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“I am proud of who I am, I never had that before”

13 December 2018 by

Running represents a multitude of things to different people. For some it is a way to get fit and lead a healthy lifestyle. For Mimi Anderson, it started off as a way to get ‘thin legs’, but resulted in numerous course records, world records and a whole host of adventures.

Starting at the age of 36, Mimi admits she couldn’t run for longer than 30 seconds without losing her breath.

“I stood on a treadmill and I had no idea of what I was doing at all. I felt very self conscious, like everybody was watching me.”

After one mile, Mimi built up to three, but it wasn’t until she took her running outside that she fell in love.

“I remember the first time I went and did a run outside. I absolutely loved it. It gave me a sense of freedom, I felt as though my feet had been given a pair of wings.”

However, Mimi leapt from running rookie in 2000 when she signed up to the Marathon des Sables (MdS). Described by the Discovery Channel as the toughest footrace on earth, the MdS is a 251km race over 6 says in the Sahara Desert. At the point of accepting the challenge, Mimi had only ever run 13 miles.

“Up to that point, it’s ridiculous, I didn’t even know that half-marathons and marathons existed. The first thing that attracted me [to the MdS] was the adventure.

“I thought ‘Yes, I’m a mother and wife and I’m not a fantastic runner, but why can’t I do that?”

“I remember the first time I went and did a run outside.
I absolutely loved it. It gave me a sense of freedom,
I felt as though my feet had been given a pair of wings.”

Since that first race, Mimi has broken the World Record for running from John O’Groats to Lands End and the length of Ireland, as well as competing in numerous ultra-marathons that make your legs weak at the thought of them.

However, whilst facing the inevitable challenges that come with running in some of the most extreme environments in the world, Mimi has had to face up to many mental health battles of her own.

“My father’s jobs in the British Army meant that my sister and I had to have nannies. Unfortunately from the ages of 6 – 8 our nanny was incredibly abusive towards me, something that my parents had no idea about as I had to keep it a secret otherwise she threatened to “be nasty” to my sister if I said anything. As soon as the abuse was discovered I never saw her again.

“The brain is a very clever machine, and I erased these two years of my life from my memory, all the nasty things that happened to me, but it all came back in the form of an eating disorder when I was at boarding school at 14.”

Mimi suffered with anorexia for 15 years.

“Oh God, it’s horrible, I wouldn’t wish it on anyone. You become an expert liar, telling people you’ve either eaten or you’re about to eat.

“If you have to eat anything, you are then constantly thinking of ways to get rid of the food you’ve just eaten.

“I never did it because I wanted to be thin. People think it’s all about the weight, it isn’t at all, it’s a mental illness and the only way I felt I had any control of my life was through food.”

It wasn’t until the birth of her second child that Mimi realised she needed to get help.

“I just thought ‘I can’t have this cycle going on continuously throughout my life, it’s not fair on my kids’. It was a long hard struggle.”

“People think it’s all about the weight, it isn’t at all,
it’s a mental illness and the only way
I felt I had any control of my life was through food.”

Running had a huge impact on Mimi, finding a way to develop a healthy relationship with food again as well as repairing her confidence. It gave her a new way to think about food.

“In order to run I needed to fuel myself, teaching me that food wasn’t something to be afraid of and giving me a newfound respect for my body.”

Having an eating disorder and then the abusive nanny beforehand, your confidence is dashed.

“Yes, I probably came across as quite a confident person but I used to be anxious and I had no sense of self worth.”

“The running has given me a sense of self worth and a few years after I started, even if I was doing things badly, it wouldn’t matter. I’m still proud of who am I and I never had that before.”

Mimi has overcome personal grief as whilst competing in the 6633 Arctic Ultra in 2007 (a 352 mile self-sufficiency race across the Arctic) Mimi’s father sadly died.

After checking her emails at one of the checkpoints, receiving no bad news from home, Mimi set off on the next leg of the race.

“About two minutes after leaving the checkpoint, I felt as though I had been punched in the heart and I couldn’t breathe. A huge sense of loss overwhelmed me and I knew that my father had passed away.”

“I knew my father was incredibly proud of me and everything I did. I knew without a shadow of a doubt that he would have wanted me to to finish.”

My love for my father gave me the strength to keep moving forward, I didn’t want to stop as I would have let him down. His love and belief in me gave me the strength. That’s how I knew I could continue.”

Not only did Mimi win the race, she finished 24 hours ahead of the runner-up.

Mimi’s obstacles didn’t stop there. During a recent run to break the Female World Record to run across the US, a distance of 2,850 miles in 53 days, Mimi was dealt a huge blow.

“The only person who could get me out of the
black hole I was in was myself, if I didn’t it was going
to be an extremely difficult journey for my family.”

Having covered 2,217 miles in 40 days(three quarters of the way across the third largest continent in the world) and on track to break the female world record, she had to stop. She was in excruciating pain and, had she carried on, was looking at the possibility of having to have a total knee replacement on returning home. It was the end of her running career.

“That was beyond devastating. I’ve had to re-find myself and completely re-evaluate where I am and who I am.”

“I found it very difficult and when I got back from America I did want to hide. I don’t mind failure but I felt everybody was going to ridicule me and I felt totally ashamed.”

During her run in America, Mimi received lots of negative comments from online trolls but her team kept the comments from her during the run. When she was back, however, they continued.

“I found myself going into a black hole, but somehow I had to find a way to pick myself up. The only person who could get me out of the black hole I was in was myself, if I didn’t it was going to be an extremely difficult journey for my family.”

“That one decision to run the MdS back in
2000 completely changed my life for the better.”

Throughout Mimi’s running career, she has had to keep extremely strong mental strength. Not only to finish the mad challenges she sets herself, but also to overcome an eating disorder, a career ending injury, the death of her father whilst competing and online trolls.

None of this has stopped her yet. Okay, she can’t run, but now Mimi is focused on cycling and swimming. Having just cycled the length of the UK, Mimi is aiming to cycle the Pacific Highway in America, 1884 miles from Vancouver to the Mexican Border, as well as learning how to swim.

“That one decision to run the MdS back in 2000 completely changed my life for the better. I hope that, in turn, it shows my kids and other people you don’t have to be an elite athlete, you don’t have to be particularly special. If you work hard, have a touch of determination the results can be fantastic.”

“We’re innovative and we punch above our weight”

24 November 2018 by

GB Taekwondo is world class. The Ten Acres Sports Complex is located on the outskirts of Manchester from Monday to Friday, competition permitted, you will find taekwondo’s established Olympians and future Olympic hopefuls training.

After their success in recent Olympics, UK Sport increased GB Taekwondo’s funding to £8.2m for the four year cycle leading up to Tokyo 2020, a 22% increase on the backing they received for the Rio 2016 Olympics.

GB Taekwondo’s head office is stationed next door to the training hall. The office Matt Archibald, CEO of GB Taekwondo, assigned us on our visit to the centre had a window through which we could watch the athletes train first hand.

Matt Archibald, ceo, GB Taekwondo, Olympics, Team GB, Paralympics, Tokyo 2020 — Matt Archibald, ceo of GB Taekwondo

“I have worked in Canary Wharf and central London for sports organisations and it’s not the same feeling as working within a world class programme.”

