top of page
UKSCA | 2023 SPEAKERS
Experience inspirational and informative speeches from our incredible line of speakers at UKSCA|2023.
NIC GILL
Nic Gill (Gilly) is a professional performance coach and consultant with huge expertise sporting performance and health.
He is best known for his work in rugby with 23 years working in the sport. For the last 16 years Gilly has been the strength and conditioning coach for the New Zealand All Blacks (204 Tests), a period of unprecedented success for the team which has included more than 170 rugby test wins and the World Cup title in 2011 and 2015.
As an Associate Professor in Human Performance at the University of Waikato, Gilly is constantly refining and evolving his philosophy for being fit and healthy and having the 'winning edge' in life and in competition.
Gilly grows Avocados and tries to challenge himself every year with something that "gets him outta bed" to stay fit and healthy.
He is best known for his work in rugby with 23 years working in the sport. For the last 16 years Gilly has been the strength and conditioning coach for the New Zealand All Blacks (204 Tests), a period of unprecedented success for the team which has included more than 170 rugby test wins and the World Cup title in 2011 and 2015.
As an Associate Professor in Human Performance at the University of Waikato, Gilly is constantly refining and evolving his philosophy for being fit and healthy and having the 'winning edge' in life and in competition.
Gilly grows Avocados and tries to challenge himself every year with something that "gets him outta bed" to stay fit and healthy.
TRACEY NEVILLE
DRIVE AND DETERMINATION
Tracey Neville MBE is a former England netball international and a former England head coach. As a player, she was a member of the England teams that won bronze medals at the 1998 Commonwealth Games and the 1999 World Netball Championships. As a head coach she guided Northern Thunder/Manchester Thunder to Netball Superleague titles in 2012and 2014. Between 2015 and 2019 she served as England head coach. She subsequently guided England to the gold medal at the 2018 Commonwealth Games and to bronze medals at the 2015 and 2019 Netball World Cups. In 2016 she was awarded an MBE.
Tracey Neville MBE is a former England netball international and a former England head coach. As a player, she was a member of the England teams that won bronze medals at the 1998 Commonwealth Games and the 1999 World Netball Championships. As a head coach she guided Northern Thunder/Manchester Thunder to Netball Superleague titles in 2012and 2014. Between 2015 and 2019 she served as England head coach. She subsequently guided England to the gold medal at the 2018 Commonwealth Games and to bronze medals at the 2015 and 2019 Netball World Cups. In 2016 she was awarded an MBE.
SEAN BAKER
A SYSTEMATIC APPROACH TO PROGRAMMING: BUILDING THE FOUNDATION OF
EXERCISE SELECTION FOR EARLY-STAGE COACHES
Programming can be one of the most exciting, yet overwhelming aspects
of a coach’s job. Where do you start with primary exercise selection? How
do you create balance? How do you select accessories that compliment
your primary work? How do you progress/regress an athlete? This
presentation presents a modifiable system that can be utilised to address all of the aforementioned questions and take the guess work out of
exercise selection.
EXERCISE SELECTION FOR EARLY-STAGE COACHES
Programming can be one of the most exciting, yet overwhelming aspects
of a coach’s job. Where do you start with primary exercise selection? How
do you create balance? How do you select accessories that compliment
your primary work? How do you progress/regress an athlete? This
presentation presents a modifiable system that can be utilised to address all of the aforementioned questions and take the guess work out of
exercise selection.
TULSHI VARSANI
BREAKING BOUNDARIES, INSPIRING CHANGE: MY JOURNEY IN THE INDUSTRY & REDEFINING COACHING STEREOTYPES
• My why: The fitness industry
• Experience: Area management
• S&C: Coaching Stereotypes
• Mercedes F1: A man’s world?
• Females in S&C: Underrepresentation
• Support each other: It’s not you, it’s we
Tulshi is a highly experienced coach with a passion for supporting both corporate and sporting clients to enhance their wellbeing and performance. Tulshi has a particular interest in LTAD, where she applies research led practice to monitor and test, enabling her clients to achieve long-term growth and development.
She was also the first Performance Manager and Coach for the 8x World Championship winning Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula One Team. Her responsibilities included managing the race team, performance-testing, and training programs.
Tulshi is a member on the Board of Advisors for the company LTAD. LTAD create a training pathway for young athletes within strength and conditioning.
Tulshi has been developing her own online training platform for the public to give them support with research-based practices for their physical and mental performance.
• My why: The fitness industry
• Experience: Area management
• S&C: Coaching Stereotypes
• Mercedes F1: A man’s world?
• Females in S&C: Underrepresentation
• Support each other: It’s not you, it’s we
Tulshi is a highly experienced coach with a passion for supporting both corporate and sporting clients to enhance their wellbeing and performance. Tulshi has a particular interest in LTAD, where she applies research led practice to monitor and test, enabling her clients to achieve long-term growth and development.
