GRANT’S GREAT LEAP

A GROUP of footballers from all levels of the game are taking a leap this summer by turning to an ex-olympian jumper.

Dalton Grant, the former Great Britain high-jump champion, is the trusted fitness guru putting clients – with Premier League stars among them – through their paces.

He has helped remodel running styles, worked on injury prevention and improved core fitness during this off-season.

And the group of players believe Grant’s impact off the pitch has helped raise the bar for them on it.

Maidstone’s England C international defender Kevin Lokko is among those reaping the rewards of the daily workouts.

He said: “Even after one session I could feel the differences in the body as there’s so much attention to detail. You are working muscles you are not used to working.

“Every club would improve with Dalton in there. There’s a lot of clubs who do it by the book and have all kinds of qualifications, but they are not experienced athletes.

“I’m very surprised clubs don’t really take this sort of specific training into their regime.

“A lot of players don’t run properly and that causes injuries.”