“The biggest highlight is the close association with the
sport and athletes. Being right there in the coal face
in my office, you can hear them screaming, kicking
and shouting when they are training.”

“The biggest highlight is the close association with the sport and athletes. Being right there in the coal face in my office, you can hear them screaming, kicking and shouting when they are training.”

Taekwondo represents a real success story for Team GB. Having only been recognised as an Olympic Sport in 2000, they have gone on to win 6 medals across 5 Olympic Games.

“I think the main selling point for GB Taekwondo is we’re innovative and we punch above our weight. We are a small squad with fairly small participation yet we compete with the likes of the Korean team. We are always looking for ways to get the best out of everything we do.

“You ask anyone in there, they are trying to help athletes win medals. We’ve been blessed with some fantastic athletes.”

Damon Sansum, Mahama Cho, elite athlete, GB Taekwondo, Olympics, Team GB, Paralympics, Tokyo 2020 — GB Taekwondo athletes at the training centre in Manchester

Matt explains that taekwondo offers the chance for a brand to be involved with a sport that centres everything they do as an organisation, and as individual athletes, around a few key values: commitment, ownership, responsibility and excellence (CORE).

“We are still open for that title sponsor, the main sponsor
of the whole team and the whole sport. There is definitely
potential out there, especially with the Olympics less two years away.”

“You have to have that mental toughness, you have to have that bravery. It is a daunting place and whilst we are very much a team and a squad up here, it’s an individual sport and these guys have to go in and do battle.”

In addition, Matt outlines consistency, dedication and respect as traits GB Taekwondo stand by.

“You will very rarely see bad tempered matches. That respect comes from the martial art, but it’s reinforced by our coaching team and everything we do. The behavioural standards are extremely high.”

GB Taekwondo already have sponsorship deals with brands such as; Mooto, High 5 and Reflex Nutrition, Bosu Body Bar, Hill Dickinson and Hakim Group amongst others. Yet they are still without a headline sponsor.

“We are still open for that title sponsor, the main sponsor of the whole team and the whole sport. There is definitely potential out there, especially with the Olympics less two years away.”

Within a title sponsor, a brand could have naming rights for the centre in Manchester, as well as appearing on the athletes combat suits, a new opportunity in the sport as branding was previously banned.

“I think with sport you have to connect on some sort of
emotional or value level. That’s not to say cash isn’t important,
you’ve got to have that conversation, but it does appear to be more than that.”

But a title sponsor is not the only opportunity GB Taekwondo has available,as they are now in the second phase of developing their training centre. On-site accommodation and improving the facilities available to the athletes, such as ice baths and wearable technology, are just a few of the additions they are looking to make. All of this is open to collaboration with a brand.

“We work in partnership with Manchester City Council and the Eastlands Trust. We could negotiate something that is in everyone’s interest. We are flexible.”

But it is not just cash GB Taekwondo are after. Yes, in negotiating sponsorship, cash and finances are a factor, but a true partnership is as important for Matt and the organisation.

“We always like working with, and we are lucky to work with, really good people. There tends to be a level of connection and a mutual respect. Where that exists you tend to enjoy and learn so much it.

“I think with sport you have to connect on some sort of emotional or value level. That’s not to say cash isn’t important, you’ve got to have that conversation, but it does appear to be more than that.”

In a similar vein to athletes, Matt acknowledges that building upon the success the sport has enjoyed on the Olympic stage is the biggest challenge he faces in running GB Taekwondo.

“Maintaining that Olympic success, it’s easy for me to say, is what we are here to do. To have very successful teams and continue that upwards trajectory.

“You’ve got to keep evolving and improving.”

If you want to learn more about how to perform under pressure, click here.

“Natural movement is a lost art” | Shane Benzie

19 November 2018 by

As a former ultra runner Shane Benzie found that, after competing for years, he was punishing his body in a way that other athletes were not.

Shane set out on a mission to find a better way to move and to fully understand natural movement. He needed to get off the track, away from the city and out into the real world where people were free from the constraints and pressures the developed world puts on our body. Natural movement is found in natural environments.

A better way to move

After failing to find a more effective way to run online, Shane decided to go on a journey to find a better way to move. 7 years later, after setting up his coaching and performance company, Running Reborn, he is still on that journey. Only now he has worked with numerous elite athletes, including world record holder Eliud Kipchoge, former world record holder Wilson Kipsang, leading Team GB ultra runner and caytoo athlete Tom Evans and Tom Daley and the GB Diving team.

Shane’s coaching is based on the nature and efficiency of movement and, as research suggests that running on a treadmill creates ‘contrasting biomechanics from those produced running in a natural environment’, all of Shane’s training takes place outside.

He has worked in extreme environments all over the world including; the African highlands, the Amazon, the Himalayas and the Arctic. All in his pursuit to discover the lost art of running.

“I believe that for a runner to move well, we really
need to move the way in which our species was designed to move.”

The ‘outside’ lab

Whilst training, Shane places motion sensors on the athletes, as well as videoing their movement. This allows him to create a ‘360 degree video of the whole body’ and, therefore, educate athletes on how to move more naturally.

As it is vital that his training takes place outside, all of Shane’s technology is portable. However, to get even more emerged in the environment he works in, Shane aims to turn a Land Rover Defender into a laboratory on wheels. This high-tech training hub will allow him to move around more freely with the athletes, as well as track and trek in the terrains in which they train.

“I’m really looking to upgrade the way I move with athletes. I’m going to create a moving lab so I can chase people around on Dartmoor, get down onto beaches into forests and through the woods.”

Elasticity, fluidity, synergy and connectivity are vital to Shane’s practices, but so too is tension. Tensegrity, the idea that a structure is is stable through elasticity and tension, is deeply rooted in Shane’s theory to natural movement.

“As a human, all the bones in your body are floating. No bone touches another bone. It’s held together in a sea of tension [muscles, ligaments, tendons etc].

“If we put height into our body then we move with a lot of elastic recoil. If we have big changes, such as leaning on one hip or sitting down a lot, we start to take out the tension in the body.”

Posture and form are key in the way you move and this elastic system is never more than 7 months old.

“The elastic system that binds us together is responsible for the recoil and elastic energy we create,” Shane said. “ That’s never more than seven months old so any of us can start working on it today and it will change pretty quickly.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=arMd3OmMP1s

Why is this important for athletes? Shane uses the example of a footballer. Whilst they may have been drilled on how to move with the ball and the movements they need to make off the ball, there are massive gains to be made in the way they move away from play.

“How a player moves very quickly to the other end of the pitch with the ball not in his sights tends to be on auto-pilot. If he or she does that with some thought and efficiency in movement, next time they need to run the length of the pitch, they’ll have a lot more chance of doing that with efficient energy.”

Shane’s skills can be applied to any sport that involves running in order to get marginal gains. Whether it is the three steps of a GB diver, or the 250,000 steps of the GB 24-hour running squad.

Shane’s methods are also extremely effective for disability athletes. The way we move is unique to each individual. No two people move in the same way, your movement is like your fingerprint.

“Our movement is an accumulation of idiosyncrasies. When you’re working with a para-athlete, there is the opportunity for some big imbalances.

