Each year, Sportnation addresses a different and very specific, sporting issue, underpinned by ground-breaking research. In 2006, Sportnation discussed the thorny issue of how children born later in the academic year appear to have their chances of elite sporting success written off at an early age.

In 2007, the panel raised the question: Is the UK recruiting and developing coaches at the right levels to deliver sustained sporting success? Within this, Sportnation looked specifically at the subject of social inclusion, and whether the UK is doing enough to develop sports coaches from different backgrounds, in order to grow the talent pool. Following the panel’s meeting, Sportnation has issued an overview of the Sportnation panel discussion.

As in 2006, this year’s discussion was supported by groundbreaking research, provided by Loughborough University. In their executive summary and research report Dr Tess Kay, Prof Kathleen Armour, Dr Chris Cushion, Mr. Rod Thorpe and Ms Hanya Pielichaty investigated coaching structures in the UK and asked: Are we missing the coach for 2012?

Download an Overview of the Sportnation Panel Discussion

Download the Executive Summary

Download the Full Report