She was also the first Performance Manager and Coach for the 8x World Championship winning Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula One Team. Her responsibilities included managing the race team, performance-testing, and training programs.
Tulshi is a member on the Board of Advisors for the company LTAD. LTAD create a training pathway for young athletes within strength and conditioning.
Tulshi has been developing her own online training platform for the public to give them support with research-based practices for their physical and mental performance.
DANE MITCHELL
WRESTLING FOR S&C
Dane is Head of S&C at Leeds Beckett University and is a lover of all things movement!
Dane is Head of S&C at Leeds Beckett University and is a lover of all things movement!
STEPH MORRIS
DEVELOPING ATHLETIC MOTOR SKILL COMPETENCIES IN YOUTH
Movement competency is deemed critical for children to enjoy and pursue lifelong participation in sport. This proposed practical session will give examples of developing athletic motor skill competencies (AMSC) in youth athletes, exploring both unstructured and structured strategies. The unstructured strategies will consist of examples of low-level gymnastics; partner balances; animal shapes; playground games; and obstacles courses. This games-based approach ensures children develop a positive association with physical activity from a young age, by using creative strategies to develop movement skill. The structured strategy will focus on the AMSC resistance training curriculum (a progression model for developing a broad spectrum of AMSC)
Movement competency is deemed critical for children to enjoy and pursue lifelong participation in sport. This proposed practical session will give examples of developing athletic motor skill competencies (AMSC) in youth athletes, exploring both unstructured and structured strategies. The unstructured strategies will consist of examples of low-level gymnastics; partner balances; animal shapes; playground games; and obstacles courses. This games-based approach ensures children develop a positive association with physical activity from a young age, by using creative strategies to develop movement skill. The structured strategy will focus on the AMSC resistance training curriculum (a progression model for developing a broad spectrum of AMSC)
DR JOHN RADNOR
DEVELOPING ATHLETIC MOTOR SKILL COMPETENCIES IN YOUTH
Movement competency is deemed critical for children to enjoy and pursue lifelong participation in sport. This proposed practical session will give examples of developing athletic motor skill competencies (AMSC) in youth athletes, exploring both unstructured and structured strategies. The unstructured strategies will consist of examples of low-level gymnastics; partner balances; animal shapes; playground games; and obstacles courses. This games-based approach ensures children develop a positive association with physical activity from a young age, by using creative strategies to develop movement skill. The structured strategy will focus on the AMSC resistance training curriculum (a progression model for developing a broad spectrum of AMSC)
Movement competency is deemed critical for children to enjoy and pursue lifelong participation in sport. This proposed practical session will give examples of developing athletic motor skill competencies (AMSC) in youth athletes, exploring both unstructured and structured strategies. The unstructured strategies will consist of examples of low-level gymnastics; partner balances; animal shapes; playground games; and obstacles courses. This games-based approach ensures children develop a positive association with physical activity from a young age, by using creative strategies to develop movement skill. The structured strategy will focus on the AMSC resistance training curriculum (a progression model for developing a broad spectrum of AMSC)
DAVID JACKSON
BREATH-HOLD TRAINING IN ANAEROBIC CONDITIONING: INCREASING REPEAT SPRINT-ABILITY & RECOVERY
The Friday session is theory based, with the Saturday session being the practical element. The sessions will outline both the mechanisms behind the benefits seen via breath-holding to elicit hypoxic / hypercapnic adaptions in sports like rugby union, football and basketball, as well as the practical application of the breath-holding techniques.
The sessions will present how the adaptions in improved buffering capacity of the tissues, K+ balance and re-oxygenation occur leading to improvements of 10X in RSA (Repeat Sprint-Ability) in only 4 weeks as sited in 2018 European Journal of Sport Science. The practical application and progressions used from personal coaching experience utilising hypoxic / hypercapnic conditioning training with Premiership and International rugby players over the last 3 years, will also be details and you’ll have the chance to experience during the practical session.
Accredited UKSCA coach David Jackson is a former professional rugby player and master Oxygen Advantage coach and mentor, working with professional athletes (mainly pro rugby union) using breath training and hypoxic / hypercapnic conditioning techniques to improve performance and recovery as part of an integrated approach to maximal athletes’ performance.
The Friday session is theory based, with the Saturday session being the practical element. The sessions will outline both the mechanisms behind the benefits seen via breath-holding to elicit hypoxic / hypercapnic adaptions in sports like rugby union, football and basketball, as well as the practical application of the breath-holding techniques.
