New to Athletics? 

Read our handy guide below for everything that you need to know!

We are delighted that you are showing an interest in Yate and District Athletic Club. A warm welcome awaits you!

The club is run by a wonderful group of volunteers who fulfil a huge variety of roles such as committee members, coaches, officials, team managers and general helping around the site/club house etc.

We have approx. 200 members of all ages, as well as many younger children who come along ‘just for fun’, and lots of parents who, although are not official members, are very much part of the club.

We have approximately 20 experienced and dedicated coaches and many of our teenage athletes also help out with the younger ones.

We welcome athletes of all ages and abilities – no experience necessary!

Our home track is at Yate Outdoor Sports Complex. Re-laid in 2019, it the newest (and in our opinion best) outdoor Track & Field facility in the South West!

We have worked hard to become one of the forerunners in opening up and continuing athletic activity in compliance with Covid-19 guidance, and in 2020 our work was used by England Athletics as examples of best practice for other clubs. So you can rest assured that we continue to operate safely whilst staying committed to providing as much opportunity for athletes to train and compete as is feasible possible during the pandemic restrictions.

Our website  is full of information and is updated regularly, as are our social media pages, and we endeavour to keep club members up to date with latest news and athletic information. After you have read the following information please take a browse around our website which should contain all that you need to know as you begin your athletics journey. And if not, please do not hesitate to get in touch!

ATHLETIC DISCIPLINES

Track & Field athletics can be subdivided in to the following event groups:

  • SPRINTS & HURDLES (60m to 400m)
  • ENDURANCE (600m to 10,000m, as well as Steeplechase)
  • THROWS (Shot Put, Discus, Hammer & Javelin)
  • JUMPS (Long Jump, Triple Jump, High Jump & Pole Vault)

With such a wide range of events there is sure to be something for everyone!

TRAINING

JUNIOR ACADEMY

The ideal place to begin your athletics training is at our Junior Academy, aimed at athletes aged 6 to 16 years. Under the supervision of our qualified coaching team, young athletes can experience a broad range of events, from sprinting and long jump to pole vault and javelin, all within the environment of a professional athletics stadium.

Sessions take place on:

• Tuesdays 6-7pm

• Wednesdays 6-7pm and 7-8pm

• Thursdays 6-7pm

• Saturdays 10-11am and 11am-12pm

The cost is £3 per session.

Places at the academy need to be pre-booked for a whole term, so that athletes can be assigned to specific coaching groups. Further information, and booking for, is available here: https://yateac.co.uk/training/junior-academy/

CLUB TRAINING SESSIONS

Once you’ve got the hang of it at our Academy Training you may wish to progress to specialist training on a Club Night. These sessions are for athletes aged 13 years (younger athletes by arrangement) through to Masters, and take place on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 7pm – 8:30pm, as well as Saturdays from 11am – 12.30pm.

At these sessions, athletes train in event specific groups with a specialist coach. The cost is £2 per session payable by BACS at the end of each month or via Membership Mojo, see https://yateac.co.uk/training-payment/

You can find all the info about coaches and the events available on each club night here: https://yateac.co.uk/training/

MEMBERSHIP

If you would like to take part in athletics competitions, then you will need to become a member of an athletic club. By joining our club, you will automatically be registered with England Athletics and receive a Unique Reference Number (URN). New members will also receive a Yate vest.

All athletes in school years 6 or over must have an URN in order to compete.  

For all the info about our membership go to https://yateac.co.uk/yate-district-ac-membership/

For our membership booklet, containing all the info relevant to this coming season, please click here: https://yateac.co.uk/members-booklet

COMPETITION

We are a competitive club and take part in several athletics leagues, as well as support individual athletes in their own competitive journey.
Athletes compete in the following age groups:
 U11 (School years 4 and 5)
 U13 (School years 6 and 7)
 U15 (School years 8 and 9)
 U17 (School years 10 and 11)
 U20 (School years 12 and 13, plus athletes still 19 on the 31st December of the calendar year)
 U23
 Senior
 Masters (over 35 years)

Athletics rules state that athletes in U17 age group and below can only take part in three events, plus a relay, at a competition (unless it is a combined events competition, e.g. pentathlon).

You will be given numbers to pin onto the front and back of your top, so a supply of safety pins is a must!

We have a comprehensive fixture list, of all types competition, on our website: TRACK & FIELD FIXTURE LIST

OPEN COMPETITION

The best place to start in competitive athletics is to go along to an ‘open’ competition. In these competitions you enter yourself into the events that you choose, and you can compete wearing your Yate vest.

There will be an entry fee and usually you have to enter in advance. There are lots of local open competitions and you will most likely come across another Yate athlete out and about!

LEAGUE COMPETITION

As a club we compete as a team in several leagues, both local and national, and we are at an excellent standard of competition… we aim to win!

This is a fun and supportive way to take part in competition, with great team spirit! Athletes are selected for the team by our Yate team managers, who provide all information, and offer support and encouragement on the day.

There are opportunities to be part of a Yate team for all ages and all abilities.

  • Avon Track & Field League (includes QuadKids) – all age groups
  • Lower Age Group Youth Development League (YDL) – U13 & U15
  • Upper Age Group Youth Development League (YDL) – U17 & U20
  • Midland League – Senior competition, although U17 upwards are eligible.
  • National Athletics League (NAL) – Senior Competition.

Team managers will look at Power of 10 to see what experience you have had in competitions, what your preferred events are and what standard you are at. If you want to be part of a Yate team please do make yourself know to the relevant team managers. All the details here: https://yateac.co.uk/competition/competition-types

CHAMPIONSHIPS

There are County, Regional and National Championships held across the season. The championships that you enter will depend on your residential or birth eligibility. Most of our athletes are either in the athletics counties of Avon or Gloucestershire. For the regional competitions we are in the Midlands region. For some of the higher championships there are entry standards that you must have obtained to take part. More info here: https://yateac.co.uk/championships/
Also look at the following websites:
 Avon Athletics Association: www.avon-aa.org.uk
 Gloucestershire Athletics Association https://www.athletics4u.co.uk/
 Midland Counties Athletics Association http://midlandathletics.org.uk/

SCHOOL COMPETITION

The schools athletics competitions are run a bit differently, with opportunities mainly available for young people in school years 8 to 13. (There are a few opportunities for year 7 as well). School competitions start with your school PE teacher taking you to the district trials. There are then county trials – in this instance your county depends on which school you go to. For most of our athletes this is Avon (see the Avon Schools Athletics Association website here: https://www.avonschoolsathletics.org.uk/), but we also have athletes in the Gloucester and Wiltshire counties. Schools competitions progress to regional and national championships and teams for these events are selected by the relevant county schools athletics association. For more info go to https://yateac.co.uk/schools/

POWER OF 10

The Power of 10 is UK Athletics’ national record of athletic performances. If you want to take part in competitions, then you will want to set up a profile on this website.

The results of all competitions that you take part in will be logged onto your profile, and you can also see how you rank nationally and regionally in your age group.

Yate team managers will look at the Power of 10 as they select athletes for our team competitions.

Take a look here: https://www.thepowerof10.info/.

CONTACT

If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to get in touch. We are here to help and support your athletics experience in any way that we can.
You can contact our Chairman, Jeremy Dale using the contact form on the website here: https://yateac.co.uk/contact-us/.  Please feel free to stop and talk to any of our committee members at the club https://yateac.co.uk/about-the-club/committee/.  Alternatively, you can contact us through Facebook messenger.

NEWS

We have a news section on our website https://yateac.co.uk/news and use four Social Media apps to broadcast news.  You can finds us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.  Please follow us to stay abreast.