how on earth do they get into it?

Do they start out skiing? And then get scouted? I can't imagine where they find the places to train!

Scouted from athletics usually in my experience.

Happened to a mate of mine. Got poached from sprinting to bobsleigh. They nick snowboarders from gymnastics.

Aerial skiers are ex gymnasts too I believe. Bowls on ice - curling? That's big in Scotland I think.

Ds1 12, loves snowboarding and skiing, we have a dry ski scope here and also a winter hill, its local, lots of kids into winter sports. I think it just depends if you have the facilities in your area or are willing to travel if the child loves the sport.

We have friends in the army and they have been trained by the MOD to ski and snowboard and get sent on ski trips several times a year.

Not that they have been in the olympics yet...

My daughter is massively into curling and bochia (similar summer version). She has some physical disabilities and the school put her forward for it. She loves to think she could go to the Olympics some day.

Not all our aeriel skiiers are gymnasts first. Some (2 olympians I know of at least) have grown up with the sport.

Snow boarders in the UK quite often start skateboarding, have spent a lot of time in snow domes or, once they're showing potential, spend 3 or 4 months of the year training on the mountain. Same for skiiers.

Sprinters are often scouted for bob and skeleton.

It's unlikely that you'll find military or ex military skiing or boarding for GB (not enough time to train) but, yes, definitely for bob and skeleton.

Dd got scouted when we were in the Alps. Advised to apply for the British ski academy based in Tignes. We looked into it but never did, would have needed 10k for 12 weeks of boarding school.

It's an expensive sport. With the exception of curling and ice hockey it's quite heavily weighted on the private schooling side.

A few of them came via the girls4gold program.

... meant to say lizzy yarmold came via girls4gold.

I know someone on who curls on a national team - he went to an open session at an ice rink in Wales. Apparently they have one a few times a year and invite people to come along and have a go, learn some moves etc, and then they can choose to join training if they like it. He joined training and played some friendly games for about a year before making the national team.

He lives in England and has to travel to Wales or Scotland every week for training/games though

Dude on Radio 4 last night was saying they have a recruitment day about once every two years for the sliding down a hill sports. You can either sign yourself up for them on the Sport England website or be scouted from another sport (sprinters etc).

He was saying the skeleton team can only do 2 runs a day during training because each run is so physically gruelling, and in a whole season and Olympic athlete would do 150 minutes of sliding time total.

Sounds bizarre to somebody from a sport where you need to be doing 5-6hrs a week from 7yo and 20hrs a week from 11-12yo (or so) to be in with any sort of chance.

Let's get a mumsnet team together. Are there gin-holders in the bobsleds?

Skeleton has had a load of funding thrown at it, no track in the UK but as Yarnold had won before it was worth a go. And so it proved.

Izzy atkin has very limited acquaintance with the UK, brought up in an American ski resort.

Curling, I presume , is played in Scotland, and needs only an ice rink.

I know of one Olympic skier that grew up with the sport from my understanding, rather than being a gymnast.

But the key to the door for her was having money available, from wealthy family members, to fund her early training, from what I have been told by friends close to the family.

It costs serious money I think in the early years, until they are established enough for sponsorship/GB team funding.

I was once picking up my DS from an activity when the skiers mum was stood close by, picking skiers sibling up. This was about 9/10 yrs ago. She was asked how training was going and she said, even then, they were on course for Olympics!! So they knew what the goal was even then, and obviously had the money to fund it.

I’ve always thought I’d be very good at the skeleton.....that’s the face first one isn’t it? Dh was like when I told him this.

There’s an awesome toboggan piste (not skeleton) at Courchevel and I am seriously good at it. Spent a day the other year racing young French men down it and nobody could beat me. I can get from courchevel 1800 to courchevel 1500 in about two minutes and have no fear. Team GB need to scout me.

MrsJoshDun I really want to go bobsleighing! There's actually a slope not too far from us, DS went on a school trip, I might go by myself...

DP and I always talk about what sports to get our children into, rather than football, and I quite fancy a Team GB skeletoner (no idea of the proper terminology)

My absolute dream is to be able to ice skate well, I give it my best shot but I really am shite. DP and DSIL are bloody brilliant (but mostly from a childhood of rollerblades/skates and just transferring the skills onto ice!)

Id be really proud to be the mother of a Curler, however, I'm not sure how enthralled I'd be sitting and watching that for hours on end.

Dd skates a lot. Has weekly lessons and there’s a lot of team GB skaters and hopefuls training there every week.

Let's get a mums net team together. Are there gin-holders in the bobsleds?

We can find a space to squish them in. I call shotgun on the second or third seats!

I shouldn’t imagine many children from poorer backgrounds get the opportunity to do winter sports. Then you need the facilities and transport locally.

I’d have loved to have tried curling but sadly the nearest ice rink is miles away

meant to say lizzy yarmold came via girls4gold.

As did Laura Deas I believe. They started at the same time.

Curling is huge in Scotland among both adults and kids. I know a number of people who curl and travel all over the world with their teams.

Lots of skiers and snowboards up here too.

iseesheep you can be 2nd, I'm 3rd. I'll just come along for the ride?

We are out skiing atm and our evening entertainment is bbc iplayer olympics. The kids are all thrilled by it. We watched the skeleton today and after doing a local toboggan run the other day they are all keen to be Olympians. I had no idea how on Earth you get into skeleton racing. Imagine my surprise when I googled and found they recruit from certain other sports and both the women’s medalists came from horse riding. It turns out I compete myself on a regular basis against Lizzy Yarnold’s mum, but it is a very niche sport. Someone somewhere has decreed horse riders make good skeleton competitors, so my kids are going to be right back into their riding when we get home.

The website I found had criteria for all the sports the British Olympic committee are chasing. You don’t need specific experience for any of them, but they have researched what criteria makes good athletes. For example, to be a good rower height is the primary requirement.