GB Junior Women's Team Head Coach Liz Knight and GB Cadette Head Coach Sarah Jones will be spending a week learning from one of the top coaches in world softball later this month when they get to join Ken Eriksen and his staff at the University of South Florida in Tampa.
Eriksen is also the current Head Coach of the US National Team, and guided them to victory in the Softball World Cup in July.
GB Cadette Head Coach Sarah Jones
Partnership
The opportunity has come about through a partnership arrangement between the European Softball Federation and the US Amateur Softball Association.
The two British coaches will need to pay the cost of their flights to the US, but accommodation and food will be provided by the university during their stay. They will arrive in Florida on September 18 and return to the UK on September 25.
Liz (pictured at right) and Sarah will be able to work with Ken Eriksen and his staff during daily training sessions with USF's Division 1 softball team and at games the team will play during the autumn season.
They will be joined during the week by Robert Kovacevic, Head Coach of the Croatian National Team.
.jpg)
GB Juniors Head Coach Liz Knight
Looking ahead
Sarah Jones, who plays second base on the GB Women's Team, recently guided an inexperienced GB Cadette (Under-16) Girls' Team to a very creditable 4-4 record at European Championships last month, and Liz Knight will be taking the GB Junior (Under-19) Women's Team to European Championships next year.
Sarah said: "It will be an amazing experience to work with the coach of one of the best softball countries in the world. I want to learn new drills and how Ken Eriksen as Head Coach sees/interprets the game in different situations, all to bring back to the young players who are the future of British softball."
Liz said: "This is a golden opportunity to learn from a coaching team led by Coach Eriksen, who holds one of the most prestigious positions in international softball.
"The timing is perfect as we are beginning our preparations for next year's Under-19 Europeans. I'm hoping to learn more about overall management of an elite programme and I am looking forward to seeing how the USF programme maximises practise time, something that will be critical as we prepare for the Europeans next year."