“I’ve worked with some amazing athletes where we have been able to create more balance and symmetry than in able bodied runners.”

“We live in a surreal place in the Western world. We no longer
move, or interact, in the way that our species would have done.

Shane is also able to work with blind runners on the visualisation of their movement. By training them to recognise what natural, elastic and fluid movement feels like, they can walk out onto the track full of confidence.

“If you can get an athlete feeling confident when they walk to the starting line because they know they are balanced and what their symmetry is, it makes a huge difference. The mind is just as important as the body.”

The office is dangerous!

But rather than just studying elite athletes, Shane looks at the way humans move. In order to obtain this information, Shane has been to Kenya, Uganda, India and Mongolia to spend time with runners in Ethiopia, Sherpas in the Himalayas and tribes in the Amazon.

“I study natural movement. In the Western world we’ve forgotten how to move naturally. A lot of my work involves travelling to different environments, so if I go to the Amazon, I will analyse and research athletes, but also look at the way the indigenous people move as well.

“I believe that for a runner to move well, we really need to move the way in which our species was designed to move.”

When it comes to movement, Shane believes there is a lot the Western world can learn from the East.

“We live in a surreal place in the Western world. We no longer move, or interact, in the way that our species would have done.

“In a lot of the places I go, people don’t sit, if they are static, they squat. We can spend 8-9 hours a day sitting in a chair.”

In the UK, the office is a dangerous place. Shane believes the amount of time we spend sitting down is massively unhealthy, so much so that it should be considered a health epidemic.

He also believes the West is massively missing is a sense of community.

“The power of the group is one of the most important
things that I have come across with athletes.”

“Communities aren’t what they were. I think they’ve broken down to a large degree and this power of the group that I love and see whenever I go travelling, we don’t really seem to have.

“The power of the group is one of the most important things that I have come across with athletes. We should take pride in what we do and enjoy it, but try and interact with as many other athletes as we can. That is incredibly motivational and something we can all learn from.

“That’s why I’m working with caytoo, it’s a great way of networking. Not just for athletes, but for coaches too.”

A more dynamic future

Shane’s mission of discovery shows no sign of slowing down. Firstly, he is off to Namibia with adventure sports specialist Beyond the Ultimate, then to Kenya, the Himalayas, India and finally Mongolia to continue his education on natural movement.

As well as his extensive travels, Shane runs a charity in Uganda that helps local children to kick substance addictions through running.

After starting to work in Uganda, Shane found that a lot of street children were living on rubbish tips, addicted to alcohol and drugs.

“The idea was to get them running as part of their daily routine to get them interested in their health”, Shane explains, “That worked really well and the older children are now coaching.

“Next year we’ll have the first generation of coaches teaching other coaches. It’s something I’d like to spread throughout Africa.”

Shane also has a three-book deal with Bloomsbury, with the first book on his studies, titled The Lost Art of Running, documenting all the lessons and inspiration he has collated on his travels. Yet, despite having worked with world record marathon runners and Team GB athletes, Shane’s lessons aren’t just for elite athletes, they can be applied to everyday life.

If you’re interested in connecting with Shane, click here.

Sleeping your way to the top | Dave Gibson

16 November 2018 by

Along with food and exercise, sleep is essential for a healthy mind and body and a key component of performance. Sleep expert, Dave Gibson share his five top tips for getting good quality sleep.

With cognitive processes, and coordination impaired by a lack of sleep, it’s now proven that those athletes who enjoy a better night’s sleep get fewer injuries than those who don’t sleep as well.

What’s more, as Growth Hormone is secreted in the deeper parts of sleep, the body’s natural recuperative ability is also dependant on getting a good night’s sleep.

Outside of these key components emotional balance and creative thinking are just some of the other benefits to a good night’s sleep. So, here are five simple top tips to help you optimise your sleep.

1) Get up at the same time every day

Getting up and going to bed at the same time seven days a week will help strengthen your circadian rhythm (body clock). This means the end of those late lie-ins at the weekend, which create a side-effect call ‘social jet lag’. This is basically a minor dose of the traditional ‘long-haul-jet lag’ which knocks our body clock out of cinque and reduces performance. Catch up with short naps in the day rather than making up for lost sleep at the weekend. This leaves you with a consistent morning routine which will help you get to sleep more easily at night.

2) Try to exercise in the outside in the morning if you can

Exercising outside, to get a dose of sunlight first thing, sends a signal to your brain to increase your production of serotonin (the wake up and feel good hormone) and boosting cortisol production which gets your body going. Cortisol levels rise in the first 30 minutes after you wake and signals the body to become more alert.

3) Avoid caffeine first thing and drink water with your breakfast instead

Water is the best drink to have when you wake up, instantly hydrating you. However, tea and coffee are diuretics, which encourage you to lose water through urination. In addition, if you have caffeine first thing its effect as a stimulant is being added as a pick me up on top of your body’s peak level of cortisol production.

This natural stimulant is already working to wake you up naturally its own right. In terms of the most effective timing for coffee it is best to time your first cup of coffee for around 60 minutes after you wake. This then gives you a mid-morning boost after you natural Cortisol is declining. Remember to always stop your caffeine intake after lunch to prevent it keeping you awake at night.

4) Don’t tech yourself up in bed

With 80% of us now using a phone as an alarm, it’s a big ask to leave your phone charging overnight outside of the bedroom. However, this would be perfect sleep hygiene, with all sleep specialists advising to use the bedroom for sleep (and sex only) and to keep all technology out of the bedroom. Putting dimmers or night time modes on tech will reduce the effect of the blue light from screens (which stops your sleep hormone from being produced).

However, it is the stimulation of tech and the association it generates to activity other than sleep which you need to avoid. By eliminating the use of tech from the bedroom your brain then ‘re-learns’ to associate the bedroom with sleep and not work or social media. This then makes it easier to switch off when you enter the bedroom, rather than overstimulating you and preventing you getting to sleep.

5) To nap or not to nap – that is the question.

Napping is a natural way of catching up on lost sleep. Equally, it is something we are designed to do with the Siesta period after lunch still observed in many parts of the world. However, there is a time and place for naps and some simple suggested guidelines. The first rule of napping is that if you suffer from insomnia then you should not try napping to top up your sleep. Instead, work with your GP or specialist to build your nightly sleep pattern back to normal.

The second is to not nap close to your bedtime as it will make it harder to get your nightly sleep. We all need to sleep at night as it appears that the gold star quantity of deep sleep occurs late into the night around 2am to 4am.

Finally, get the length of nap sorted. We now know that people sleep in 90 minute cycles – not hours – and typically have about 5 full cycles a night (give or take – around 7 ½ hours on average for adults). These cycles go from light to deep to light sleep. If you are napping in the day, go for either 20 minutes (light sleep) or 90 minutes (a full cycle) which avoids you waking in the deeper (groggy) part of the sleep cycle.

To find out more about Dave, or for more information on how to transform your sleep, visit: thesleepsite.co.uk

If you’re an athlete interested in improving the commercial side of your career and better connect with brands, register with caytoo here.caytoo

“I don’t sleep with brands on the first date.” | Tom Evans

16 November 2018 by

Take two unplanned stopovers, 35 minutes of CPR, one saved life and zero bags of luggage and you have Evans’ turbulent journey to our teaser launch event in June. This determination to honour an invite was true-to-form for him.

