Cycling Archives - Scottish Student Sport

Wednesday 1st February 2023

Want to know more about Cycling before joining a society? Here’s a quick overview of the sport and what SSS has to offer.

When it comes to modes of transportation on land and sea, there will almost certainly be a corresponding sport that uses said modes to race. Cycling is no different. Invented in 1917 by Karl Von Drais, the bicycle has become one of the world’s most popular transportation tools due to its ease of accessibility and relatively cheap cost.

Cycling, as a sport, is very broad as there are several cycling events. In the Olympics, cycling is split into four categories: Road Cycling, Track Cycling, Mountain Biking and BMX. These all work in a similar fashion where two or more cyclists (apart from BMX where it’s taken in turns) will race across a predetermined path where the competitor who finishes with the fastest time is declared the winner. The difference between these events is the terrain they take place on.

Cycling has been an Olympic event during the entirety of its modern resurgence. Great Britain is the most successful nation in Olympic history with 33 gold, 26 silver and 20 bronze medals. At the 2020 Olympics, Great Britain won six gold medals where they won the Women’s Keirin, Men’s Omnium, Women’s Madison, Men’s Cross-Country, Women’s Race and Women’s Freestyle.

Each year Scottish Student Sport hosts the SS Cycling Series where universities compete with each other to be crowned the SS Cycling Challenge. There is also a BUCS League for students to get involved with. If you wish to know more, click the following link: https://www.scottishstudentsport.com/sports/cycling/

If you’re interested in joining a Cycling club, click the following links:

Heriot-Watt University: https://sportsunion.site.hw.ac.uk/cycling/

University of Aberdeen: https://www.ausa.org.uk/sports/club/aurcc/

University of Dundee: https://sportsunion.dundee.ac.uk/clubs/cycling/

University of Edinburgh: https://www.eusu.ed.ac.uk/organisation/cycling/

University of Glasgow: https://www.gla.ac.uk/myglasgow/sport/whatson/club/cycling/

University of Stirling: https://www.stirlingstudentsunion.com/sportsunion/clubs/cycle/

University of Strathclyde: https://www.strathunion.com/sports-union/club-sport/club/6432/

Chair Head: Fred Hockey – SSS_Cycling@hotmail.com

Governing Body: Scottish Cycling – https://www.scottishstudentsport.com/sports/cycling/

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Monday 10th October 2022

Stirling University Cycling Club were once again our hosts for the Scottish Student Cycling Hill Climb Championships, taking us back to the annual slopes of suffering to the National Wallace Monument to kick-start the 2022-23 season. This year, the exciting new addition of Le Col sponsorship provided even greater stakes, with superb prizes up for grabs.

A total of 46 riders – 31 male, 15 female – took on the brutal 14% average gradients over a course of (only) 500m! The course however was also wet from earlier rain showers, so the riders would have to contend with spinning wheels as they lost grip on the steepest gradients. This would be a short, but gruelling, effort from start to finish once again – but the riders knew what they were getting themselves in for.

After their warm up and a recce of the climb, the riders started queuing for their chance at glory – though they would be forgiven for thinking the podium would be taken from the start due to the high calibre of riders in the field. First up was the favourite for the day: former Junior MTB XC Champion and last year’s champion (with an excellent time of 1:32), Charlie Aldridge (University of Edinburgh)! Could he set a winning time from the start? It looked likely as he set a ferocious pace to cross the finish line, for the second year running, with a time of 1:32!

Not long after, University of Aberdeen’s Sam Carrotte became the second person to achieve a sub-1:40 time on the day, eventually taking home 4th as the highest placed rider not from University of Edinburgh.

It was Louis Moore (University of Edinburgh), fresh from his first National-B race win the previous weekend that provided what many would call the ‘ride of the day’. He took 5 seconds off of his time from last year to cross the line in a blistering 1:30 to take a decisive victory. University of Edinburgh showed they had depth in leg-power as they also claimed 2^nd and 3^rd on the Men’s podium: Charlie Aldridge pipped for second and Angus Toms in 3^rd.

University of Stirling started proceedings in the women’s event, with Charli Alston setting a superb time of 2:28 and taking 3 seconds off of her bronze medal-worthy time from last year. Unfortunately it wasn’t quite enough to get her onto the podium this year, however, as University of Edinburgh demonstrated breadth as well as depth, taking two of the 3 top positions and knocking Charli in to 4^th. Amelia Tyler (University of Edinburgh) took 2nd place in a time of 2:16, whilst her team mate, Anna McGorum, claimed 3rd place with a time of 2:22 – a fantastic achievement given it was her first race in over a year!

