Applications are now open for a new program offered by Alpine Fitness to help young athletes develop fundamental skills through sport-specific training.
The Ignite Athlete Development Program is intended for youth ages 13 to 17 who compete in a sport. The program is run in partnership with Pacific Sport, an Interior-based non-profit organization, to help youth improve their physical literacy and fitness.
Jase Petersen, owner of Alpine Fitness, said there are three components of the training, with an individual coach for each discipline.
“[It’s] strength and conditioning, gymnastics and agility, and sprint components,” Petersen said. “It’s to kind of give them a bit of foundation outside of their sporting training in gym orientation.”
The program will begin in November and run for 12 weeks, with training at Alpine Fitness every Tuesday and Thursday.
Petersen said he believes this is a great program to introduce to Sun Peaks’ growing youth population, especially as a number of families have moved up the mountain to help their children pursue sports.
“With the facility that we have, I think it’s a perfect fit,” Petersen said. “It’s something that I can contribute to the community, and to their growth and development.”
Although this is a new program to Alpine Fitness, it has run in Kamloops since 2011 and has seen success.
Erin Pincott, Pacific Sport’s Interior sport performance coordinator, said expanding the program to Sun Peaks was a natural next step.
“Sun Peaks is such an active community with many high performing young athletes training there,” Pincott said. “Combined with an awesome facility at Sun Peaks Alpine Fitness and high caliber coaches … bringing the program to Sun Peaks is a natural fit.”
Applicants must submit an athletic resume, a short essay and a letter of recommendation from their primary sport coach. The program cost is $930, but successful applicants will receive a scholarship from Pacific Sport for $455.
“It’s definitely not a program [where] we would be intentionally turning people away,” Petersen said. “We want to make it available for as many as we can. That just goes with the whole belief of the facility … just to be an open and welcoming space for all the attendees.”
The deadline to apply is August 22 at 4 p.m. Visit pacificsportinteriorbc.com/ignite for the application form.
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