His running career may have started as a drunken bet, but he’s since become Britain’s best-ever performing Ultra Marathon athlete, finishing 3rd in the notoriously tough Marathon des Sables (MDS) in 2017 and taking individual bronze and team silver at the World Trail Championships in 2018. He recently left his role as a Captain in the British Army and is an ongoing ambassador for military charity Walking With The Wounded. Evans tells caytoo how he build meaningful brand relationships based on shared values.

caytoo: You’ve just arrived here from Arizona, what were you doing there?

Tom: My main sponsor at the moment is Hoka One One, a brand who’s really driving for a big race this year called Ultra Trail Mont Blanc. All of the Hoka elite athletes went to Flagstaff, Arizona and I managed to link in with the US runners and do lots of training with them. Flagstaff is a hub for professional and international athletes from all over the place, from track runners to triathletes to marathon runners.

It was a bit of research for me to go to the US and to see the market for ultra runners and trail runners and how different it is to the UK – a lot can be done to grow the UK and European markets quite substantially. It’s really interesting just having a look at the structure of athletes’ contracts and the guys who have been doing what I want to do for 3-4 years. It opened my eyes.

caytoo: What’s your philosophy on working with sponsors?

Tom: It’s really important to achieve athlete buy-in. An athlete has to believe in the company. For me it’s been as much ‘working-with’ rather than ‘working-for’. I work alongside mine, I call my sponsors my partners. I want to be as much a part of their journey as they of mine and grow as an athlete and as an individual with that brand.

I’ve got a very slow approach with brands. I definitely don’t sleep with a brand on the first date. Probably don’t even kiss them on the first date. Maybe a slight hand on the lower back. But I want to have that buy-in from that brand as much as myself. I want to know that we’re both working towards the same thing and understand each other, rather than jumping straight in. If a brand were to say “right that’s £40k for the year, go and do what you want to do”, I’d be like, great! But actually I want to work WITH you. It’s a two way process.

“I’ve got a very slow approach with brands.
I definitely don’t sleep with a brand on the first date,
probably don’t even kiss them”

I won’t just sign for the opportunities that a sponsor can give. For example, a company recently sent me a hydration backpack which just tore me apart on a four-hour run. I said thanks so much for that but it doesn’t work for me. I want to make my own pack, to test myself physically and mentally and say this is the ideal pack that I would love to race in. Let’s make a couple of prototypes. I’ll wear it for racing and then in a year or two, let’s get it on the market. I’d want that from a brand rather than choose a certain brand because they’ve offered me the most money.

caytoo: What challenges do you face in attracting sponsorship?

Tom: Like other athletes who want and need exposure in order to improve their performance, it can be very competitive. For example, if Nike is modeling a new T-shirt, it’s easier for them to throw more money to get a model to do it because they know what to do rather than some scrawny athlete who’s got horrendous tan lines everywhere and who feels a bit awkward in front of the camera.

Also, I think a lot of people take for granted how difficult the life of an athlete is. Take a 100m runner for example; you might race a total of 30 seconds for two heats and a final during a championships. But that has taken them three months of training. It’s not Monday to Friday 9-5, it’s Monday to Sunday, dedication, grafting, good times and bad times, making sacrifices. This makes it hard to find time to work on the commercial side. I went to a friend’s wedding last week and left at 10:15pm. So boring, but I’ve got to be up in the morning to train.

“I don’t like doing social media for me but it’s a necessary
evil because I need to grow my brand”

Another area is that I didn’t have social media until after the MDS, I don’t like doing it for me but it’s a necessary evil because I need to grow my brand, I need to grow my presence. A lot of my sponsorship opportunities then come through social media.

caytoo: What’s your unique selling point?

Tom: I’m the first in the UK who’s really going for ultra running. It started from a bet. I had no real running history whatsoever. I haven’t come up through the ranks on the track and the road. This opportunity just presented itself and I was prepared and willing to take that risk. I like to think I demonstrate that in my racing, taking risks and pushing my limits to see what I am capable of achieving.

I am also that much younger (26), people who do ultra running and trail running are typically slightly older. Looking at my social media, 80% of my following is within the 24-30 age demographic, which for what I’m doing is incredibly rare. I’m attracting a younger market which these brands haven’t got access to.

Gone are the days when you can afford to be a slow ultra runner because it’s just so competitive and the age is a huge thing. But also, having the army behind me and having gone to public school, being personable and chatty and taking time to talk to people in and around races. I think I’ve been stopped in the street a couple of times now and it’s been so exciting! I’m like, “can I take a photo of you taking a photo of me?!” I have fun with it and enjoy the journey. So my USP in summary is a military background, an ability to take risk and then the age.

“I want to be a the forefront. I want to put
British trail running back on the map”

I want to be a the forefront. I want to put British trail running back on the map. Participation is pretty high now but it is certainly growing and will continue to grow. I’d love to spearhead the growth in UK, Europe and the rest of the world.

caytoo: Who was your first brand endorsement? And how do you go about getting sponsorship?

Tom: I started in April in the middle of the financial year, so brands had already done all that budgeting. Lots wanted to give me kit, but in theory there is no money. And as of now we’re looking at talks with brands for next year. It all came from me basically emailing out saying “Hi, I used your kit for the MDS and came third, the best ever European performance in the race. It would be great to have a chat.” It takes a lot of time even through the amount of emails you just copy and paste but then cock up with the wrong brand name or something.

I’d been given kit by Runderwear, Compressport and Hoka One One last year and then formally signed a one year contract with Hoka and Precision Hydration in January this year. So we’ll be in a good position to negotiate come the end of this year. Those are the main ones and they’ll be life changing.

After my second race I started approaching a couple of management companies. I Googled and ended up coming across a company called Areté, owned by a guy called Simon Bayliff. I’ve definitely still got my relationship with brands but this partnership has meant I don’t have to have those awkward conversations. For example, I’m currently outperforming my contract. Simon has worked with some great companies, he’s got amazing contacts and can plant the seed with other brands. I’ve recently started working with Oakley and the hope is to move into that elite field. I genuinely use their products, I’ve always bought their glasses.

caytoo: Which areas of brand endorsement are missing? Who would you like to work with?

Tom: I’m finally doing some work with Red Bull who are one of my top brand choices to work with. But they don’t even look at you on a first date. They are the slowest moving, because they’re weighing up “do we like this person? Do they like us? Are they performance driven?”

“Red Bull are slow moving, because they’re weighing
up “do we like this person? Do they like us?
Are they performance driven?” “

I recently had a session with Red Bull at one of their athlete testing facilities in Manchester. It’s four hours of physio working with any little injuries you might have. I’ve then been invited out to their athlete center in Austria for a week of testing, which money can’t buy. I genuinely really like the brand. I like what they’re doing, where they’re going and where they’ve been. But I haven’t signed anything with them.

