Performance Plan 2007-2011 highlights

The news released over the last couple of days about the Elite Scotland Squad and new National Academy, and about the curlers receiving support under these banners, is only part of the Royal Club's Performance Development Plan 2007-20011. The plan has received support from partners sportscotland, Scottish Institute of Sport, the Area Institutes, UKSport and British Curling Ltd.

I note three other areas where changes will influence the sport. First of these is in team coaching support. Currently what team coaches there are are unpaid volunteers who only receive travel expenses and per diems when at events. The new plan will see support for up to twelve coaches, four at the Elite level, and eight at National Academy level. This support will extend to travel to competitions, honoraria and expenses, and training and development.

Secondly, the fledgling Regional Academy structure is to get increased support. The curlers supported under this scheme have not yet been announced, the names expected next month.

Lastly, the Development Plan gives an inkling of what is in the minds of those planning for British representation at the Vancouver 2010 Olympics, assuming we qualify, of course. The second year of the Plan 2008-2009 has provision for support of two GB Olympic Squads of 6-8 players, under the Elite banner, while continuing to support two Scottish men's and two women's teams. The following year 2009-2010 the support will be for two GB Teams (5 or 6 players in each), in addition to continuing support for the four Scottish teams.

Given that details of the Olympic campaign are yet to be announced by British Curling Ltd (expected later in the summer), these proposals in the RCCC Performance Plan go some way to addressing the deficiencies in what happened in the last Olympic Cycle. It looks as if the squad selection process is to continue, but that was expected. Last time, the selection of the actual teams for the Olympics was decided too late, and one consequence of this was that four women curlers who had never even played one game together before were sent out to represent Scotland at the European Championships.

Last time the resources of the Scottish Institute and National Coach were diverted entirely to the GB squads, and Scottish curlers and curling took second place and suffered as a consequence. That's been covered in the New Performance Plan which has continuing support for top Scottish teams during the Olympic cycle.

The above is short on detail, and I guess we will have to be patient until British Curling Ltd reveals their plans.

Supported curlers In Scotland

Yesterday new structures were announced for supporting Scotland's top curlers. Enter 'Elite Scotland Squad' and 'National Academy' into curlers' vocabulary. A list of all seventy-one athletes, supported fully or partially, was published by the Royal Club today. Let's try to make sense of what are undoubtedly complex arrangements between the Royal Club and the Scottish Institute of Sport. Both teams and individual curlers will be supported in the 2007-08 season.

Elite Scotland Squad - names in bold are full members of the Scottish Institute of Sport. The names in brackets are NOT full members of the Institute, although some are members of the National Academy (see below).

David Murdoch, Ewan MacDonald, Peter Smith and Euan Byers
Warwick Smith, Craig Wilson, (David Smith and Ross Hepburn)
Tom Brewster, (Hammy McMillan), Ron Brewster and Colin Campbell
Duncan Fernie, (Gordon Muirhead, Graeme Prentice and Richard Woods)
Kelly Wood, Jackie Lockhart, Lorna Vevers and Lindsay Wood
Claire Milne, Lynn Cameron, (Jacqui Byers and Rachael Simms)
Sarah Reid, (Jennifer Morrison, Alison Black) and Barbara McFarlane
Eve Muirhead, (Kerry Barr, Vicki Adams), and Sarah Macintyre

Seven of the eight teams listed above will receive full Scottish Institute of Sport support at squad days and at overseas competitions. As will Edith Loudon's team: (Edith Loudon, Mairi Milne, Judith Marshall and Katie Loudon) even though these four are not full Institute athletes.

Eve Muirhead's team will receive support from the RCCC National Academy at squad days and at overseas competitions (see below).

So, that's the Elite Squad curlers. What about the National Academy? Let's look at the teams we know, all the members of which are members of the National Academy and are also members of the various Area Institutes of Sport.

Anna Sloan, Lauren Gray, Rhiann MacLeod and Caitlin Barr
Claire Hamilton, Claire MacDonald, Linsey Spence and Jennifer Priestley

Alan Smith, Ross MacDonald, Neil MacArthur and Sandy Reid
Logan Gray, Alasdair Guthrie, Ross Paterson and Keith Duncan Millar
Jamie Dick, Andrew Williamson, Colin Dick and Andrew Noble
Greg Drummond, James Dunn, Tom Pendreigh and Kerr Drummond
Glen Muirhead, Scott MacLeod, Scott Andrews and Gordon McDougall

plus Kerry Barr and Vicki Adams who are members of Eve Muirhead's team. These eight teams will receive support from the RCCC National Academy at squad days and at overseas competitions.

The other individuals who are members of the National Academy Squad are Kay Adams, Iain Chalmers, Graeme Copland, Andrew Craigie, David Edwards, John Hamilton, Nicola MacDonald, Jennifer Morrison (playing in Sarah Reid's Elite Squad team), Jacqui Byers and Rachael Simms (both members of Claire Milne's Elite Squad team).

Complicated, yes. But the end result sees support for more teams than last year, and that must be a good thing. Apologies if I've got any of this info wrong and any names misspelt. Let me know.

The photo shows Tom Brewster and Alan Smith at the Bruadar Scottish Championship last season. Both skips receive support this season - Team Brewster from the Scottish Institute and Team Smith from the National Academy.

Expanded support for Scotland's top curlers

More funding, support for more curlers, new squad names - these are the highlights of the new initiatives for 'performance' curling in Scotland, revealed today by the Royal Caledonian Curling Club. Key too is 'flexibility' and close working relationships involving the Scottish Institute of Sport and the Royal Caledonian Curling Club, with the Area Institutes, sportscotland and British Curling Ltd.

