Loughborough student creates support hub for young athletes and their parents (VIDEO)

A Loughborough University student has created a ground-breaking online platform that supports athletes and parents with wellbeing.

Joe Fuggle, a former GB Junior 400m hurdler, founded The Athlete Place following his own struggles in sport.

Launched via the The Loughborough University Enterprise Network, The Athlete Place is a robust education platform that provides vital advice and guidance for aspiring athletes and parents across all sports.

It offers a holistic approach to athlete and parent support, with 24/7 access to elite athlete and expert-supported education across key topics, namely Athlete wellbeing, nutrition, mindset, athlete parenting, emotional support, education,sleep , training and competition, anti-doping and safeguarding.

Joe, who joined Loughborough as a student on the Sport with a Foundation Year for Elite Athletes programme, is currently based in The StudioLoughborough University's business incubator – where he sits alongside fellow like-minded entrepreneurs who are also developing new, innovative and sustainable businesses.

“The Athlete Place is an online education platform that offers guidance and information to athletes and their parents across all sports and abilities,” he explained.

“Initially it took a focus on mental health in athletes but then I later realised that there’s so much more to wellbeing than just mental health.

“For me, I forgot to balance things – life, sport, education – I didn’t get that balance right which led me to being all or nothing in my sport. That really took a downward spiral in January 2020.

“I fell out of love with the sport despite running a personal best in my last competition. Then, two weeks later, I left my training group and didn’t step foot on the track for ten months.

“It all fell apart and it was down to my own doing for not having the right support around me.

“It’s very easy to just get lost in the journey and process of sport, and to focus on the wrong things and to be driven by external validation and external achievements.”

Alongside support for those competing, Joe, with his Mum, Caroline, have focussed on providing resources for parents and guardians of young athletes by launching “The Athlete Parent Place”, an innovative platform and resource dedicated to parents in sport:

“There is no ‘one size fits all’ for raising an athlete…we know that parents are always their number one supporter, but if they’re not getting the correct guidance and support themselves, then how are they supposed to support and guide?”.

Joe’s business continues to go from strength-to-strength, working alongside various partners and national governing bodies (NGBs). The latest of which is England Athletics, who saw something special in his product:

“I was particularly enamoured and drawn to the innovation of the platform,” said Chris Jones, CEO, England Athletics.

“I have three teenage children, two of whom are involved in sport at a community level, and they will no doubt face similar challenges. As a parent, I want to know how best I can support them through those sometimes difficult periods.

“In some cases, young people these days need to be encouraged that it’s okay to not be okay. We have a responsibility to create an environment, culture, and safe space for people to flourish and be their best.”

For more information on The Athlete Place visit www.theathleteplace.com and for more information on The Loughborough University Enterprise Network, visit www.lboro.ac.uk/len

Notes for editors

Press release reference number: 22/128

Loughborough is one of the country’s leading universities, with an international reputation for research that matters, excellence in teaching, strong links with industry, and unrivalled achievement in sport and its underpinning academic disciplines.

It has been awarded five stars in the independent QS Stars university rating scheme, named the best university in the world for sports-related subjects in the 2022 QS World University Rankings and University of the Year for Sport by The Times and Sunday Times University Guide 2022.

Loughborough is in the top 10 of every national league table, being ranked 7th in The UK Complete University Guide 2022, and 10th in both the Guardian University League Table 2022 and the Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2022.

Loughborough is consistently ranked in the top twenty of UK universities in the Times Higher Education’s ‘table of tables’ and is in the top 10 in England for research intensity. In recognition of its contribution to the sector, Loughborough has been awarded seven Queen's Anniversary Prizes.

The Loughborough University London campus is based on the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park and offers postgraduate and executive-level education, as well as research and enterprise opportunities. It is home to influential thought leaders, pioneering researchers and creative innovators who provide students with the highest quality of teaching and the very latest in modern thinking.

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