Tom Evans, building meaningful sponsor relationships, speaker, brand ambassador, ultra endurance athlete

Mine and Simon’s approach is doing things really slowly and not committing too much to anyone, so for when the big opportunities do arise, it’s an easy one to say yes. For the last 10 days, Simon has had meetings with both Adidas and Nike about trail running in the UK. It’s having those options. Going back to my principles of, “do I like the kit? Do I like the brand?” I’ll think about athlete loyalty and rate the product on a piece of paper just to make sure that I get what I want. But then also the brands get what they want, rather than me pretend to be something I’m not.

“My challenge is staying as true to myself and my
morals as I can, whilst realising that getting
a free pair of trainers doesn’t pay the rent”

My challenge is staying as true to myself and my morals as I can, whilst realising that getting a free pair of trainers doesn’t pay the rent. This is how I make my living, I have to make money.

caytoo: How do your military responsibilities work alongside your running commitments?

Tom: For the last year it’s been great because I’ve still been supported by the British Army so I haven’t had to worry about making money. Up until Christmas I was still working full-time. The Army, when based in the UK, is basically a 9-5 job. Before Christmas it was Monday to Friday and I’d just fit my training in around work. I ran around 13-15 hours a week, but fitting recovery in was difficult. When I then got selected to race for Great Britain in the trail running World Championships, the Welsh Guard said, “Congratulations. For the next six weeks, do whatever you can possibly do, in order to do as well as you possibly can.” So a specified task was a podium at the World Championships and I thought, right! And I haven’t been to work since.

I actually left the army on 28 July because I’m very much an all or nothing person. Firstly, I would be doing my soldiers a disservice because they need all the attention I can give them. If I’m not able to do that then I’m failing them and therefore failing myself. Same with my running. You’ve got to be pretty selfish to be a full time athlete, make certain sacrifices and be very dedicated in certain areas. Some people can manage that really well, but I’m such an all or nothing person that in order to do something really well, I have to fully buy into it.

It’s not just the running, it’s everything that goes with it; the fitness testing, the physio, the massage, the psychology, the yoga, the stretching and recovery sessions. I try and sleep every afternoon because I want to do this. I want to have longevity in my running career, not just for my performance but also I want to inspire people to do this. Even if its not purely within sport.

I went straight from boarding school to the British Army, I’m the most institutionalised person ever. I can just about do my washing. I’ve never paid a bill. I wouldn’t know what to do if a boiler broke. I Google everything. But an opportunity has presented itself having weighed everything up i’ve just dived into the deep end.

I signed up to the MDS, my first race from that drunken bet and everything has just flown from that, becoming a bit of a yes man and seeing what offers and opportunities present themselves. I want to show that it is possible. You don’t have to go down the stereotypical route.

“You have to be incredibly proactive with
the time you have between training sessions”

caytoo: What key advice would you give other young athletes today about attracting sponsorship/brands?

Tom: You have to be incredibly proactive with the time you have between training sessions.

One of my thousands of mottos and slogans is, find something you love and then figure out a way to get paid for it. If you are lucky enough to be able to do it then go at it 100% because if you don’t try you’ll never know.

caytoo: Any thoughts on Asics’ recent campaign to create a new dark running track designed to take away distractions whilst running?

Tom: It’s pretty cool. It’s different. Asics are a great brand, but from knowing a couple of their athletes they’re not supported very well. They come up with these big headline campaigns but this one wasn’t actually their idea. It was Pro Direct Running who are a big internet sales company. It was almost like a smaller version of Nike’s Breaking2, but great to get the athletes in and supporting them.

“A lot of the time, if a brand wants to shoot some content
they end up using social media influencers rather
than athletes because they go for bigger reach”

A lot of the time, if a brand wants to shoot some content they end up using social media influencers rather than athletes because they go for bigger reach. People may notice them slightly more and they’re potentially more relatable. But it just means the athletes don’t get that exposure they need to be able to perform at their best. It’s almost the vicious cycle effect. An athlete performs really well, gets sponsorship and then in order to keep performing really well, needs to maintain sponsorship. The more sponsorship an athlete gets the better their performance because they’ve got less stress. They’re not worried about bills or thinking “how am I going to pay my rent this month if I haven’t got a race”?

caytoo: As caytoo’s first official current athlete, what are your thoughts about the concept?

Tom: It excites me that myself and caytoo are two young brands, wanting to achieve as much as we can and progress in roughly the same field.

I think caytoo fighting for the athletes to get the exposure they deserve is incredible because the athlete wants to be able to focus on their performance.

Success for me at the moment is this journey, today is today. No one knows what’s going to happen six months down the line. I could have an amazing six months and win all my races or I could break my leg walking up the stairs this evening. You just don’t know, which for me is really exciting – what I can do to help caytoo and what caytoo can help do for me. It’s building that real relationship which helps both bodies move forward in the future, I think there’s a huge gap for it.

caytoo: You’re a Walking With the Wounded ambassador, what does that involve?

Tom: Regarding the MDS bet, which I did in 2017, People were saying, “you’re mental for doing it. Are you doing it for charity?” It was a good opportunity to do it for WWTW and people were incredibly generous. When I started doing well and a bit of publicity was built up around it. We raised about £10,000 just from my sister re-posting something on Facebook every day, which was great.

I stayed in the tent with the WWTW people and the community is amazing. A guy called Duncan Slater who’s a double leg amputee completed the race the same year that I did it, and I took so much strength from him. When I was finding it tough I thought “well, Dunks hasn’t got any legs” and when we’d finish he’d say, “that was great, I didn’t get any blisters on my feet today.”

When I got back after doing well in the MDS, I knew I wanted to do a bit more for the charity. I really buy into the work they do. They show that no matter how difficult life may seem at the moment, it’s still possible to conquer an amazing challenge in the face of adversity. I always run with a WWTW wristband and whenever I finish a race, I salute. That’s partly for the British Army but also to continue fostering my links with WWTW.

If you’re a company interested in sponsoring Tom, he has various opportunities in the upcoming CCC, one of the world’s most prestigious trail running events and part of the Ultra-Trail® World Tour series.

If you’re an athlete interested in how caytoo can help you better connect with brands, register here.

“I want Tiki Tonga to bring people together off the pitch”

9 November 2018 by

Born and raised in South Africa, ‘rugby was in the blood’ for Brad Barritt. Both his father and grandfather played for Rhodesia, now Zimbabwe, whilst his other grandfather played for England Under 21’s.

After starting his career at Cell C Sharks in his native South Africa, Brad was a Super 14 finalist in 2007, won the Currie Cup in 2008 and racked up 80 caps for the club before he moved to Saracens that year. Brad is now captain and has 231 caps for the team, as well as racking up 26 full international caps for England and playing for the British and Irish Lions.

However, outside of rugby, Brad has always had a keen interest in business. After completing an undergraduate degree in South Africa, he admits he always wanted to continue his education.

“When I got to Saracens they had this new influence in getting players involved in either education or business, something outside of the game.”

Through a specially structured programme, Brad was able to complete a masters in Business Management at the University of Hertfordshire. But, rather than stop there, Brad went on to start his own company, fast growing coffee brand Tiki Tonga.

“I want Tiki Tonga to be that name that resonates a
message of a healthy physical and mental lifestyle
and to be the vessel that brings people together off the pitch.”

