Support from the Banbury Private Physio Practice supports therapy team for our local Winter Olympic hopeful Skeleton athlete
Christopher Charles is a 20 year old man who has achieved a place in the development squad for the British Bobsleigh and Skeleton Team aiming to achieve a gold medal in the winter olympics.
Having been unsuccessful in achieving his passion to gain a high standard of decathlon competition, Chris decided to turn his head to other sporting events and soon found that the skeleton races gave him the excitement, exhilaration and team competition he was looking for.
For those readers who are unsure of what the skeleton race is, its pretty scary and requires skill and endurance, body power and core fitness. The competitor rides on a sled , known as a bob sled down a high speed frozen track, lying face down and head first. The athletes run alongside the sled for the first 25-35m and then load onto it headfirst, trying to go as fast as possible while getting down without crashing!
The sport is time trialled with the fastest competitor winning the race.
Chris says:
In July 2021, I saw an advertisement for a talent identification process run by UK sport called "fromhome2thegames". After inputting my sporting history, 30m sprint time, and other ability indicators, I was selected to complete physical testing at Crystal Palace for track cycling, Olympic weightlifting, and skeleton. Having completed this, I was selected onto talent pathways for both Olympic weightlifting and skeleton. The overall selection process for skeleton lasted around a year and in that time, I was a part of the Olympic weightlifting talent pathway for a year before being released.
Since being selected to be part of the GBR skeleton development team I have travelled to Latvia, Austria, and Norway, and am looking forward to going to many more during this and following winter seasons. Also, this season will be my first competing in a few races on a European circuit, which I can't wait for!
What are we doing to help?
We are delighted that Chris contacted us to help with sport performance and soft tissue pre and post run support. Marcus Creagh, Sports Therapist, with his Masters accreditation in Sport Rehabilitation / Pitchside management has been eager to take on the 'olympic baton' and has started working with Chris through soft tissue management, injury assessment and general health care advice whilst giving him a helping hand through assisting with the purchase of equipment to make his goal of GOLD a lot easier.
Keep reading our news on Chris as his journey to the Winter Olympics unfold