The sessions will present how the adaptions in improved buffering capacity of the tissues, K+ balance and re-oxygenation occur leading to improvements of 10X in RSA (Repeat Sprint-Ability) in only 4 weeks as sited in 2018 European Journal of Sport Science. The practical application and progressions used from personal coaching experience utilising hypoxic / hypercapnic conditioning training with Premiership and International rugby players over the last 3 years, will also be details and you’ll have the chance to experience during the practical session.
Accredited UKSCA coach David Jackson is a former professional rugby player and master Oxygen Advantage coach and mentor, working with professional athletes (mainly pro rugby union) using breath training and hypoxic / hypercapnic conditioning techniques to improve performance and recovery as part of an integrated approach to maximal athletes’ performance.
RICHARD HUSSEINY
PROACTIVE APPROACHES TO NAVIGATING THE CRISIS IN PERFORMANCE SUPPORT STAFF WELLBEING
This session will explore my research looking into the common themes 158
senior performance staff are experiencing in elite sport. It highlights the
issues that are negatively influencing their personal happiness and
professional impact.
The first aim is to bring awareness of these powerful findings, which will
strike a cord with many who attend. Often due to separation from
themselves. I’ll discuss why they sacrifice without question for the golden
chalice of prestigious roles. And why this golden chalice quickly turns into a
poisoned chalice.
The second aim is to offer practical solutions. These will be delivered in an
interactive format, in which coaches can proactively look at their decision
making to stop living to work and start living their life.
This session is not soley aimed at ‘teaching’ you something. Rather, it’s
about opening your eyes to something you may not be aware of in a way
that serves you.
For over 16 years, I worked as a performance coach in
high-performance sport with organisations including UK
Sport Institute, EXOS, and Hintsa Performance.
I enjoyed my work in these elite environments, but
underneath I was suffering from imposter syndrome,
unable to say no & express my boundaries, and stuck in
my identity as a coach in sport.
In 2015 I gave end-of-life care to my mother. This
experience changed my life, allowed me to truly see
what was important to me, and inspired me to provide
the support I didn't have.
This is my why for founding men behind sport
This session will explore my research looking into the common themes 158
senior performance staff are experiencing in elite sport. It highlights the
issues that are negatively influencing their personal happiness and
professional impact.
The first aim is to bring awareness of these powerful findings, which will
strike a cord with many who attend. Often due to separation from
themselves. I’ll discuss why they sacrifice without question for the golden
chalice of prestigious roles. And why this golden chalice quickly turns into a
poisoned chalice.
The second aim is to offer practical solutions. These will be delivered in an
interactive format, in which coaches can proactively look at their decision
making to stop living to work and start living their life.
This session is not soley aimed at ‘teaching’ you something. Rather, it’s
about opening your eyes to something you may not be aware of in a way
that serves you.
For over 16 years, I worked as a performance coach in
high-performance sport with organisations including UK
Sport Institute, EXOS, and Hintsa Performance.
I enjoyed my work in these elite environments, but
underneath I was suffering from imposter syndrome,
unable to say no & express my boundaries, and stuck in
my identity as a coach in sport.
In 2015 I gave end-of-life care to my mother. This
experience changed my life, allowed me to truly see
what was important to me, and inspired me to provide
the support I didn't have.
This is my why for founding men behind sport
ADAM GRAINGER
USING DATA TO DRIVE DECISION MAKING IN REAL WORLD SETTINGS - POT HOLES, PIT STOPS AND PACING
Strength and conditioning coaches (and associated multi-disciplinary staff) have access to a plethora of performance data, yet often our knowledge and skillsets to drive future decisions using this data are not what we require. This presentation will draw upon industry expertise and applied practical experiences to help guide practitioners working with data.
Strength and conditioning coaches (and associated multi-disciplinary staff) have access to a plethora of performance data, yet often our knowledge and skillsets to drive future decisions using this data are not what we require. This presentation will draw upon industry expertise and applied practical experiences to help guide practitioners working with data.
GIL STEVENSON
60 YEARS IN THE GYM: DEVELOPING PERSONAL BELIEFS AND PRACTICE
Gil has been inspiring athletes and coaches for over 50 years. Drawing on his experience as a gymnast, PE Teacher, sports coach and S&C Coach – he will also look to inspire those attending this largely practical session.
Starting his career as a PE Teacher in 1968, Gil is an eye-witness to the many changes in the ways that athletes train, and he will take you on a tour of the history of strength training and S&C and discuss how gym practices and coaching methods have developed over time and shaped his personal beliefs and practice.