“Tiki Tonga came around because it was a passion. If you’re going to get involved in a personal business or as an entrepreneur, it’s got to be something that inspires you and that you’re passionate about.

“I met my business partner, Justin Stockwell, though the Saracens circles. I’d had a shoulder operation and, in the act of coming out of anaesthetic, I was obviously given a few happy pills!

“I sent some weird emails and one of them was to Justin pitching an idea about a coffee business.”

Whilst coffee may be the product and the passion, for Brad Tiki Tonga is about bringing people together.

“We’re living in the age of over stimulus from mobile phones, tablets and television. The way in which people best connect is face to face. A product that gets people out and about with a healthy and balanced lifestyle is coffee.

“Even in the professional rugby scene, no longer are players going out for beers regularly. Day to day, the way in which people connect is through coffee.

“I use it as a way of stimulating myself before training, raising my metabolic rate but, more importantly, it’s the way in which I connect with people. I’m not a beer drinker, so the way I meet up with friends or spark new relationships is over a coffee.

“I want Tiki Tonga to be that name that resonates a message of a healthy physical and mental lifestyle and to be the vessel that brings people together off the pitch.”

Brad and Tiki Tonga business partner Justin Stockwell

Aside from the obvious benefits of owning your own business, Brad believes it is vital for athletes to have a focus outside of their sport.

“I think what separates the people at the top is their mentality. Having an interest outside of the game is crucial in terms of allowing your body to relax, unwind and destress from the day-to-day rigours of sport.”

Brad goes as far to say that, if you are 100% focused on rugby it can have the adverse effect.

“Having something that allows you to be creative and get your brain ticking will only stimulate you more when you come back to rugby.”

“Having an interest outside of the game is crucial
in terms of allowing your body to relax, unwind
and destress from the day-to-day rigours of sport.”

Brad admits that juggling running a business, a young family and professional sport is not easy. In order to do so, you need to be extremely organised, hard working and motivated. Luckily, in order to get to the top in sport, most athletes already have these qualities in abundance.

For any athlete thinking of setting up a business, Brad believes you need to be ‘settled in your professional life’ and be ‘disciplined enough to not let it affect your day job.’“When I’m at rugby I’m wholeheartedly in it, living it and breathing it. My days away from rugby are my opportunity to put my creative and thinking hat’s on.”

For Brad to start exploring your options outside of sport than when you are playing.

“With sport, and rugby especially, your avenue to meet people and pick up key contacts has never been greater than now. Having an interest outside of rugby allows you to have a proper conversation.

“You go to these events and you’ll talk about the game at the weekend and most players don’t really have something else to put forward to a conversation.”

Through the network that rugby brings, you are in contact with successful businessmen and women who can offer advice. Why not use the opportunity to pick their brains?

“It’s been said countless times how hard it is for athletes
to leave their day jobs and find that same buzz. Being
prepared is the best vehicle in allowing a smoother transition.”

As well as the importance of an interest whilst playing, a lot is made of athletes’ transition away from professional sport. Whilst retirement is not on the horizon for Brad, he believes he has done everything he can to prepare for his eventual move away from rugby.

“It’s been said countless times how hard it is for athletes to leave their day jobs and find that same buzz. Being prepared is the best vehicle in allowing a smoother transition.

“I’m not saying it’s going to be perfect when I do retire but I feel I’ve tried to cover a few bases.”

Brad’s past includes Heineken Cup triumphs, Premiership trophies and tries against New Zealand, but his future is focused solely on Saracens and Tiki Tonga.

Covering music and sporting events (Tiki Tonga also specialise in Espresso Martini’s), Brad also harbours hopes for Tiki Tonga to open its own shop and coffee roasters.

In the short term however, considering Brad scored a try in the famous victory over the All Blacks at Twickenham in 2012, he is hoping we can beat them again on Saturday, just like the rest of the country.

If you’re interested in working with Brad, or Tiki Tonga coffee, contact him on Brad@tikitonga.co.uk

If, like Brad, you’re an athlete interested in how caytoo can help you better connect with brands, register here.

“The only thing I’ve ever been good at is kicking people in the head”

5 November 2018 by

“My mum took me to kickboxing and said ‘look this is what you are going to do. Forget football, forget rugby, I want to make sure you can look after yourself.’

Having grown up in a ‘very deprived community in Cardiff’, Joel Walsh’s mother made it very clear that self defence was crucial. But it didn’t take long for Joel to realise he had a knack for martial arts .

“From a very early age, I just won everything. I’d fight 40 of the 52 Sundays in the year, I’d win my weight, the weight above and win the adults so my early memories of martial arts are amazing.”

However as well as finding a talent, becoming a 10-time Welsh Kickboxing champion, Joel found a glass ceiling he couldn’t break through.

“I was at the top of my sport and I just plateaued. You win a title in kickboxing and it’s ‘well done, do it again next year.”

It was July 7th 2017, he can remember the exact date, whilst Joel was labouring for a friends uncle that he had a realisation. A eureka moment that proved to be the catalyst for his Taekwondo career.

“I was painting a door in a house we were renovating and I just thought I needed to do something with my life. I really needed to pull my finger out otherwise I’ll be sat here in 20 years wondering where my life went.”

“I was painting a door in a house we were renovating
and I just thought I needed to do something with my life.”

Joel was at a ‘really low point in his life’ having dropped out of university and quitting his job, he did not know what to do next.

“The only thing I’ve ever been good at is kicking people in the head. I had a very small idea what Taekwondo was because of Lauren Williams ( GB Taekwondo Double European Champion) as we used to train in kickboxing together.”

Having followed Leif Thobroe, GB Para-Taekwondo World Championship bronze medalist, on social media, Joel decided to send him a message.

“He brought me down to a session in Cardiff and from the moment I got in there the coach from Wales told me I had a future in the sport.”

In fact, his exact words were ‘You need to be looking to get on that Olympic Bus because you’ve got it in you.’

However, turning professional in any sport is not just down to talent. Funding was a major issue whilst attempting to get into Team GB.

“I was sneaking in to the local gym next door to me because I didn’t have a place to train. I would wait for the receptionist to go on a coffee break and run through the hall with my kit bag and train on my own.

“I knew it had it in me but I was so desperate for funding to take me to international competitions to let me see what I could do.”

Joel began to teach himself Taekwondo, picking up a job to finance his ambition of representing Team GB.

Even after starting to compete, winning the British National Championships, it was not an easy path for in his pursuit of a career in Taekwondo.

“I went on trial with the Irish Taekwondo Union. It was a good time in my life because I was still training and learning the sport.

“I spent my last pennies on heading over to Dublin and stepped up a weight class. Things just weren’t right for me, I got beaten like a dog in Ireland in front of everyone and at that point I’ve never been so close to just throwing in the towel.”

Whilst Joel did not give up, things did not get any easier. After flying to Athens for the President’s Cup, it looked as if Joel would be unable to compete due to the lack of a coach.

It took his brother-in-law flying out to Athens and registering as his coach to allow Joel to fight. After drawing an Israeli national team player and losing on points, you would expect a certain amount of disheartenment. Yet for Joel it was still the most enjoyable fight of his life as he had been competing on the world circuit.