The gold medal and second clean-sweep was not destined for University of Edinburgh this time as GB rider and 2x British MTB XC Champion, Elena McGorum (University of Dundee) stormed the climb. Elena flew up the hill with a sensational time of 2:13 to take the top position.

Some fantastic riding by the other women’s riders saw the top 10 rounded out with 2 riders from the Universities of Dundee, Edinburgh, St Andrews and Stirling, all within 20 seconds of each other. It was particularly exciting to have 18 female riders in the event – with entries growing over time from just 5 women entered in to the 2018 competition!

Well done to all riders on the day. The route, though short, it is a difficult climb so it’s a brilliant achievement to get to finish it, regardless of time. Congratulations to the clubs claiming well-earned points in the SS Cycling Series. With 16 riders competing and taking 5 of the 6 medals on offer, University of Edinburgh take the lead in 138 points. Second place is the University of Stirling with 68 points, whilst the University of Dundee is currently in 3rd place with 42 points.

It’s still very much all to play for with another 4 events in the season. As 5 points are earned per entry from each institution, not just for places, we look forward to seeing student cyclists out in force: more people, more points! Keep an eye on our socials for details about our upcoming Cyclo-Cross Championships.

Finally, a massive thank you to President of Stirling University Cycling Club, Daisy Barnes, for making this happen as event organiser. We are ever grateful to event sponsors, Le Col and Root Cycles for providing some incredible prizes for our riders. Many thanks to all volunteers who helped on the day, as well as all our wonderful spectators who created a brilliant, encouraging atmosphere for all those racing!

Full results can be found HERE and the photo album from photographer, Craig Fellowes, can be found HERE

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Monday 6th June 2022

The final SSS Medal Table of the 2021/22 season is here!

The SSS Medal Table is a method for institutions to see how successful their student-athletes have been over the course of the SSS season.

The table includes all events in which medals have been awarded during the 2021/22 season.

All semester 1 and 2 events which took place have been added.

The table defaults to alphabetical but can be sorted by any of the column headings.

SSS Medal Table 2021/22

Institution	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
Abertay University	4	3	4	11
Ayrshire College	1	1		2
Borders College			1	1
City of Glasgow College	4	2	1	7
Edinburgh College	2	2		4
Edinburgh Napier University	4	2	1	7
Fife College	1	4	2	7
Glasgow Caledonian University	9	6	3	18
Heriot Watt University	10	11	13	34
Queen Margaret University	1		2	3
Robert Gordon University	5	10	7	22
Scotland's Rural College	1		1	2
UHI	5	1	4	10
University of Aberdeen	23	36	19	78
University of Dundee	34	21	20	75
University of Edinburgh	87	66	52	205
University of Glasgow	46	62	45	153
University of St Andrews	71	41	38	150
University of Stirling	43	37	31	111
University of Strathclyde	32	33	33	98
University of the West of Scotland	11	6	6	23
Z-Guest Entries	12	11	15	38

Total Events: 73 (88% of planned activity)

Last Updated: June 2022

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Monday 30th May 2022

The 21-22 Cycling season came to a thrilling finale with the Criterium Championships sponsored by Le Col at Fife Cycle Park.

The 21-22 Cycling season came to a thrilling finale with the Criterium Championships sponsored by Le Col at Fife Cycle Park. The day started with a coaching session in the morning for beginner student cyclists taking their first steps into racing. The session was made possible thanks to funding from Scottish Cycling allowing students to participate at no additional cost. There was strong turnout with first time races alongside seasoned veterans learning from coach Anna Fairweather as they both looked to sharpen their skills heading into day’s racing.

Students before the coaching session

The Men’s Championship started at a blistering pace, as many races at Fife Cycle Park do, which saw an elite group of seven away early. Not blistering enough however for Edinburgh’s Ciaran McSherry, who attacked the group and was gone, proceeding to build an extraordinary lead, eventually lapping all but one of his competitors. The rest of the podium was decided though a series of attacks eventually seeing Edinburgh secure the 1-2 with Louis Moore proving strongest in second and Matiss Robertson of UHI securing his second student podium of the season in third.

