A UNIVERSITY of Worcester graduate and sports coach has helped a national team to European Championship success.
James Evans is the strength and conditioning coach for the England Lacrosse women’s Under-19s side, who triumphed at the Women’s Under-20 European Championships in Katowice, Poland, defeating the Czech Republic 12-3 in the final.
He works as a strength and conditioning technical demonstrator in the university’s Institute of Sport and Exercise Science, alongside studying at the university for his postgraduate certificate in learning and teaching in higher education.
“To be part of my first tournament was an exciting experience,” said the 25-year-old. “The tournament was very full on so we were busy throughout and it was exciting to be part of the inaugural championships.
“Whilst we were favourites for the tournament, this meant the pressure was on us to win, which brought its own challenges and making sure we kept the girls focused on the processes of playing and recovering was a task for all the staff.”
James completed his undergraduate degree at the University of Worcester in sports coaching science in 2014, then remained at Worcester to do a masters in applied sports science, which he completed in 2016.
He is a UKSCA-accredited strength and conditioning coach and currently provides strength and conditioning support to a number of University of Worcester teams and to several external high performing athletes, as he has done for the past six years. He also assists with the programmes for the Worcester Wolves basketball team and Severn Stars netball team and is also strength and conditioning coach for the Worcester Rowing Club.
As strength and conditioning coach for the England Under 19s, James was responsible for the team’s physical preparation. He now hopes to travel with them to the World Championships in Canada next year.
“My role was to primarily make sure the players were in fighting shape for every game, which was another challenge in itself as we played seven games in the space of eight days,” said James.
“Throughout the whole tournament, the players showed an excellent attitude and commitment to completing all the sessions we asked them to and worked very hard to get the gold. This competition was also great preparation for the World Championships.”
