Sporting chances

Partners in Sport (PinS) is a programme that supports Partners in pursuing sports and encourage them to lead a healthy lifestyle in the run-up to the London Olympics in 2012.

PinS will run for four years. The programme will support Partners across a range of abilities and interests and encourage sporting events across the divisions. It will support both individual and team efforts.

There will be three main themes. 'Discovering Sport', to be introduced next spring, will allow Partners to engage in different sports. 'Coaching Sport' will enable Partners, working with sports coach UK, to train as coaches.

And for those like Hannah Hicks and Mat Cole, who are already competing at a national level in their chosen sport, there is the opportunity for sponsorship under the 'Succeeding in Sport' programme. Sponsorship will be open to all working Partners and close family members.

Hannah, 17, is Britain's eighth best table tennis player. Her dad, Nigel, is Manager of Poultry & Forestry at the Leckford Estate.

She says: 'I discovered table tennis when I was on holiday at Brownsea Castle (the Partnership's holiday centre) six years ago. At first, my brother beat me every time, but once I' conquered the serve, well, my brother was struggling from then on. My serves are pretty good!

'Back home I started going to the school table tennis club. I went on to represent my school. Then I got into the local Andover League.

'I realised about three years ago that I wanted to take table tennis seriously. I sat down with my parents and my coach, and we all decided that it would be a good idea to defer my education for a couple of years so I could train 100 per cent, physically and technically.'

She continues: 'I'm training hard for 2012. I'm playing internationally now and I'm meeting other top players and learning from them.

My parents are very supportive. They come and watch me play abroad when they can. I'm in the Swedish League because the competition out there is higher.

The highlight of my career so far has been getting into the Swedish elite division and, of course, making number eight in the rankings.'

A goal to aim for

Mat Cole, 17, is a student and part-time supermarket assistant at Waitrose Petersfield. He is in the national squad and has represented Great Britain in archery.

He says: 'I discovered archery by accident. I was supposed to do a karate class at the local sports centre, but it was cancelled. My dad was doing archery classes at the same time, so I asked him if I could have a go. I was nine years old, and I absolutely loved it.

'I was selected for the national squad at the start of 2007. Now I've done two international trips to represent Great Britain. In May last year I went to Cyprus, and in March this year I travelled to Italy.'

'In Cyprus I got a bronze medal at the team event. There were four of us in the team and we were competing with 15 countries. The best moment so far has got to be on top of that podium. Fantastic!

'I practise for about two hours every day. The arrows are made of aluminum and carbon. They're thin and hi-tech. A lot of targets are packed with straw so that they're solid. It's like shooting into wood.

'I am studying maths, computing and physics at a sixth-form college. Sometimes I have three-hour gaps between lectures and I try to practise then. I go to the gym two to three times a week, I run and cycle a lot and occasionally I swim. I need to keep up my fitness.

'I find archery really relaxing. It's a very satisfying feeling when I hit the 'gold', the centre of the target.

'It's my dream to win in the 2012 Olympics. It would be fantastic to win a gold medal in front of a home crowd.'

To find out more about sports coach uk visit the Sports coach UK website (www.sportscoachuk.org).