It looks to be a busy year for two KGV BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma Sports students, Liam Thompson and Dan Couton, as they balance the demands of level three studies with a challenging training schedule in their respective sports. Second year student Liam Thompson, who chose to study sport at KGV because of the excellent facilities and high course pass rates, has been competing in a variety of Taekwondo competitions for the past four years.



Currently ranked 4th in the country, Liam has been national champion twice and last year also took the title of double open champion, after fighting in both England and Scotland. With 12 gold medals, 6 silver medals and 2 bronze medals to his name, Liam hopes 2018 will allow him to start competing internationally, as well as providing the opportunity to undertake both GB and Olympic team trials. With the ultimate dream of one day becoming an Olympic Champion and training every day during competition periods, Liam has been able to balance training after college, competing at weekends and his college work due to his dedication to the sport of Taekwondo and the support of the KGV sports staff.

Speaking about the course, Liam said, “For anyone interested in sport, I would 100% recommend that they come and study at KGV. The programme offers a good mix of theory and practical work, plus the programme at KGV provides the additional opportunity of being able to access the Sports Academy alongside the academic programme, meaning there is always the option to do practical sport on your study days.”

With plans to progress onto University to study Sports Therapy in September 2018, Liam is hoping that his time at KGV, coupled with his dedication and commitment to Taekwondo, will allow him to work in a sports related role for the duration of his career.

16 year old powerlifter Dan Couton also has high hopes and ambitions for the New Year. Originally undertaking gym activities as part of his training for team sports, including Rugby and Hockey, Dan quickly realised that it was the in-gym training aspects of these sports that he enjoyed the most. As a result, he swapped team sports for the gym, meeting a new circle of friends and getting to grips with the demands of powerlifting.

Having now participated in the sport for a year, Dan competed in his first competition in November 2017 in Liverpool, where he ranked a very respectable 2nd place. Describing his first year in the sport Dan said “2017 was all about learning about the demands of the sport, the training regimes required and learning from my mistakes. It was very much about finding a routine and training schedule that worked, rather than winning medals.” With that training schedule now firmly in place, Dan hopes to compete in Liverpool again in 2018 and will be focusing his free time on his strength improvement to provide the best possible chance of winning.

With dreams of breaking the North West record in squat and deadlift by the time he is 18 years old, Dan explains that his ultimate goal is to compete internationally against those in the sport he currently admires. A sport done through passion and love, Dan’s immediate plan is to concentrate on balancing his 7 day a week training schedule with the demands of his Level 3 BTEC Sport Extended Diploma. Speaking of the course, Dan commented “After originally enrolling on an A-level programme, I came to KGV to study sport, as I realised that the practical nature of the programme was far more suited to someone like me, an absolute lover of all things sport. The programme has been everything I expected so far, a great mix of theory and practical work, with fantastic teachers and great facilities. It also offers additional opportunities beyond the BTEC qualification, we have the chance to achieve coaching badges, first aid qualifications and much more; an absolutely perfect programme for anyone dedicated to a career in sport, with passion and enthusiasm for their chosen discipline.”

KGV are now taking applications for September 2018 entry. If you would are interested in studying A-level PE or BTEC Sport and would like to apply, please visit: www.kgv.ac.uk for additional information and to submit your application.