2.  Historically there were two main pathways for aspiring athletes e.g. local social club CLUB e.g. Playing in local league LOCAL JUNIOR CLUB e.g. Playing in regional league SENIOR CLUB e.g. First division club ELITE CLUB e.g. PE lessons EDUCATION i.e. School team SHOOL e.g. County team REGIONAL TEAM e.g. First division team ELITE CLUB

3.  This was largely determined by the sport but some took both routes e.g. Rugby, netball  UK Sport has made more of an emphasis on club structure.  PESSCL and Sports Colleges have brought the two pathways together.  Private schools dominated the traditional pathways. In the last fifty years 50% of all Olympic medal winners come from this sector but it only accounts for 5% of the population.

4.  School sport meant friendly competitive fixtures in a range of sports.  There is a large number of school sports associations running both regional and national competitions e.g. English Schools FA  The main criticism is that this only caters for only a small percentage of the population as only around 5% of pupils are involved in competitive sport.

5.  The traditional pathway for sporting excellence in school is  School sport is run by volunteers – i.e. teachers e.g. Bangor High School School e.g. North Gwynedd District e.g. Gwynedd County e.g. North Wales Regional e.g.Wales National

6.  Universities provide opportunities for all levels of performance. They have an extensive range of facilities. Inter mural sport allows a greater range of students to participate at a lower level.  Many Universities e.g. Loughborough, Bath have allowed elite athletes to train alongside their academic course. Some award scholarships and bursaries to help students fund sports training and development.  There are also sport specific degrees.  There are University sports competitions e.g. UAU, BUSA and varsity games like Oxford v Cambridge.

7.  The government have recently developed and published a range of documents and policies that set out its objectives for the 21 st century. 1. National Framework for Sport is a joint policy developed by the government and key sports agencies which sets out a vision for Sport England under the heading “ Making England and Active and Successful Nation – a vision for 2020”

8.  It aims to change the culture of sport and physical activity in England to increase participation across all social groups.  It identifies 20 priority sports and 10 development sports.  It is a conceptual model which challenges all involved to consider what the issues are and then works towards the changes needed in terms of culture and provision so that England becomes a successful sporting nation both for mass participation and excellence.

9. 2. Game Plan was developed in 2002 as a strategy for delivering sport and physical activity objectives for the nation