June 10, 2022, by brzbs1
Coach in Focus: Louise Ramsdale
Louise Ramsdale is the Head Coach for our Canoe Slalom Performance Group, which is not technically a club but a group of scholarship athletes and elite standard canoeist’s. This role is a partnership between the University of Nottingham and British Canoeing, and provides valuable support to under-23 athletes who are on a dual career of study and sport, and sit just outside of the British Canoeing UK Sport funded programmes. Louise has therefore been at the forefront of our success on the water this year in BUCS competition.
We spoke to scholar Rachel Ellis about Louise’s work and the impact she has had amongst our athletes;
“Louise has been a massive help for my teammates and me at the University of Nottingham this year. She has gone above and beyond with supporting us at BUCS and national races throughout the year, alongside running multiple training sessions during the week. Being apart of the ENTS under-23 squad means my training and coaching is based at the Lee Valley White Water Centre in London. Therefore Louise’s coaching means that I am able to receive highly valuable and quality regular training whilst studying.”
Alongside this, we also asked Louise a few questions about her experiences here coaching at the University of Nottingham.
What do you enjoy the most about being a coach?
I enjoy coaching because I like helping people to get the best out of themselves and I enjoy the problem solving and variety within canoe slalom. There is not one right way to do a move but it is about finding the fastest way for each individual and weighing up the risks versus rewards of the lines that they take. I got into coaching when I retired from competing in the sport to a high level myself, so I felt that it was an obvious area to go into to use all of the knowledge I had built up as an athlete.
How enjoyable is coaching at the University of Nottingham and are there any standout moments from your experience here?
Most of my coaching is at the National Water Sports Centre at Holme Pierrepont so I don’t spend a lot of time at the university but everyone that I have met as part of the role has been very friendly and welcoming and there is a really nice atmosphere around the place, it seems like a really good place to work. The facilities and support that the athletes have access to through the university are exceptional and really helps the athletes to get high quality training in around their studies.
The highlight of the year was supporting the squad and wider University of Nottingham team at the BUCS canoe slalom event which was hosted in Nottingham at the National Water Sports Centre. The athletes all paddled really well, we got a lot of individual and team medals and won the event overall. Several staff from the University came down to watch some of the racing and support the athletes which was really gave them a boost.
We thank Louise for her continued dedication at the University of Nottingham. You can find out more about Performance Canoe at the University of Nottingham here.
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