Top personal trainers announced for Fitness Trainer Competition digital finals

We are pleased to announce the 12 personal trainers who have qualified for the national finals of the AoC Sport Fitness Trainer Competition after competing virtually during lockdown. The judging panel, organisers and sponsors Active IQ were responsive throughout the coronavirus pandemic, adapting tasks and practises to still allow the competition to take place and offer development opportunities to new personal trainers. This year the virtual finals will run from 17-23 October as part of the AoC's Colleges Week. The finalists will take part via Zoom either from home or in a gym environment. They will be tested across a range of tasks with a huge focus on home and online workouts, reflecting the demands on PTs at this current time. Tasks will include

• Core fitness skills
• Instructing skills
• Online marketing skills (this will include a video showcase in which finalists will need to market themselves and will be judged by a panel)
• Written skills (finalists will need to write a workout plan which they could then sell as a product in the future)
• A virtual job interview
• A home equipment challenge where they must select objects from around the house that could be used as part of a workout.

Dean Hardman, Director of Sport and Student Experience for AoC, said: “Year after the year we have seen how the competition provides a superb opportunity for aspiring fitness professionals to showcase their skills. In these most challenging of circumstances it is great that we are still able to offer this opportunity in partnership with Active IQ. Indeed, the current public health crisis has allowed participants to further demonstrate their wider skill set, with online delivery testing them in new and different ways. We’re sure that all of the contenders will enjoy and learn from this process and wish them all every success in the competition and their future careers.” “I am proud to say that Active IQ has been supporting this important competition for six years now,” says Jenny Patrickson, Managing Director of sponsors Active IQ. “I say important because it gives nearly and newly qualified PTs the chance to learn and develop whilst also showcasing their skills. Entrants learn a lot from the process and gain valuable feedback and insight from the judges. Not to mention the fact it brings a fantastic opportunity to really springboard their career.” She added: “This year, of course, has been particularly challenging for everyone, so it’s fantastic to see the determination of every competitor. I’m delighted that the competition is still able to go ahead albeit virtually and I’d like to wish each finalist the very best of luck. "It’s vital that we support those young people coming into our industry: encouraging them and recognising their skills. Competitions like this aren’t just about celebrating excellence, they are equally important to raise and retain industry standards.” Follow AoC Sport across Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for competition updates and to see the virtual activity take place in October.