SOME of Dorset’s potential sports stars of the future met with Olympic silver medal-winning sailor Simon Hiscocks at an event designed to help them develop their athletic skills.

The 10 to 11-year-olds attended the Weymouth & Portland National Sailing Academy for the Regional Multi-skill Academy (RMSA), which is funded by the Youth Sport Trust as part of its work to support talented young sports performers.

The RMSA is designed to further challenge the most talented young athletes by using the five multi-abilities: physical, cognitive (thinking), social, personal and creative.

Each young person has been nominated by their school sport partnership because they are on the Gifted and Talented register with outstanding physical ability, while also demonstrating prowess in the other four multi-abilities.

Each young person received feedback on their performance in the five multi-abilities at the end of the day with suggestions for improvement and personal development.

Simon Wergan, head of talent and competition at the Youth Sport Trust, said: “This is a fantastic opportunity for these talented young athletes at the Weymouth & Portland National Sailing Academy. “To be inspired by a top medallist and coached by some of our leading multi-skills experts will make a real difference to how they develop as athletes.”

The RMSA at Weymouth & Portland National Sailing Academy is one of 15 being delivered by seven higher education institutions and eight specialist sports colleges throughout England and looks to build on the success of the RMSA pilot scheme which launched last year.

As well as the multi-skill activities and assessment for the young people, the RMSAs are vital in identifying and reapplying best practice within the school sport partnerships.

This is achieved both through workshops for teachers and coaches and through sharing the very best exercises and sessions throughout the schools network.