Ciaran McSherry (University of Edinburgh) crossing the finish line

The Women’s Championship saw a similarly explosive tempo from the gun, with Beth Maciver (GCU) and Arianne Holland (Edinburgh) showing no mercy to their competitors, riding away in the opening laps, never to be caught. It was a display of textbook cornering technique and smooth rotation between the two, who both ride for the Alba Development Team. It eventually came down to the final sprint where Maciver taking first position round the last corner and then launching an unbelievable sprint to take the title by several bike lengths with Holland rolling home in second with Maisie Aubrey (Stirling) proving the strongest of the rest to take home third.

The Women’s Podium. Maisie Aubrey (LEFT), Beth Maciver (MIDDLE) and Arianne Holland (LEFT)

Both races included the “Ride Faster, Ride Further” Combativity Award sponsored by Le Col won by Neelesh Corey Batchasingh and Catriona Barbour for the men’s and women’s races respectively. Both showed incredible spirit and perseverance during their races and were thoroughly deserving of their place on the podium.

The results of the day sealed the Institution Series win for the University of Edinburgh with 480 points, beating out Dundee in second with 398 points across the year, with Stirling just pipping Glasgow for third with 231. Points were earned for every Scottish Student Cycling event of the academic year, combining off-road and on road performances for one combined ranking.

In addition to the student races, the day also featured category 4 races for men and women as well as an open race. All three included some thrilling racing with non-stop attacks and some stand out performances with safe and sensible handling being shown by all riders involved.

A special thanks goes to Le Col for sponsoring the event, Scottish Cycling for funding the coaching session and all the commissaries, marshals and volunteers, without them none of this would be possible.

Photo credit: Nico Anelli

Congratulations to all Medallists! Full results can be found HERE. Photos can be seen HERE

Men’s

1st Ciaran McSherry, University of Edinburgh
2nd Louis Moore, University of Edinburgh
3rd Matiss Robertson, University of the Highlands and Islands

Women’s

1st Beth McIver, Glasgow Caledonian University
2nd Arianne Holland, University of Edinburgh
3rd Maisie Aubrey, University of Stirling

Ride Faster, Ride Further Combative Award

Men’s: Neelesh Corey Batchasingh, University of Dundee
Women’s: Catriona Barbour, University of Stirling

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Thursday 28th April 2022

It’s Awards Season again!! We are now accepting nominations for the 2021/22 SSS Awards! Read on for more information on the different award categories, the nomination process and where the winners will be crowned.

We are delighted to announce that the SSS 2021/22 Awards are officially open!

With a return to activity, this year the Executive Committee have decided that we should revert back to our usual set of awards. We are really looking forward to receiving all the fantastic nominations.

The Awards

We are accepting individual nominations in the following five categories:

Female Athlete of the Year- Aimed at high performance female student athletes, whether or not they compete for their college or university. This will be awarded to a female individual for outstanding sporting achievement at the highest level during the 2021-22 season (April 2021 – April 2022) while making a tangible contribution to the institution.
Male Athlete of the Year- Aimed at high performance male student athletes, whether or not they compete for their college or university. This will be awarded to a male individual for outstanding sporting achievement at the highest level during the 2021-22 season (April 2021- April 2022) while making a tangible contribution to the institution.
Volunteer of the Year- Aimed at students and non-students who volunteer at a local level. This is not aimed at volunteers primarily in a SSS role (please see Dr Rob Macpherson Award); coaches (see Coach of the Year); paid staff going the extra mile (see Honorary President’s Medal). This will be awarded to a person who has made an outstanding contribution to student sport at a local level during the 2021-22 year. The contribution may be in many forms such as exceptional active or administrative services to a club, college, or university; as a faithful club servant, committee member, leader; official; or purely down to their love of sport. Volunteers purely in a coaching capacity should be nominated for the Coach of the Year award.
Coach of the Year- Aimed at those who coach student sport/ student athletes at any level of performance. They may be either volunteer coaches or paid coaches. Not aimed at professional coaches based in Higher Education for whom student athletes are not the main focus. This award will be given to an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to student sport by coaching during the 2021-22 season. Good quality coaching; innovative ideas; dedication to the sport; and a drive to continually improve their own skills are features of an outstanding coach.
Honorary Presidents Medal- Aimed at any individual who has made an extraordinary contribution to/lasting impact on student sport at a local, regional or national level. Nominees should be regarded as wonderful examples/ advocates of student sport and their behaviour should resonate with the above SSS values.

