JROS Lagganlia 2024 junior coaching report
Earlier this year we gave a grant to the Junior Regional Orienteering Squads to support the expenses of junior coaches at Lagganlia (see award). Here we bring you a report
The Lagganlia tour has been going for over two decades now, and this year continued to build on the success of previous years. 24 junior athletes attend from all regions in the UK, and they are split into 6 groups for the week, with each group coached by 2-3 coaches, with a spread of younger coaches across all groups alongside more experienced coaches. This provides an excellent ratio of coaches to athletes, and allows the younger coaches to get direct coaching experience as well as learning from the more experienced coaches.
Younger coaches this year included
- Dan Heppell (WCOC, M18)
- Amelia Thompson (LOC, W18)
- Cate Matthew (SROC, W18)
- Sarah Darley (SN, W19)
- Maya Hampshire Wright (NN, W20)
- Alex Elliot (SYO, M21)
- Dom Dakin (SYO, M23)
- Sam Leadley (OD, M24)
Over 6 days they trained and coached on 8 different areas, with a variety of technique exercises and sprint and classic tour championships. This was in addition to a variety of evening presentations, discussions and exercises - as well as of course plenty of socialising.
The camp is an ideal learning ground for aspirant coaches, and the Orienteering Foundation is very much welcome in allowing more junior coaches to attend and benefit from the experience.