National High Performance Plan
The IHA's High Performance Plan focuses on creating a highly integrated, vertical pathway of development for elite players to develop along, from U15 level, right up to senior international level. The Plan's key elements are as follows:
Effective Talent Identification
Talent identification is commenced at U15 level, with the development of U15 Centres of Excellence for outstanding young talent. Talent identification schemes then continue through the various age groups within the provincial structures, all of whom will be brought into the overall High Performance Plan.
An Elite Culture Early In Athletes Careers
Key to the High Performance Plan is the concept of instilling an awareness in young athletes of the many elements that form a successful elite international athlete. This means the introducing the core competencies that modern hockey athletes require at an early age through the provincial and international under age programmes. These competencies include:
• Nutrition - fuelling and hydration
• Physiotherapy - injury prevention, injury management, core stability
• Strength & Conditioning - hockey specific physical conditioning, education in intensity of training, phasing, training to train
• Anti-doping - education programme
• Psychology - goal-setting (long term), pre-competition routines, imagery, relaxation
• Lifestyle - introduction to planning, time management and integration of sport with other facets of life
High Standards In Athlete Physiology
The High Performance Plan raises the fitness bar of our elite athletes to the level required to compete effectively over an entire match and an entire tournament. This is achieved through the development of physically demanding programmes that are supported and facilitated through athletes' club and regional training programmes.
Early Exposure To High Level Competition Level
Competitive international tournament play is added to the development of young elite talent, to create well-rounded athletes who can unleash their full potential at senior level. This includes the development of robust U16 and U18 fixture programmes, where a focus is placed on:
• Grounding players in the core competencies required to be an elite international hockey athlete
• Building international programmes that support athlete development, above and beyond the winning of of games to include other goals pertinent to players' progression towards senior squad status.
Introduction Of Development Squads
Development squads have been created, who train and prepare with the senior players to facilitate elite talent's progression from junior ranks to senior level as quickly as possible. R eplacing the pre-existing U21 international squads in both men's and women's international team set-ups, t he development squads are closely aligned to the senior squads. Athletes from the squads may be selected to the senior squad at any time. The development squad exposes emerging talent to the varying elements of top level hockey earlier and more frequently, both through full senior international competition and through a training programme that is fully integrated with the senior squad. To view current development squads, click here.
Introduction of Regional Training Sessions
To facilitate local playing commitments, the High Performance Plan focuses on a regional approach to player development, based in Dublin, Cork and Belfast. This system allows for fully rounded preparation and development of players through
- strength and conditioning sessions
- regional squad training sessions
- club training sessions (including fitness work)
- club matches
- core stability/injury prevention session (one supervised at regional session)
Regional training sessions include:
- High level technical work with individual input and high coach to player ratio
- High intensity sessions to develop and simulate decision making situations
- Individual sports science/medicine input – nutrition, psychology
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