‘The elite part of our sport needs the impetus that comes from grassroots’
I HAVE great sympathy for athletes, coaches and club volunteers at the moment. It has been such a difficult time; athletics clubs and groups unable to meet to train together, mass events not taking place for quite some time, no access to strength and conditioning facilities for so many athletes. Well done to all those who are managing to keep things happening whether through virtual events or creative ways to adapt and adjust training. I look at some of our elite performances and marvel at the way these top athletes have competed. For many of them, it has been tough with no normal training routines and yet we’ve seen Scots post some great performances already in 2021 and it is much more than a one-off. At Scottish Athletics, we’ve kept the virtual events going and I know that has meant a lot to a number of clubs and athletes. We’ve had online education and some folk have found that, during lockdown, they’ve had more time to upgrade their qualifications as coaches or officials. I always think of Scottish Athletics as a governing body as all of us within the sport. It’s club athletes, helpers, the jogscotland groups, our qualified officials, the hill and ultra runners and everyone across all areas of the sport. There’s no doubt in my mind that the elite part of the sport needs the impetus that comes from grassroots. I firmly believe in Scotland we had a really good model before Covid-19 arrived. Our top athletes were impressing and our clubs and groups were doing well. So hopefully we can get back to that. We can do that with the strong support of all our members and clubs. I think we are agreed that athletics in Scotland does not need dramatic change — there is a lot of terrific work going on — but we just need to ensure it continues and the progress is maintained. As a governing body, when we introduced our strategy as ‘Building a Culture of Success’, it was about how a broader vision and wider approach would involve everyone across various roles. So I tend to think we won’t be dependent on one or two individuals — it is all about an overall culture and mindset and I think we have that in athletics in Scotland at the moment. It is the collective effort which counts.
There is a lot of terrific work going on... we just need to ensure it continues