Applications now open for the 2010 Advanced Apprentice in Sporting Excellence

Last Updated: Thursday, July 1st 2010 at 7:17 PM

Applications now open for 2010 Advanced Apprenticeship in Sporting Excellence

The Motor Sports Association (MSA) is now accepting applications for the 2010 Advanced Apprenticeship in Sporting Excellence (AASE) in Motor Sport from drivers aged 16-18 years old.

AASE is a government-funded human performance programme designed to help talented young athletes achieve their sporting potential. The Motor Sport AASE is led by elite drivers and human performance experts and forms part of the MSA Academy structure, which is dedicated to creating world champions by providing guidance and training for the country’s best young drivers.

MSA Performance Director and 2001 WRC champion co-driver Robert Reid said: “The feedback from those currently enrolled has been extremely positive and it is great to see how much some of them have taken from the programme. The more people hear about it, the more enquiries we have from young drivers and their parents; it’s going to become a lot more competitive to get a place in the future.”

Ginetta Junior runner-up Jake Cook joined the first AASE programme in August 2009 and the 16-year-old Formula Ford driver is effusive in his praise for the scheme. “It has far exceeded my expectations,” he says. “What I have learned this year has certainly had an impact on my performances and my all-round approach to my career. But just as importantly, I have also had the chance to meet important and influential people and take advantage of resources I wouldn’t otherwise have had access to.”

Students receive three separate qualifications within the AASE framework: a Level 3 NVQ in Achieving Excellence in Sports Performance; a Level 3 BTEC National Certificate in Sport (Performance and Excellence); and an MSA Level 2 Certificate in Coaching Motor Sport. Should they wish, candidates also have the option to continue studying for their A levels at school instead of taking the BTEC qualification.

The closing date for applications for the second AASE intake is 16th July, with the programme starting in August 2010. Anyone interested in enrolling should email aase@msauk.org or visit www.msauk.org/aase for further information, including details of the academic and sporting entrance criteria.

Editor’s notes: The Motor Sports Association (MSA) is the national governing body for four-wheeled motor sport in the UK, responsible for the regulation and administration of the sport. The MSA is a member of the world governing body, the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) and holds a seat on the World Motor Sport Council. The MSA represents 33,000 licence holders, 15,000 volunteer marshals and officials, more than 750 member clubs and issues permits for 5000 motor sport events every year.

In recent years the MSA has expanded its remit to cover the development of the sport and currently invests in excess of £1m per year in the three elements of its Whole Sport Plan. ‘Grow’ targets an increase in participation levels, ‘Sustain’ invests in the infrastructure of the sport, its clubs and its people, and ‘Excel’ focuses on training future world champions and educating their peers.

The MSA Academy is a framework for the training and development of motor sport drivers from as young as eight years old. Under the direction of the MSA’s Performance Director and 2001 WRC champion co-driver Robert Reid, the Academy provides training, advice, guidance and information for talented young competitors through a series of programmes, including MSA Junior Master Classes, the Advanced Apprenticeship in Sporting Excellence and the MSA Team UK national squad.

As well as creating champions, the MSA Academy also underlines the MSA’s commitment to the education of young drivers and to providing a safety net at every level for those that ultimately don’t make the grade as world class competitors.

Release MSA10-037: 26 May 2010. For media information only. No regulatory value.
Issued on behalf of the Motor Sports Association
For further MSA information please contact Ben Taylor
Telephone: +44 (0)7866 449940 E-mail: media@msauk.org

Issued on behalf of the Motor Sports Association, Motor Sports House, Riverside Park, Colnbrook, SL3 0HG
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