For the 2007-08 season, top curlers in Scotland will be supported in one of two ways. The very best have been invited to become members of the Scottish Institute of Sport. No change there, you may say. But wait. This group will now be known as the Elite Scotland Squad, the name change reflecting a new funding partner, British Curling Ltd, as well as sportscotland as before. And support will not just be restricted to full teams as in the past. Some individuals will receive the full Institute benefits too. This involves sports medicine and sports science, technical support, squad training, and overseas competition funding. Derek Brown and Cate Brewster, who are employed by the Scottish Institute of Sport, have the prime responsibility for the Elite Scotland Squad.

The National Junior Squad, which last year encompassed eight junior teams, is no more. In its place is the RCCC's new 'National Academy' supported by the Area Institutes and funded by sportscotland. Nancy Murdoch (photo), the Royal Club's Performance Development Coach, has brought forward an initiative to support not just juniors but also teams and individuals who are no longer under-21.

The National Academy Squad comprises eight teams and twelve individuals. Members will receive individual and team support from the Area Institutes and the RCCC, including technical on-ice coaching support, strength and conditioning training, as well as providing opportunities for their teams to compete internationally. In contrast to the Elite Scotland Squad, which was by invitation, National Academy Squad members have been selected after an application and interview process.

Names of curlers in the two squads will be announced tomorrow on the RCCC website.

RCCC Board election results

The elections for the two places on the Royal Club Board of Directors closed last Thursday. Votes have been counted. But club members are not being told the result just yet. The decision has been made to keep the results a secret until the AGM on June 16 at Glenrothes.

Why the secrecy? Why the delay? I have no idea.

Personally, I would like to know the results NOW. And I think that members, who voted via their clubs in a postal ballot, would like to know too.

Top wheelchair coach job advertised

British Curling has advertised for a wheelchair curling coach to organise and lead the Paralympic curling team for Vancouver 2010.

The successful candidate will be expected to head up the programme of support for the British Curling wheelchair curling athletes at podium and development level. He/she will have to deliver high quality coaching within the wheelchair curling programme and work with the personal team coaches. The position requires extensive high performance sport experience and a record of world class success as a curling coach. At the last Paralympics, the position was held by Tom Pendreigh, and the British team skipped by Frank Duffy gained silver medals.

If agreed with the Scottish Wheelchair Curling Association and the Royal Caledonian Curling Club the successful candidate will also hold the position of Scottish Wheelchair Head Curling Coach.

The Wheelchair Curling Coach will report directly to the British Curling Performance Director (Derek Brown) on a day to day basis and will also be accountable to the Chairman of British Curling (Chris Hildrey) and the Director of Athlete Services at the Scottish Institute of Sport (Liz Mendl).

Further details of the post and how to apply can be found here. Closing date is June 29.

Interestingly, the successful candidate will "Maintain programme continuity with the British Curling World Class Performance Plan." This has yet to be published and should reveal how the team/squad for the 'able-bodied' 2010 Olympics will be chosen. We should see this later this summer.

British Curling is supported by UK Sport, the Scottish Institute of Sport, the Scottish Wheelchair Curling Association and the Royal Caledonian Curling Club.

British Curling is the national body for elite curling in Britain. It is a limited company formed last year through a merger of the British Curling Association and the British Wheelchair Curling Association. It has four members: the RCCC, the SWCA, the English Curling Association and the Welsh Curling Association. The Board comprises Chris Hildrey (Chairman), Alan Chalmers (Finance Director), Hew Chalmers and Mike Gillespie (Ordinary Directors), and Derek Brown (Performance Director). The Board has the power to co-opt further members. Indeed, an announcement is expected soon.

World Champions for Braehead

Kelly Scott's World Champions from Canada have accepted an invitation to play in the Glynhill Ladies International event at Braehead, January 17-20, 2008. Scott and her team were Canadian Champions in 2006 and 2007, and won the world title in Aomori, Japan, in March. The Canadians only lost one game at Aomori, in the round robin to Scotland's Kelly Wood team, who brought home the bronze medals. The Scottish Champions will also play at Braehead.

Hugh Stewart's photo of the two Kellys (above) is from the World Championship.

How will YOU be remembered?

It's a while since I've visited Tibbermore Church, but on my way north last week I found time to stop off there. Call it a curling pilgrimage if you like! Let me explain.

Tibbermore Church, near Perth, dates from the early seventeenth century, although a previous structure dedicated to St Mary existed during the late middle ages. The earliest monument in the church is a large stone tablet set into the aisle wall, erected in 1631 by Sir James Murray of Tibbermore to his family. The church itself has a number of interesting features and the churchyard has many old gravestones. You can read more about the church here.

The church has not been in use for more than twenty years. It looks neglected and obviously requires repair and conservation.

James Ritchie farmed at Cairney and died in 1840. One has to imagine that he was a bit of a character, for on his gravestone, built onto the west wall of the church, are curling stones, crampets and a broom. These sit on top of a sarcophagus, and a carving of the farmer's prize winning bull! This monument seems to be unique in depicting the sport of curling.

The stones have scallopped decoration, and are single-soled, the handle inserted into the top of the stone offset from the centre. Crampets were tied around the players shoes, to provide a stable footing during delivery, and while providing a good grip must have made a real mess of the ice surface!

What's the future for this piece of curling history? Tibbermore Church is now owned by the Scottish Redundant Churches Trust. The fund raising efforts of that organisation seem to be currently directed towards Cromarty East Church, Ross-shire, which was featured on the Restoration television programme. Hopefully though Tibbermore, with its curling connection, will not be forgotten.