Congratulations to our Head WAG Coach David Carleton who has been named Sport NI’s SportMaker Performance Pathway Coach of the Year.

The SportMaker Performance Pathway Coach of the Year award recognises the achievements of a coach working with emerging and young performers on a pathway to high performance.

The Head Performance Squad Coach has catapulted several gymnasts in their careers with six members representing Gymnastics Ireland and 10 athletes currently in the Northern Ireland development squad. Three of David’s gymnasts were also selected to represent Northern Ireland at the Northern European Championships.

Alongside these national and international successes with his gymnasts, David was nominated as the coach with Gymnastics Ireland to the 2022 Northern European Championships in Finland and coached the Northern Ireland team at the 2023 Northern European Championships in Sweden.

Sport NI surprised David at a recent training session with his award: “It’s brilliant, I’m over the moon. It’s definitely a big surprise and was hidden well by all those I work with. It means so much after all the hours of work that me, the girls and the team put in.”

David works through all the stages of a gymnast’s performance pathway, starting on the athlete’s journey from the age of five. The Salto Gymnastics Coach supports his gymnasts at every step, with the final aim being to see them fulfil their potential and represent their country.