We are accepting group nominations in the following two categories:

Club of the Year- Aimed at the all-round best performing Club, on and off the field of play. Not aimed at clubs that have had a successful competition year only. This will be awarded to a club that can demonstrate impact in the 2021-22 season. Increasing memberships, upping participation, innovative projects, developing volunteers, promoting the role of officials; fundraising, community links and involvement in institution activity are just certain elements that would demonstrate excellence.
Team of the Year- Aimed at the most successful, high performing student teams in the country, whether within SSS/BUCS competition or further afield. Not aimed at a team that performs to the fullest of its potential in the lower levels of competition e.g. a third team that has a 100% season is still unlikely to win this award. This will be awarded to a team for outstanding sporting achievement at the highest level during the 2021-22 season (April 2021-April 2022). This can include international performances.

The final award is the Dr Rob Macpherson Award. This award differs slightly from the rest of our awards – there are no nominations, instead, the winner is selected by the SSS staff team as opposed to the Executive Committee. The award is aimed at any individual who has made an outstanding contribution to volunteering with Scottish Student Sport.

Check out our 2020/21 award winners here! 🏆

The Details

Nominations for each category should be a maximum of 500 words.
Institutions can nominate in as many categories as they wish, but may only put forward one entry per category.
Past winners can receive the same award again.
Only member institutions can nominate. All member institutions have been sent login details to the online portal where nominations should be submitted.
Nominations close on THURSDAY 12th MAY at 18:00 and the Executive Council will then decide on the winners.
Winners will be announced at the Awards Dinner on Wednesday 8th June, as part of the SSS Conference.
Please contact Totty with any queries.

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Monday 4th April 2022

A quick recap of the Scottish Student Cycling Time Trial Championships

A quick recap of the Scottish Student Cycling Time Trial Championships

Cyclists from numerous Scottish institutions and clubs met in a small village in East Lothian on this past Sunday to take part in the Time Trial Championships. The sun was beating down as the cyclists set off at one-minute intervals from the starting point. The course ran for 15.2km along country roads and included a couple of steep descents along the way. The relative tranquillity around Pencaitland gave way a circuit of intense competition, as the quiet country roads became punctuated by cyclists powering downhill in an effort to attain the fastest time.

The team category consisted of the University of Glasgow, the University of Edinburgh, and the University of Dundee. However, there were representatives from a number of other universities as well as non-student clubs. As the cyclists trickled back to the starting point, the atmosphere was jubilant. The competitors caught their breath and rehydrated in the mid-afternoon sun as the organisers tallied up the times. Eventually, all gathered around the podium as the winners were announced.

The University of Edinburgh came out on top in the Student Team Championship, with a combined time of 1:39:13. They were followed by the University of Glasgow (1:39:47), and the University of Dundee (2:04:25).

Representing the University of Stirling, Cameron Richardson won the Men’s Student Championship with a time of 21:08. Trailing Cameron came Angus Toms of the University of Edinburgh (21:47), and Matiss Robertson of the University of the Highlands & Islands (21:59).

In the Women’s Student Championship, Kate Richardson of the University of Glasgow came out on top with a time of 24:55. The runners-up were Arianne Holland of the University of Edinburgh (25:47), and Miriam Gilbride of the University of Glasgow (27:39).

In the non-student Male category, the winner was Aaron Gannicot (22:14), followed by Joseph Agnew (23:03), and Neil Sheppard (23:21). In the non-student Female category, the winner was Carolyn Chambers (28:40), followed by Michelle Highfield (29:45), and Charlotte Forbes (32:45).

Many thanks to Aaron Johnson, Scottish Student Cycling Chair, as well as Gregor McArthur, Edinburgh University Cycling Club Race Secretary for making this event possible!

View the full image gallery here.

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Thursday 3rd March 2022

We’re incredibly happy to announce a partnership between LeCol and Scottish Student Cycling.

We are absolutely delighted to announce a new partnership between Le Col and Scottish Student Cycling. When we got the news from Le Col that they were interested in partnering up with Scottish Student Cycling for the calendar year we were understandably super excited!

We’re incredibly happy to announce this partnership, but none more so than our Scottish Student Cycling Chair Aaron Johnson who gave us his reaction:

“I am over the moon that Scottish Student Sport are partnering up with Le Col to grow student cycling in Scotland. Le Col hold genuine values and have a proven track record across the sport – from recreational cycling to the World Tour. I look forward to what the future holds, as Scottish Student Cycling continues to develop and grow with support from Le Col”.