After returning from Athens, his next goal was to get onto the Team GB programme and then ‘as if by some divine miracle’, the GB Taekwondo development programme found Joel through their social media initiative #Taekkers. Just as Joel had found the sport through social media, the sport had now found him.

“Within a month my life just flipped on its head. I came up for a trial and I was walking in and training with my idols.”

Joel believes there is no better time to be involved in the sport. As the World Taekwondo Grand Prix have just finished in Manchester, it is the perfect time to promote the sport.

“I can’t believe how much promotion it’s getting. When you look at Mancunian Way and the big LED electrical boards, there’s the big ‘Welcome to Manchester, Taekwondo Grand Prix’ and people are stopping and taking photos.

“Within a month my life just flipped on its head. I came
up for a trial and I was walking in and training with my idols.”

“My perception of martial arts before Taekwondo was that if you didn’t know someone in the sport or didn’t have a child in the sport, you’re not going to go out and buy tickets to a martial arts event.

“When I transitioned over to Taekwondo I realised it does happen. It’s such a high paced sport, the competitions are absolutely gorgeous and it’s on the up.”

As for Joel himself, he believes that as a Taekwondo athlete he is in a unique position for sponsorship. With Taekwondo, the large majority of fans are based out of the UK, with South Korea the birthplace of the sport.

GB Taekwondo are sponsored by South Korean Taekwondo brand Mooto and, as Joel points out, any sales they are not getting in the UK will bounce over the Pacific to Asia.

“It opens doors because all our fans are spread all over the globe, as well as the boys and girls out there in the Taekwondo clubs around Britain.

“I would like to reach athletes just like myself before I was on the world class performance programme.

“People are looking at you to see what brand you are associated with so i’d like to take that hope that athletes would look at me and think ‘If Joel Walsh is wearing this brand or using that product, I want to.”

This is all just the start for Joel. He is no stranger to adversity and mental challenge, but has little doubt that he is where he belongs.

“The biggest problem I’ve faced before I signed for GB was the mental side of ‘what if I can’t get up there, what if this doesn’t work, what if I’m chasing a goal that’s never going to pay off and what if I’m chasing this goal and it’s not right for me, ’

“But it was and it is and deep down, I did know in the back of my head I would end up here.”

“This is nowhere near the end goal. This is a stepping stone to get me to the very top and to get to where I need to be. Now I’m here, and don’t get me wrong the world class performance programme is lovely, I want to take advantage to see where I could potentially take this.”

If you’re interested in sponsoring Joel, contact him on joel.walsh@gbtaekwondo.co.uk

If, like Joel, you’re an athlete interested in how caytoo can help you better connect with brands, register here.

Don’t just train, engage your brain | Vicky Fleetwood

31 October 2018 by

ViMost athletes find their sport through family ties. Your parents take you along to watch live sport and you fall in love. For Vicky Fleetwood, this wasn’t the case.

Initially competing in a variety of sports including hockey, netball and athletics, she decided to give rugby a go at school. Vicky’s former school, the John Cleveland College in Leicestershire, has an alumni that includes rugby stars such as Manu Tuilagi, Graham Rowntree and Sam Harrison. So when the coach told her to join a club which he thought she’d go far in, that’s exactly what she did.

“I was getting bored of doing individual stuff with athletics so it was a nice switch over. I just loved it, didn’t look back and decided that rugby was where I wanted to focus my time.”

Having won a Tyrrells Premier 15s title in 2018 with the Saracens and a Rugby World Cup in 2014 with England, it is safe to say she made the right decision!

Women’s rugby is firmly on the rise. HSBC’s Future of Rugby report said that 500,000 new women were picking up the sport annually, making it one of the fastest growing sports in the UK. Vicky believes the formation of the new Tyrrells Premier 15s, England’s domestic women’s rugby league, has had a huge influence on the sport in the UK.

“The Tyrrells Premier 15s has been such a huge
move forward for English women’s rugby.”

“Previously there was a big backlash to how clubs were being pushed out or leaving, but it’s done wonders for the game. The standard is so much higher now, people are fighting for places to get into the first team. Plus having the second team on your heels the whole time is making the game go from strength to strength.

“The Tyrrells Premier 15s has been such a huge move forward for English women’s rugby.”

The RFU have also reintroduced women’s contracts for the 15s squad. But whilst this is a positive move, Vicky is cautious.

“It’s amazing to have those contracts reintroduced. However, in the past when they’ve taken a step forward, people’s year- contracts have been taken away. It’s something that needs to stay for the long term.”

More televised games would play a key role towards pushing the sport forwards.

“We’re seeing growth in the numbers coming along to watch the games live. We also know there is demand for women’s rugby to be shown on TV more. The only way you’re going to get younger girls to join up and play rugby is by giving them the access to see it. There’s so many girls that play rugby but never watch it.

“If you’re a young girl watching women play rugby, you can directly compare yourself to that. With it being full time with the contracts coming in, it’s something that young girls can aspire to.”

Previously, players have switched between the 15s and 7s squads in their search for contracts. This has not only been at the ‘detriment of performance’, but has also led to many female England internationals returning to full-time employment alongside their sporting career.

“If you’re a young girl watching women play rugby, you can directly
compare yourself to that. With it being full time with the contracts
coming in, it’s something that young girls can aspire to.”

Vicky is one of them, working as a personal trainer at Clapham’s Reach Gym. She admits working alongside playing is hard, but there are benefits. Engaging her brain, Vicky says, is as important as working on her physical attributes. With her work she has to stay organised, deal with different groups of people and keep them engaged in her sessions.

“I noticed that when I was just rugby, rugby, rugby I was saying really dumb things. We all know that if you’re an elite athlete you can push yourself physically. It’s really important that athletes need to be doing something that pushes them outside of their comfort zone mentally rather than physically.”

Working in a gym means she can go straight from a class into her own training session. This is a luxury not all players can afford as only those involved with the England set-up have contracts.

“This is where the clubs are supporting a lot more. They’re offering sessions before training and then they can go into the training session. At Saracens they’re offering it on a Monday and Wednesday night. It does mean that you’re having to give up your evenings to your sport so it’s a lot of dedication but obviously that is what it takes to be the best.”

“It’s really important that athletes need to be doing
something that pushes them outside of their
comfort zone mentally rather than physically.”

“Through playing rugby, having a strong work ethic is huge for me. Show dedication, whatever it is, show there’s a reason to get out of bed in the morning.”

There’s even more reason to get out of bed when you are a world cup winner. In 2014, England’s women beat Canada in the World Cup final by a score of 21-9. As you would expect, this is Vicky’s proudest moment in sport.

“As soon as the final whistle went it felt like a weight had been lifted. All the camps, the solid training and the fitness we had been put through had paid off. We finally got to reap the rewards. No one is ever going to take that away from you.”

With a new season underway with Saracens and the Quilter Autumn internationals on the horizon, she has a new set of challenges as Vicky moves to her position of flanker.

Vicky’s advice to any young girls getting in to rugby is to ask questions and take feedback, as well as enjoying yourself.

“If you’re silent you are just cruising through, you’re never really going to be pushing yourself. Just enjoy it, that’s the biggest thing. Go and be around people that make you want to work hard and you enjoy being around. If you’re having fun, you play better.”

