Olympic, Commonwealth and World Championship medal-winning gymnast Nile Wilson was among a range of sports professionals and organisations to share expertise and insights with students at a Leeds Trinity University conference exploring careers in sport and wellbeing. 

Organised by the School of Sport and Wellbeing in collaboration with Leeds Trinity’s Careers and Placements team, the Moving Forward: Working in Sport and Wellbeing conference allowed students from Sport and Wellbeing, Sports Journalism and Sport Psychology courses to explore the range of jobs available in the industry through talks, themed sessions and a careers fair at the University’s Main Campus in Horsforth.  

Nile Wilson, who became the first Briton to win an Olympic medal in the Horizontal Bars event when he won bronze at Rio 2016, delivered the keynote speech and shared stories and lessons from his career. He discussed his personal battles with mental health, and explained how he, following his retirement in 2021, is now working to increase nationwide participation in gymnastics. Born in Pudsey, just a few miles from Leeds Trinity’s Main Campus, Nile has opened seven Nile Wilson Gymnastics clubs across England to help develop the next generation of potential Olympians. 

Nile Wilson said: “I really enjoyed sharing some of the lessons I have learnt during my career with students who want to break into sport. Making a positive impact on people is one of the best things anyone can do, and if I’ve inspired even one person through the stories I’ve told today, then that’s my job done.  

“I am passionate about supporting the next generation by using my knowledge to help them realise that we’re all human and make mistakes. The fear of failure can be crippling, but the reality is people are going to fail and are going to get things wrong, but that should be welcomed, as it’s about learning from what went wrong, picking yourself back up and doing everything in your power to make it right in the future. I’ve failed so many times in my life, but those setbacks and failures have been really valuable in me becoming the person I am today. I encouraged students to speak to themselves positively and see everything as an opportunity, as that perspective will put them in positions to succeed.” 

Staff from the Leeds branch of Nile Wilson Gymnastics were also present at the careers fair, which offered students opportunities to establish contacts and seek out potential employment and work experience with employers. Active Leeds, Huddersfield Town Foundation, Nuffield Health, Royal Air Force and West Yorkshire Police were also among those in attendance. 

Following the fair, students could choose to attend two of ten themed sessions which provided further information about career paths of potential interest. The themes were Physical Education, Sports Science and Performance, Coaching and Sports Development, Sports Therapy, and Health and Social Care, and were led by key figures from prominent organisations in the sector. 

Joshua Baldwin, a Sports Therapy and Rehabilitation student at Leeds Trinity University, said: “The main thing I’ve taken away from the conference is the range of opportunities that are out there for me. I’m hoping to work in professional sport once I graduate, but I now know what other options are available to me after speaking to companies from different fields at the careers fair to explore placement and job opportunities.” 

Dr Lisa Gannon, Associate Professor in Professional Practice and co-organiser of the conference, said: “Conferences such as this are important for inspiring students, galvanising enthusiasm and helping students kickstart their own journeys. I regularly encourage students to take ownership of their decisions as they move through university and think about where they want to go next, and some key messages from Nile’s talk included choosing to have a positive attitude and actively looking for opportunities, rather than waiting for something to happen and hoping for the best. I hope students take those messages, think about how they apply to them, and use them to help them make disciplined choices moving forward.” 

For more information on Sport and Wellbeing courses at Leeds Trinity, visit the University website.