Hello Jess,
Are you concerned about the privatisation of youth sport?
It has always been possible for children, who are gifted athletes, to find some form of free training, but access to this is dwindling.
Brilliant volunteer coaches are nearing retirement age, and are being replaced by a new breed, which can charge, above and beyond, £40 per hour, for coaching in some track and field events.
I feel that this goes against the spirit of "fair play" previously associated with British athletics and obviously against the concept of a level playing field!
My dd - early teens - is a club athlete of county standard, has taken part in three or four UK championships. She is British/Afro Caribbean and looks to you as a role model.
We are finding, however, that just to compete is becoming more and more challenging. Meets that used to cost £2 to enter are now charging £11. This mounts up, if, as a budding athlete, you are having to enter lots of comps.
We've managed to attract some sponsorship and some free coaching.
But the coaches, who train for free, are having to stand next to people on the same track, who are getting paid a shed load for doing the exactly the same thing. How long before they all start to impose ridiculous charges?
This disproportionately hits the poor from BME backgrounds, the very group, which shows prodigious talent in track and field. What, if anything, can be done?