Britain’s elite event riders of the future have been selected to receive Lottery-funded support through the 2005 World Class Start and Potential programmes.
Last year’s World Class Potential squad members — Lucy Wiegersma, Kitty Boggis, Nick Gauntlett, Ruth Edge (née Friend) and Terry Boon — have been joined by Chris King, Piggy French, Cressida Claude-Reading and Sharon Hunt. Graduates of the 2004 Start scheme, Oliver Townend and Georgie Davies have stepped up to become members of the Potential squad, which is now 11-strong.
A number of new faces have also been welcomes on to the Start scheme. Oliver Smith, Laura Collet, Francesca Ludlam, Alex Postolowsky, Tamsyn Hutchins and Victoria Mitchell will receive funding alongside former Start members Abigail Walters and Gemma Tattersall. Former Start squad member Emily Llewellyn will continue to receive some additional support as part of a peripheral programme, running alongside the World Class system.
Changes to the 2005 scheme include the introduction of a tiered system incorporating gold, silver and bronze levels within the Start and the Potential programmes. This means that while all riders on the scheme will receive the same World Class benefits, the level of individual funding will vary between the levels. These levels have been set based on the rider’s performance at the selection trials, although movement between the levels may be possible throughout the year.
The levels of support offered to the World Class Start and Potential riders are:
Potential
- WC Gold: Lucy Wiegersma, Ruth Edge, Terry Boon, Chris King
- WC Silver: Kitty Boggis, Oliver Townend, Piggy French, Cressida Claude-Reading
- WC Bronze: Nick Gauntlett, Georgie Davies, Sharon Hunt
Start
- WC Gold: Abigail Walters, Oliver Smith
- WC Silver: Laura Collet, Francesca Ludlam, Alex Postolowsky, Gemma Tattersall
- WC Bronze: Tamsyn Hutchin, Victoria Mitchell
Additional riders to be supported: Emily Llewellyn
Vikki Underwood, World Class Start & Potential Manager says: “A number of riders who were part of the 2004 programme have been re-selected, which highlights that the structure and training offered by World Class is successful and effective, but excitingly, a number of new faces have appeared indicating that the selection process continues to be consistent and fair.”
