Top student athletes are invited to apply for a new elite athlete program at leading independent school Matthew Flinders Anglican College on the Sunshine Coast.
The Flinders Elite Athlete Program (FEAP) will provide specialised services, mentoring support and tailored workshops for exceptional Flinders students to enable them to achieve across their sporting pursuits and academic life.
The program will be led by Flinders Head of Netball, Ms Lauren Nourse, who represented Australia for Netball and is a World Championship Gold Medallist and Commonwealth Games Silver Medallist.
Program mentors include Olympian Jodie Kenny who is also the Director of Hockey at Flinders. Jodie is one of the captains of the 2020 National Hockey Squad and has played more than 220 games for the Australian Hockeyroos since debuting in 2011.
Principal Stuart Meade said the Flinders Elite Athlete Program would commence in 2021 and be open to students currently attending or planning to attend Flinders.
“Over the years, many students at Flinders have competed as elite athletes at a state and national level,” Stuart said.
“We recognise that exceptional student athletes are often weighed down by the pressure of juggling the competing demands of sport, study and social life for wellbeing,” he said.
“We don’t want any student to have to choose between focusing on their sport or their academics during these vital years of schooling to Year 12 graduation.
“The new Flinders Elite Athlete Program will provide the support and expert leadership to help students learn the skills, organisation and mindset to excel and be healthy in all aspects of life.
“It is our goal that every FEAP student will feel supported and capable of embracing the quality education available to them at Flinders so they may reach their potential and contribute to a better world.
“We are also inviting students who are not enrolled at our College to apply to the Flinders Elite Athlete Program so they may too benefit from our caring community, and the services and support this exciting program provides.”
The Flinders Elite Athlete Program will provide students with access to sport-related services at the College, as well as support from a dedicated teacher mentor who will guide them to organise, prioritise and manage their study and exam commitments and academic goals.
Students will also attend private mentoring workshops and be connected with top sportspeople, expert coaches and health practitioners specialising in nutrition, physiotherapy, strength and conditioning, sports medicine, and performance psychology.
Eligibility relies on a range of factors, such as team representation and sporting achievements, with the first tier of eligibility to consider sports that are offered at the College or recognised through Queensland School Sports pathways.
Sports may include AFL, Athletics (T&F), Baseball, Basketball, Cricket, Cross Country, Golf, Hockey, Netball, Rowing, Rugby League, Rugby Union, Sailing, Soccer, Softball, Squash, Surfing, Swimming, Tennis, Touch Football, Triathlon, Volleyball and Water Polo.
Flinders’ 22-hectare rainforest-fringed campus features top quality sports facilities.
The College sporting facilities include: a multi-purpose two-court indoor Sports Centre; Flinders Aquatic Centre; Flinders Fitness Centre; Andrew Kratzmann Tennis Academy; two manicured flood-lit sporting fields that offer three full-sized fields and two cricket pitches; a covered Primary Pavilion with two multi-purpose hard courts; and high quality indoor and outdoor cricket nets.
To apply for the Flinders Elite Athlete Program, please visit www.mfac.edu.au/feap
