Mentoring role for Jazz Carlin as University of Bath-based swimmers head to United States
Double Olympic medallist Jazz Carlin is taking on a mentoring role as she and several other University of Bath-based swimmers head out to the United States this week for training and competition.
Carlin, coached by Dave McNulty at the British Swimming National Centre Bath, is working with a group of 17 promising female swimmers – all aged between 16 and 18 – as part of the new Performance Foundations Pilot Programme.
It is a partnership between British Swimming, UK Sport and the home nations of England, Scotland and Wales with the aim of improving and increasing the transition rate along the performance pathway from potential to podium.
The group are competing at the US Pro Swim Series in Indianapolis from Thursday to Saturday alongside a combined British squad of Podium and Podium Potential athletes, which includes Rio 2016 400m and 800m freestyle silver-medallist Carlin.
She has already spent time with the group at their first training camp and told British Swimming: “It’s been a really great experience so far. I was once in the position of not knowing what my true potential was and being supported by someone who has been through that development process is really vital.
“I get to work with a group of hard-working young female athletes who have demonstrated courage and strength in challenging environments both in and out of the pool.
“I’ve already been away with the group where mental strength and resilience were tested, and we have already seen some of them take big steps forward. I’m sure they will continue to grow when we compete in the US.”
Among the other University of Bath-based swimmers competing in America this week are Rio 2016 medallists Chris Walker-Hebborn and James Guy, the latter having recently switched to the National Centre along with Cameron Kurle – who is also heading to the US – and coach Jol Finck.
University of Bath graduates Andrew Willis and Calum Jarvis are also in action along with Charlie Attwood, Joseph Hulme, Georgina Boyle, Jess Fullalove and Tom Derbyshire, a Sport & Exercise Science student who is supported by a British Swimming National Training Centre Scholarship.