And if that’s the case, Vicky’s trophy cabinet would suggest she has been having fun for years.

Support top tier women’s rugby. Contact Vicky here: vickyfleetwood1@aol.com

If, like Vicky, you’re an athlete interested in how caytoo can help you better connect with brands, register here.

“Making a positive difference is my calling” | Stacey Copeland

31 October 2018 by

Stacey Copeland‘s drive towards making a positive difference is steadfast. She has the kind of infectious motivation that when talking to her about her sporting career in both professional football and boxing, it is difficult to come away without feeling an obligation to help her cause.

Stacey grew up with a love for both boxing and football. But as boxing did not offer a proper pathway, her sporting career started off in women’s professional football. However after suffering a leg break she decided to step away from the game, having played for England, abroad in the USA and Sweden and in an FA Cup final.

“Something changed in me and I just didn’t feel the same about football. I’d done everything I’d wanted to do. I had this deep desire to box.”

Stacey’s grandfather owned a boxing gym in Stockport and her father had been an amateur boxing champion before an injury cut his career short.

She is the Commonwealth champion and a European Silver Medallist as well as having won the same ABA National Championship that her father won. They’re the first father-daughter duo in history to win national titles.

Each victory carries its own special significance. Stacey places the Commonwealth title and as her proudest achievements.

“Having spent all my life being banned from the sport just because I was a women, standing on the podium with a medal around my neck watching my country’s flag being raised was incredibly special.”

Women’s boxing was illegal until 1997. This just highlights that, whilst it isn’t easy for any athlete to make it to the top of their sport, it’s even harder for female athletes. You’re not only fighting for a place at the top, but you are also fighting the misconceptions and stereotypes that go along with being a female athlete. Especially when competing in a male-dominated sport such as boxing.

“It was illegal for us to compete. That went way beyond judgemental and was just blatant inequality.”

“Having spent all my life being banned from the sport just
because I was a women, standing on the podium
with a medal around my neck watching my country’s
flag being raised was incredibly special.”

Growing up, people were used to seeing Stacey in the gym and attending local boxing events.

“I was there three nights a week like all the lads. I sparred with them, did the circuits with them and trained with them. Everyone was used to me being there.”

The same, however, cannot be said for the wider sporting world. When receiving a call up to the England team, Stacey recalls asking her boss for time off so she could represent England at the youth European Championships.

“I was 16, I gave him the letter and he said ‘Are you seriously asking me for time off to play for a women’s football team?’ He made all these jokes and made fun of me.

“Eventually we agreed that I would take it unpaid but I walked out of that office feeling super small, unworthy and ashamed of who I was and what I was doing.”

Now, whilst she can’t change people who have such a small-minded mentality, Stacey made it her mission to make sure that if other young girls come across similar attitudes to their sport they ‘don’t walk out of that situation feeling ashamed and small.’

For many years, Stacey’s nicknames have been Spongebob and Tigger. Not very intimidating for a boxer. So instead, she chose a slogan which she felt represented everything she stood for; ‘Pave The Way’.

Last year, as part of Women’s Sport Week, Stacey set up a project around Pave The Way. She went in to schools, ran local workshops and put on a photography exhibition celebrating women who work in the sports industry.

“It is important for young girls to know that you
don’t have to be an elite athlete to have sport in your life.”

“Women who work in sport are largely invisible and it is important for young girls to know that you don’t have to be an elite athlete to have sport in your life.

“Whether you’re great at I.T, engineering, marketing, media, physiology, science, it doesn’t matter. Anything can be used in sport.

“The more women we get working in sport will hopefully bring about change, as they will be the decision makers and influencers of the future.”

Pave The Way took off, with Stacey dropping down to three days a week in her job, head of pupil development and wellbeing at Parrs Wood High School, to build it up. She has done an impressive 86 talks since last January, including one at European Parliament and one at the United Nations. With her experience as a female athlete, they focus on how sports can be used to improve human rights.

“There have been some great initiatives to challenge racism and homophobia and people are now more aware of what type of comments are offensive. Now it is largely unacceptable.

“Whereas with women I don’t think we have a done as good a job. It is far more acceptable and much more of a social norm to be derogatory to women.”

Campaigns like This Girl Can go some way to changing the narrative on women’s sport. But there needs to be more. Stacey outlines the ‘Kick It Out’ campaign as a good example. She believes a similar campaign would start a conversation around the discrimination of women in sport.

“When I give talks about the perceptions of women in sport, I ask people to question the way things are, to challenge their views and perceptions and then to be a part of positive change.

“Sometimes we can be judgemental without realising it, or we just accept aspects of inequality because it has always been that way.”

“People say ‘Oh god how can you fit it in?’
How can I not do it? I’m standing on the shoulders
of people who’ve made it possible for me to box.

Challenging gender stereotypes is another way to make a change. Stacey outlines the need to ‘move away from attaching gender, masculinity and femininity to specific physical attributes.’

Stacey’s nomination in the Grassroots category of the 2018 Sunday Times Sportswomen Of The Year Awards was recognition for her unwavering determination to change women’s sport for the better.

But she hasn’t stopped there. Stacey also works with children’s charity Reuben’s Retreat, organises walks with the Life After Violent Abuse (LAVA) group and spent a week in Calais and Dunkirk refugee camps teaching sport to children.

“People say ‘Oh god how can you fit it in?’ How can I not do it? I’m standing on the shoulders of people who’ve made it possible for me to box. I’ve got to make more things possible for those who are coming through next.

“Making a positive difference to others is my big mission, my calling, my purpose. That’s what I value most of all, that the things I’m doing impacts others. Whether that’s challenging gender stereotypes, inspiring people, supporting people in terms of mental health.

“If I can relate to it, use my experience and my story to help then I will. I don’t value anything above making a difference.”

Stacey lists her role models as Muhammed Ali, Sugar Ray Leonard, David Beckham, Eric Cantona and Ryan Giggs. She ‘didn’t have any female role models in the sports’ she loved. However, her real inspiration comes from the people around her.

“I’m not as influenced by famous people as much as I am by the people around me. I get a lot of energy off other people so, whilst you can admire the things that people have achieved, I wouldn’t say it sparks a fire in me.

“Making a positive difference to others is my
big mission, my calling, my purpose.
That’s what I value most of all.”

Stacey tells me how her grandfather, whilst working full-time as a plumber, ran the gym for three nights a week, as well as taking kids all around the world to box and teaching them to read. Her father had a career-ending injury, yet dealt with it in a positive way. Her mother, as a single parent, raised Stacey and her two sisters.

“They were the real influences in my life because I’ve seen what they’ve been through.”

Stacey hopes her future contains a boxing world title. But another focus is to ‘get women’s boxing to a better place and create more opportunities for those coming through’. In short, ‘using sport to have a positive impact’.

Stacey may have had a lack of female role models, but she will certainly be one to the next generation. Help her in making a positive difference through sport.

Help Stacey make a positive difference and contact her here: staceycopelandboxing@gmail.com

If, like Stacey, you’re an athlete interested in how caytoo can help you better connect with brands, register here.

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