Don’t just take it from us! Our friends at Le Col are equally excited with this partnership, we caught up with the Le Col Brand Partnerships Manager Phil Hubbard who gave us his thoughts:

“Le Col are delighted to partner with Scottish Student Sport to help further cycling’s development at an academic level. Working with SSS’ experts we hope to elevate the events taking place for students and continue to support teams with world class custom clothing ensuring that all students can live up to our ethos of ride faster, ride further.”

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Wednesday 26th May 2021

We are now accepting nominations for the 2020/21 SSS Awards! This year we have revamped our awards line-up with six brand new awards up for grabs! Find out more here.

We are delighted to announce that the SSS 2020/21 Awards are officially open!

This year we are doing things a little bit differently. As opposed to our usual individual and club awards, this year our awards will be based on the SSS values! Given the unusual and challenging year that everyone has faced, we wanted to recognise the incredible work and many success stories across our sector and celebrate the amazing people involved in student sport in Scotland.

The awards will therefore be based on the SSS values and we are looking for nominations for the following categories: Ambitious, Collaborative, Inclusive, Innovative, Responsive, Sustainable, Honorary President’s Medal. An additional eight award, the Dr Rob Macpherson SSS Volunteer of the year award, will be selected by the SSS staff.

The Awards

We are accepting nominations in the following categories:

Ambitious – Who is this aimed at? Unsung heroes – juggling multiple projects/things at once.
Collaborative – Who is this aimed at? Best online learning resource/best practice sharing, coaching and officiating, Zoom webinars.
Inclusive – Who is it aimed at? An inclusion champion – someone who has made their sport more accessible and available to all.
Innovative – Who is it aimed at? Those who have been exceptionally innovative and creative – i.e using Zoom workouts, creating new podcasts, performance athlete finding new ways to train.
Responsive – Who is it aimed at? Examples of best practice in adapting to COVID, new ways of working and flexibility.
Sustainable – Who is it aimed at? Sustainability champions – people/groups that have incorporated sustainability into their clubs/work.

The above awards can be won by individuals or groups, so please feel free to submit nominations for both outstanding individuals and student sports clubs!

Honorary Presidents Medal – This award is for any individual who has made an extraordinary contribution to/lasting impact on student sport at a local, regional or national level. Nominees should be regarded as wonderful examples/ advocates of student sport and their behaviour should resonate with the above SSS values.
The final award is the Dr Rob Macpherson Award. This award differs slightly from the rest of our awards – there are no nominations, instead, the winner is selected by the SSS staff team as opposed to the Executive Committee. The award is aimed at any individual who has made an outstanding contribution to volunteering with Scottish Student Sport.

Check out our 2019/20 award winners here! 🏆

The Details

Nominations for each category should be a maximum of 500 words.
Institutions can nominate as many groups or individuals in any category as they like.
Only member institutions can nominate. All member institutions have been sent login details to the online portal where nominations should be submitted.
Nominations close on MONDAY 7th JUNE at 18:00 and winners will be announced in July as part of the SSS Month of Celebration.
Please contact Totty with any queries.

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Monday 29th March 2021

CASE STUDY | How Scottish Student Cycling kept students active, motivated and engaged during the cold, dark winter!

Spring has sprung – gone are the cold,dark winter nights. Replaced with longer, brighter and more hopeful days ahead.

The changing season is very much welcomed, with the easing of restrictions of the next couple of months proving a glistening light at the end of the tunnel. Whilst the winter months were a challenging time for all, there was plenty of golden nuggets of refreshing innovation within the student sporting world to look back on. This extract focuses on our Scottish Student Cycling community and how they spun a negative situation into a positive one.

With in-person, cycling events cancelled for the foreseeable future, the Scottish Student Cycling community led by SS Cycling Chair Aaron Johnson pulled together taking it in turns to host virtual rides, jumping from institution to institution to provide a virtual competitive offering and giving students the opportunity to keep active and motivated throughout the winter.

Scottish Student Cycling Chair, Aaron Johnson writes

Between November and March, 10 different university cycling clubs across Scotland, took on the responsibility of hosting weekly virtual cycling rides (meet-ups), with the support of SS Cycling. Meet-ups took place on the virtual cycling platform, ‘Zwift’. Each week, a different club would delegate a member who would be responsible for creating the meet-up, organising the route and sending invites to fellow students.

A total of 38 participants took part across the various meeting – engaging both current students and alumni members. The highest turnout saw 18 participants tackle one of the hilliest routes on Zwift and was hosted by RGU student, Jamie Chree.

