RYA success with first Diploma in Sporting Excellence programme

The RYA has run the first Diploma in Sporting Excellence (DiSE) programme within the iQFOiL and 420 classes providing young athletes with a wealth of expertise and training opportunities through the last 12 months.

Sailors have received coaching on the water and further development in areas such as nutrition, lifestyle, psychology and sports injuries.

The DiSE programme is for sailors entering Year 12 this September alongside other further education courses and qualifications.

“The DiSE programme has been hugely beneficial to my sailing,” says Ellie Thomas, a 420 sailor on DiSE. “The training camps have been amazing with some great quality coaching. The theory sessions have helped me to understand what else goes into being successful within sport. The programme has run smoothly due to the great organisation, and it has been great to be a part of it.”

Each year the RYA bids for programme places through Sport England and Department for Education. This year, the organisation secured 12 places.

The DiSE programme will continue to be delivered in partnership with Loughborough College, and this year the RYA will be collaborating with Greig City Academy sailing programmes to further support its performance sailors. The academy has demonstrated how performance sailing can become part of the day-to-day curriculum and push to promote inclusion within the talent pathway. The DiSE programme will be broadening this year to work in non-Olympic disciplines and further support the academy’s keelboats programmes.

The RYA believes focusing the small number of places in one education institution will enable it to provide a tailored programme, deeply embedded within the curriculum.

“We are tremendously proud of the impact and difference this programme has made to the sailors,” says Jack Grundy, RYA performance manager and DiSE programme lead. “This programme has helped sailors next steps and higher education options. More importantly, it has given them further development in all the small things like nutrition and psychology that help them mature into professional performance athletes for the future. We look forward to partnering with Greig City Academy for the next DiSE cohort.”