Elite Athlete Development Programme

The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Sport and Recreation and the Prime Human Performance Institute entered into a ground-breaking partnership to set up a multi-sport Elite Athlete Development Programme (EADP).

The Programme which is administered by the Prime Sports Development Trust caters for the Sports Science, High Performance and Medical needs of the best 115 athletes from 18 different sporting codes from across the province.

Prime Human Performance Institute also underscores its commitment to the EADP by adding a further 13 athletes to the EADP Pro Bono.

The Athletes are selected by the various sporting Federations to be on the EADP. The initiative was set up in 2013 as a pilot project and in 2014 the Department of Sport and Recreation came on board in providing funding for the programme that allowed it to expand to its present intake of 123 athletes from 18 different sporting codes in the first year.

Dennis Jackson who is the EADP Director had this to say about the programme on its inception.

“The Elite Athlete Development Programme is a landmark high performance and sports transformation programme that gives Sports Science assistance to KZN’s top sports talent, enabling them to reach their full potential,” he said.

“123 athletes were selected by the Department and the Provincial Sporting Federations and KZN undoubtedly has the talent within to produce world class talent, we just needed a vehicle to harness that talent so that these athletes are given the best possible shot at making it to the top.”

After the first year of the EADP the athletes returned 17 medals at world events, 31 medals at national championship level and 80 provincial championship medals, a return that Jackson described as “better than we could ever have expected.”