Gil has enjoyed a lifetime working within sport and physical education, serving as Chair of the working party that led to the formation of the UKSCA, and fulfilling the role of Chair of the Board of Directors for a further 6-year period. Gil has been a UKSCA Assessor and Tutor since 2005 and was jointly responsible for the initial development of the UKSCA’s workshop programme – directly and indirectly contributing his skills, knowledge and experience to the development of thousands of S&C Coaches. Over his career, Gil has coached athletes at all levels in sport and continues to nurture and develop young, talented athletes through the Live Active Talented Athlete Scheme in Perth and Kinross that supports young local athletes who have demonstrated the skill and commitment to represent Scotland and Great Britain on the international stage.
Gil has been inspiring athletes and coaches for over 50 years. Drawing on his experience as a gymnast, PE Teacher, sports coach and S&C Coach – he will also look to inspire those attending this largely practical session.
Starting his career as a PE Teacher in 1968, Gil is an eye-witness to the many changes in the ways that athletes train, and he will take you on a tour of the history of strength training and S&C and discuss how gym practices and coaching methods have developed over time and shaped his personal beliefs and practice.
Gil has enjoyed a lifetime working within sport and physical education, serving as Chair of the working party that led to the formation of the UKSCA, and fulfilling the role of Chair of the Board of Directors for a further 6-year period. Gil has been a UKSCA Assessor and Tutor since 2005 and was jointly responsible for the initial development of the UKSCA’s workshop programme – directly and indirectly contributing his skills, knowledge and experience to the development of thousands of S&C Coaches. Over his career, Gil has coached athletes at all levels in sport and continues to nurture and develop young, talented athletes through the Live Active Talented Athlete Scheme in Perth and Kinross that supports young local athletes who have demonstrated the skill and commitment to represent Scotland and Great Britain on the international stage.
COACHING INNOVATION WORKSHOP: CHANGE OF DIRECTION IN FOOTBALL:
This practical, interactive session will move through a spectrum of drills from warm up, controlled CoD into reactive CoD and finishing with reactive games.
Led by experts, this will draw in the knowledge and experiences of those attending - a fast-track to hundreds of years of ideas and experience in this area.
Led by experts, this will draw in the knowledge and experiences of those attending - a fast-track to hundreds of years of ideas and experience in this area.
PAUL DORKINGS
THE 'RIGHT-CLIENT' ACQUISITION
Are all potential clients the same or are some better than others? What makes them better - is it the cost and time of the getting them, the benefits of the ongoing relationship, or something else?
Paul’s session will take you through a proven, multi-factored approach to not only acquiring the right-clients, but also retaining them.
Working in the Active Leisure Sector since 2002, Paul has filled various roles from Sales Consultant to Managing Director, with a track record of success, guiding two companies through successful acquisitions totalling over £33 million. Paul also works as a Non-Executive Director and Senior Exec Member for companies both in the UK and the US.
In recent years Paul has broadened into the world of graphic design and rekindled a creative flair supporting organisations with branding support.
Are all potential clients the same or are some better than others? What makes them better - is it the cost and time of the getting them, the benefits of the ongoing relationship, or something else?
Paul’s session will take you through a proven, multi-factored approach to not only acquiring the right-clients, but also retaining them.
Working in the Active Leisure Sector since 2002, Paul has filled various roles from Sales Consultant to Managing Director, with a track record of success, guiding two companies through successful acquisitions totalling over £33 million. Paul also works as a Non-Executive Director and Senior Exec Member for companies both in the UK and the US.
In recent years Paul has broadened into the world of graphic design and rekindled a creative flair supporting organisations with branding support.
MEMBER CASE STUDY ORAL PRESENTATIONS
Three UKSCA members will be selected to present their latest research or applied case studies at this event.
PREPARE FOR THE UKSCA ASSESSMENT - PLYOMETRICS, AGILITY, SPEED
Looking to take your UKSCA assessment in the next year or educating others who will be? These three hands-on practical session with one of our most experienced UKSCA tutor/assessors, will de-mystify the UKSCA assessment process, will give you a step-by-step guide on how to prepare, avoid the common pitfalls, and give you confidence to pass your assessment first-time!
THE CLEAN AND JERK WORKSHOP
Looking to take your UKSCA assessment in the next year or educating others who are?
Looking to improve your own technique or coaching skills?
This hands-on practical sessions with one of our most experienced UKSCA tutor/assessors, will de-mystify the UKSCA assessment process, give you a step-by-step guide on how to prepare, avoid the common pitfalls, and give you confidence to pass your assessment first-time!
Looking to improve your own technique or coaching skills?
This hands-on practical sessions with one of our most experienced UKSCA tutor/assessors, will de-mystify the UKSCA assessment process, give you a step-by-step guide on how to prepare, avoid the common pitfalls, and give you confidence to pass your assessment first-time!
INNOVATION PITCH
This is where the industry's most exciting innovators will showcase their latest game-changing innovations.
HE and FE FORUM
This forum meeting will enable UKSCA and members working in HE and FE to exchange ideas and work together
bottom of page