Last week, Kingham Hill School pupils were very excited to welcome Rio 2016 hockey gold medalist Susannah Townsend for a special training session.
Susannah kicked off her visit with a whole school assembly which saw pupils reliving team GB’s hockey success in Rio, before learning about how top athletes train, condition and work together to achieve their goals. Susannah shared her own personal experiences about playing hockey on the international stage.
The pupils in the junior and senior hockey teams then had an amazing opportunity to join Susannah on the astroturf, where they were given an insight into some of the drills carried out on a daily basis within the Great Britain hockey team.
Training in small groups, the pupils were coached by Susannah with tips on how they could adapt and improve their own game.
Reflecting on the day and the invaluable experience gained by the pupils, 1st team hockey coach, Mr Martin stated, “It was a real privilege to welcome Susannah to the Hill. Her words in assembly were inspirational to the children and to see her mixing in with the pupils in the masterclass is an experience that won’t be forgotten”.
Susannah commented, “I absolutely loved my time at Kingham Hill. The passion and enthusiasm of the girls was infectious and I enjoyed working on the different drills with them. It is great to see that hockey is played throughout school and I wish the girls well for the season”.
The hockey team are looking forward to putting everything they learned into practise as they continue their excellent start to the season.