Louise Jukes Great Britain Olympic Handball Team
Louise Jukes was chosen in January 2008 to be part of the Word Class Handball Team
Louise Jukes graduated from the University with a BSc Hons in Physiotherapy in 2005. Before joining the University, Louise played at England Hockey under 18 and whilst at the University, she was captain of the Ladies Hockey Team. In 2008, Louise applied to try out for the British Handball Team, which was establishing a team for the 2012 London Olympics. It took months of tough trials, but in January 2008, Louise was chosen to be part of the Word Class Handball Team, having come through the Talent Identification Programme, which aimed to get talented women into minority sports. Now she represents Great Britain Handball and in June 2012, Louise landed one of the fourteen coveted places on the London 2012 Olympic Handball GB team.
The challenge
Being selected for the World Class Handball team was the easy part compared to what challenges laid ahead for Louise. Lengthy training sessions were needed to reach the required level for the team and being selected for the team did not automatically mean participating in the 2012 London Olympics. In order to train as effectively as possible for the World Class Handball Team, Louise had to give up her job as a physiotherapist, her house, family and friends and relocate to Scandinavia for training purposes. Additionally, a sponsor was needed in order for Louise to be able to compete without financial worries.
The process
The journey to the 2012 Olympics took Louise to Denmark and Norway, where she trained hard to improve her handball skills. Whilst in Norway, Louise joined the handball club in Asker until 2011 and now plays for Denmark team, SK Aarhus. Finally, Louise found sponsorship in the Suffolk Sportsaid Scholarship, without which she says she could not continue.
How the University helped
Louise says: “Being at the University taught me a lot about time management which is essential with a training regime like ours. It also taught me how to budget and live off a small income, exactly what being a full time athlete is like. Above all I was able to get a fantastic degree in Physiotherapy; this has enabled me to work alongside playing sport. I am very grateful to the University as they also gave me a sports scholarship which allowed me to use the great facilities to train and stay in shape whilst studying.”
The results
Three years later, in late 2011, Louise had 38 caps for team Great Britain and the team was confirmed a starting place at the London Olympics, due to their excellent progression.
Louise has been selected to be on the court in the London 2012 Olympics and will promote handball to the British public in order to increase its popularity. After the Olympics, Louise is looking to continue with the sport, hoping to participate in other major tournaments such as the European or World Championships.