SkillsActive officially launched the Advanced Apprenticeship in Sporting Excellence (AASE) on 7 June for cricket, tennis, rugby union and swimming.

The AASE programme has been tailored to meet the needs of 16- to 18-year-olds who have the realistic potential to achieve excellence in their sport and are seeking to perform at the highest level as their main career goal.

The apprenticeship will take two years to complete and provide a structured national training and development route, eventually across all sports, for young athletes to be able to represent their country at either the Olympics or Paralympics or gain professional contracts.

SkillsActive’s chief executive Stephen Studd said: “We hope this programme will have a major, long-term impact for both employers and athletes across a wide range of competitive sports.”

AASE was funded by the Learning and Skills Council and developed by SkillsActive with a number of sporting governing bodies. Details: www.sqa.org.uk