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British Water Polo has appointed Head Coach Jerome Read

Tuesday, 11 December 2007

British Water Polo has appointed Head Coach Jerome Read as they continue to build towards London 2012. Former national water polo player Read has a strong background in the sport and took bronze in the Commonwealth Tournament in Manchester in 2002. Last year he was head coach of the junior squad and led them to victory at the European Qualification Tournament. Read takes charge of the men’s team and will develop the squad in their pursuit of excellence. “I believe that I have a fantastic opportunity to take the men’s team to where it belongs,” he said. “With my background in sports science and my knowledge of the sport I know I can take this team forward. “The amount of support that we have for the sport in terms of funding and sports science has improved massively in the past couple of years and we know that we need to maximise this opportunity. I know that with the potential in the squad and the support we are receiving we can be highly competitive at the London 2012 Olympics.” In January, Read will take the team to the European Qualification Tournament for the European Championships where he will be planning for good results against some of the top Water Polo nations. “We need to get some good results in the qualification tournament and I think if we can get a good result from our match with Slovenia we can gain confidence from that. “Currently in the world we are ranked about 24th, I know we can build on this and achieve European ‘A’ status. Then we will be ranked within the top eight in the world. “Our direct competition comes from the likes of Australia and Canada so the Commonwealth Tournament in 2010 will be a real benchmark for us. From there we can see what we need to do for the final push towards London 2012.” National Performance Director Nick Hume believes that Read will have a positive influence on the men’s national squad and will help them to develop onto the world scene. “Jerome’s job is to get our men’s team to a standard where they can be competitive on a world stage,” he said. “I am confident that with the solid foundations we have, Jerome will be able to get us to that standard by London 2012. He brings an excellent knowledge of sports science and with his previous experience with the junior team he has built good relationships with the players. “His understanding of our programme and what stage we are at and where we want to go combined with his enthusiasm should help us to accelerate our programme and reach the level we are aiming for.”