By David Williams
If sport is often about teamwork and the ability to think on your feet, then 2020 will probably go down as the year Welsh sport was tested as never before.
Who would have imagined back on January 1 last year, we would be ending the year with online Zoom meetings and webinars as standard methods of communication between governing bodies and their members?
Or that swimmers would be training on dry land? Or runners and cyclists would be competing against the clock in virtual races, rather than against each other?
Masks, hand-sanitizers, the fist-bump instead of the bear-hug – these things are now as much of the everyday as knee supports, high fives and protein shakes.
For most, the end of 2020 couldn’t come quickly enough, but through difficulty there has been innovation in Welsh sport and a sense that even the biggest hurdles can often be overcome.
Virtual replaced real
Moving from the real world to the virtual one has been a necessity for most sports, even if it has just been to keep in touch with players and athletes who were locked out of their venues and playing fields.
For many, though, the screen became a lifeline. Reuben Florence, chief instructor at Dragon Karate Cymru in Bangor used online karate lessons as a way to keep in touch with club members as well as introduce new recruits to the sport.
“Online activities were never going to replace the real thing of face-to-face instruction, but in the present time they were a fantastic way of introducing the sport and keeping people connected,” says Reuben.
Likewise, it was the online world that kept cricket clubs throughout Wales connected to each other throughout the summer – with videos funnies, training tips and quizzes – when the clubs themselves were out of bounds.
Jazz sessions
At the elite level, cyclists such as Geraint Thomas and Elinor Barker headed into their garages where virtual sessions on bikes linked to software such as Zwift, enabled them to stay in shape.
Virtual training then became virtual races, while one of the early social media hits of lockdown were the instructive swimming fitness sessions posted by double Olympic silver medalist Jazz Carlin.
Her workout routines – for swimmers and non- swimmers – were shared by thousands, as were Sport Wales’ own videos for staying active in the home which featured Welsh international athletes Melissa Courtney and Mica Moore.
Ingenuity has also been a familiar theme throughout Welsh sport in 2020, with athletes and whole sports using their creative juices to best effect.
Bags of motivation
When Welsh long jumper Sarah Abraham found herself tied down in her flat in London, she filled two Sainsbury’s shopping bags with heavy books and tied them to a lifting bar in order to conjure a makeshift gym in her living room.
Similarly, Wales’ double Paralympic champion Aled Davies showed he’s a dab hand in the garden DIY arena by fixing up his own throwing area, slung with netting between two apple trees.
“It’s about being smart,” he said. “I’m not chasing world records in my back garden. I’m just trying to tick over and hopefully not get too much rust on the joints.”
Wales’ Olympic star and former world number one judoka Natalie Powell went one better by creating an entire mat area and indoor gym inside her Cardiff living room.
Super swimmers
When the restrictions began to ease a little later in the year, and gyms, pools and playing fields began to re-open, many sports utilised what they had learned during lockdown.
The connectivity and togetherness may have been absent without regular matches and competition, but organisations such as Swim Wales have been imaginative in their response.
If sport is often about teamwork and the ability to think on your feet, then 2020 will probably go down as the year Welsh sport was tested as never before. ✔️
Virtual replaced the real and we adapted like we never thought we could. 💻 ✔️ #BeActiveWaleshttps://t.co/IxcTlJc6NY
— Sport Wales (@sportwales) December 28, 2020
They created the Swim Wales Super Series – a virtual leaderboard where club swimmers denied competition could post their best times in their local pools to set alongside others in the rest of the country.
A total of 34 clubs and over 1,000 swimmers got involved in the first series, while a second is now underway.
The Welsh Rugby Union stayed in touch with all their member clubs with regular webinars, offering advice for returning to training, and while all but the professional clubs are still awaiting a return to matches, the Union have recently been able to sanction touch rugby and tag rugby for juniors.
Jumping into 2021 like🤪🎉✨ #GoodBye2020 #2021makeawish #HappyNewYear2021 #wcmx #skateboarding #girlpower pic.twitter.com/ifiZor73lz
— Lily Rice (@LilyRice_WCMX) December 31, 2020
No locking down Lily
But anyone really wanting the last word in resilience and motivation, should head to the workout videos posted during lockdown by Lily Rice on behalf of Disability Sport Wales.
Wales’ 16-year-old wheelchair motocross women’s world champion was in inspirational form, providing plenty of get-up-and-go for those feeling locked down and going not very far at all.