This year I have been fortunate enough to be part of the British Sailing Squad alongside my studies at Exeter. As a result of this, I have been attending a number of training camps abroad in Portugal to prepare us for the racing season. Managing the workload of university and running an Olympic campaign has been difficult but the Scholarship and support from the University has helped hugely, allowing me to get the most out of both sailing and my degree.
Whilst away on training camps, we are lucky enough to work with the best sailors in the world, supported by some of the best coaches in the world. The people we are surrounded by has been one of my favourite things about moving up to the Olympic classes.
When back at University, the training moves off the water and into the gym. The physios and S&C coaches up at the sports park have been brilliant in helping me adapt to the different physical needs of the Olympic classes. The facilities are great, with the high performance gym having all of the equipment needed for the sailing specific training programmes we are given. As well as help with our training, we also get support with managing the academic workload, which I have found very valuable this year.
We are currently building up to the World and European Championships which will be held in Poland and Croatia respectively. These events are crucial for securing our funding for the next year of sailing and will hopefully be great learning opportunities for us to hone our racing skills!
I am super happy with my decision to come to the University of Exeter and would thoroughly recommend it to any aspiring sportspeople.