Students were able to use these meet-ups as an opportunity to socialise and engage with clubs, something that has not been possible in-person this year, due to the Covid pandemic. A lot of students also used this an opportunity to fit in a workout, whilst still being able to ride with a group.

The overwhelming response from students and competitors was very postive. Speaking to SSS, Louise Smith (University of Stirling) said:

“I really enjoyed the whole experience! It was good to have a weekly session, knowing I was going to be on Zwift on a Tuesday evening. It was great to be able to chat with students from other universities too. It also helped to fill the hole, that the lack of group rides has left in my life.”

Aaron Blackwood (University of Aberdeen), enjoyed the social aspect of the meet-ups and believes the format has long term potential. He said:

“The SSS Zwift meet-ups gave me a great opportunity to get to know fellow cyclists from across Scotland, at a time where meeting up in person was not possible. The laid-back format with different universities hosting every week really helped to personalise the meet-ups rather than just having a single host picking the routes every time. Even after the pandemic is over I could still see the benefits of running similar events!”

Honourable mentions go to Aaron Blackwood (University of Aberdeen), for never missing a meet-up and even hosting one himself.

Well done to all the students and institutions who took part in meet-ups! Going forward the Scottish Student Cycling team are hoping to build on the momentum gained from the winter events and provide an even better event offering for the 2021/22 season and beyond!

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Wednesday 16th December 2020

Inspiration, innovation and collaboration at every corner. These were some of the key themes that emerged from the SSS 2020 Festive Gathering. Over 70 members tuned into the virtual gathering and were treated to thought-provoking discussion, high-quality guest speakers and plenty of Festive Fun! Read all about it here!

In a change to tradition and a fitting tribute to 2020, the SSS Festive Gathering was delivered virtually this year with over 70 members across the tribe tuning in to hear from a panel of world-class athletes and leaders in sport.

Whilst the virtual gathering was a first of its kind, the longstanding tradition of participants wearing festive jumpers remained true – with some fantastic outfits on show throughout the afternoon. None more so than panelist Robyn Love (pictured below) in what is undoubtedly a candidate for the most festive photo of the year.

After an energising welcome from SSS Chair Pete Burgon, a brief review of the year gone by and finances approved – our attendees were met by two equally inspiring and thought-provoking discussions from our special guests.

First up, the Road to Tokyo panel, where SSS Head of Competitions Chris Purdie, was joined by three athletes whose experiences through student sport had helped shape their career path and their journey to next year’s Tokyo Olympics.

Neah Evans (Cycling), Megan Gaffney (Rugby) and Robyn Love (Wheelchair Basketball) discussed how their positive student sport experiences helped them reach where they are today. From balancing the workload of their studies with the pressure of performing in their sport and also trying to keep up a social life in the process, the panelists spoke honestly and fondly of their student days.

All three touched upon the huge sacrifices required to make it at the top level and acknowledged the vital support they received from their institutions and staff during their time at University. This support has been vital to them and many other young athletes looking to achieve their potential while also studying and preparing for their future.

The panel discussed the importance of resilience and “bounce-back ability” that the challenges of Coronavirus and lockdown caused before previewing what promises to be a jam-packed and exciting year of sport in 2021.

All three have very real and promising hopes of competing at the Tokyo Olympic Games and everyone at SSS wishes Megan, Robyn and Neah every success for 2021 and beyond.

Following this inspirational panel, the next section was packed full of ambition, innovation and collaboration at every corner: An Audience with Jan Paterson.

Jan is currently Managing Director Sport for Neom, delivering a bold new vision of future living. Neom is being designed as a global city for global citizens and Jan’s role is to engrain sport and physical activity in the lives of residents. In the future city, citizens will never be more than 8 minutes from a sports facility and physical activity will be an integral part of the curriculum.

Jan herself is a pioneer and her experiences in leadership roles were a great learning opportunity for our audience. She spoke of the importance of surrounding yourself with the right people, and the significance of bottom-up team building. We also heard some great stories of her times at the World University Games, Commonwealth Games and the Olympics.

To round off the day and in true 2020 style, the SSS Tribe were treated to a Zoom Quiz of the Year courtesy of Pete Burgon. This gave everyone a chance to show off their best Christmas jumpers, share some “funny” Christmas jokes and engage in some much needed festive cheer.

We would like to wish everyone a restful festive break and we look forward to seeing you all in 2021.

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