The team behind the team at Paris: alumnus Ollie Armstrong
PATHWAY TO PARIS – Sport & Exercise Science alumnus and former staff-member Ollie Armstrong will take the role as Lead Physiologist for Canadian Athletics at this summer’s sporting event.
Ollie has Birmingham in his blood, having done both his undergraduate and Masters degrees on campus and then coming back as a staff member for six years before happening on a job role with Canadian Cycling that eventually gave him a pathway to Paris. Now working for Athletics Canada, Ollie will be working with both the Olympic and Paralympic squads at the Games, and says it’s been an exciting dream come true.
‘It’s pretty surreal [to be involved in the Olympics]… It’s been a dream of mine since I was a kid and to follow it through all the way, and do a degree and a Masters and then 12 years working in professional sport, to get to a moment to support athletes all the way through to a Games is pretty special.’
As Lead Physiologist, Ollie works with the athletes on strategies for things such as helping with the acclimation to the heat and cooling, and building common ground and relationships in a way athletes can take on board and turn it into something that means something to them – like winning medals.
Ollie was the Lead Physiologist for UoB Sport & Fitness and says his time at Birmingham was both wonderful and challenging, and helped shape the direction he was going to move in.
‘I’ve worked with different athletes across lots of sports, and this exposure has really shaped my thinking, how I approach things, how I practise, and I’ve worked with so many talented athletes and coaches and practitioners – it’s opened so many doors.’
Ollie is also working alongside fellow alumnus Simon Nathan, a Birmingham graduate who is now the High Performance Director for Athletics Canada.
