Rowers in the University of Salford's Boat Club are getting the upper hand on their Manchester rivals ahead of the Two Cities Boat Race on 10 May - by employing the services of a top sports psychologist.
Dr Tom Fawcett of the University's School of Health Care Professions, who has worked with the British Olympic teams since 1992, has been helping the crews mentally prepare and build up their mental toughness so they can beat the Manchester team.
Techniques Dr Fawcett will be identifying important competitive distractions on the day and how to deal with them, and establishing a code of conduct for team cohesion on event day.
"In rowing, the most important thing is team work," he said. "I've interviewed elite rowers before and they've told me they need to be completely focussed on their rhythm during the race and that requires effective teamwork and collective focus.
"With the Salford crew I'll also be working on using their nervous energy before the race to make them more motivated. If they apply my techniques they've got a good chance of improving their performance and hopefully winning the race."
Hannah Cumming, the women's team captain said: "The techniques Tom has offered us are just what we need in our preparation. Personally he's helped me lose my nervousness before races and all of us in the team are definitely more focussed on our goal of beating Manchester.
"I don't want to go into too much detail about what we've learnt though, as we'll lose our advantage!"
The Two Cities Boat Race will see both university rowing clubs going head to head along the River Irwell on Saturday 10 May 2008 - with thousands of spectators lining the banks of Salford Quays to watch the fiercely contested races. Admission is free with entertainment and refreshments available on the quayside.
Ends
Notes to Editors
For more information on courses in the School of Health Care Professions go to www.healthcare.salford.ac.uk/
For more information on the event go to www.twocitiesboatrace.co.uk
The Official Charity Partner of the Two Cities Boat Race is SPARKS, the children's medical research charity www.sparks.org.uk
SportsTours International are the Official Sports Travel Partner of the Two Cities Boat Race 2008 www.sportstoursinternational.co.uk/
For further information or photographs contact:
Jamie Brown
Communications Officer
The University of Salford
Room 113, Faraday House
Salford, Greater Manchester
M5 4WT, UK
T +44 (0)161 295 5361
j.brown@salford.ac.uk
(Via www.salford.ac.uk)
Chuck Weeks, SUNY Oswego's director of residence life and housing, has received the State University of New York Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Professional Service.
