As part of our careers and mentoring programme, we are excited to announce our next  Business Lunch, on Thursday 9 October, 12:15-1:15pm. These panel-style events run once a term and are a maximum of 1 hour in the lecture theatre or online - designed to be consumed in your lunch hour. Open to the whole Shiplake community this session will focus on careers in Sport. In-person attendees can enjoy a lunch on us while Headmaster, Mr Tyrone Howe, hosts a panel discussion in the lecture theatre. Our panellists include parents and Old Vikings who all have experience in the sporting world with a range of specialisms and knowledge. The discussion will explore their journeys, challenges, and key lessons from their careers in sport.

If you are unable to be there in person, the discussion will also be available via livestream. We hope this event will be particularly valuable to members of the Shiplake community working in/looking to develop a career in sport or those wishing to connect with like-minded professionals. 

To make sure we can provide enough lunches and share the livestream link, please let us know if you will be attending (in person or online) by clicking here.

We are excited to introduce you to our panellists:

Chris Hollins

Chris Hollins is a broadcast journalist and personality who has worked with some of the biggest names in sport during a career spanning over 20 years. He also has a special place in the nations affections after winning BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing in 2009.
 
Chris has a unique and extensive range of TV and media contacts and sporting interests following a professional sporting career. He is particularly passionate about football, golf, hockey and snow sport and delivering the latter sports to access and engage with broader public.
 
More recently Chris has developed his portfolio to provide a trusted advisor status to brand partnership opportunities and high performance programmes building relationships with global brands. Projects have included the likes of Virgin, BMW, LG Electronics, Discovery and Visit California.  

Jonny Fordham

Old Viking, Jonny Fordham (03W) was a journalist for nearly 15 years and is currently Head of Communications for The British & Irish Lions and also PREM Rugby. 

Having written for all the sports desks on Fleet Street, Jonny began working at The Sun in 2013 and progressed through the ranks from Sports News Editor and then back onto the road as Rugby Union Correspondent from 2016 to 2021. 

He then joined a global sports agency, before heading in-house with the PREM and Lions. 

Nastasiya Uvarova 

Nastasiya Uvarova's career has always been in sport, from working as a PE teacher and climbing coach in Ukraine to serving as Performance  Climbing Coach for the Ukrainian National Team. This role saw her running training camps for the Adult and Youth teams (2018–2021) and supervising the Olympic selection for Tokyo 2020. Between 2017 and 2022, Nastasiya was also a Team Official at World and European Championships, Youth Worlds Championships, and World Cups.

Since moving to the UK, Nastasiya has requalified in climbing and now coaches the Sport Squad at Oakwood Climbing, guiding young athletes at regional competitions and preparing them for national level. She is also the only climbing coach in the UK selected for the Women in High-Performance Coaching Programme by UK Coaching.

James Burgess

Old Viking James Burgess (21W) first found his passion for sport through grassroots rugby at the age of seven, a journey that quickly progressed as he represented Berkshire at county level, earned a place in the London Irish Academy, and secured a sports scholarship at Shiplake College.

A series of concussions brought an abrupt end to his playing career, forcing James to redefine his identity within sport. This led him to establish his own rugby coaching business and launch a podcast interviewing professionals in the game. 

James's journey saw him become a Sports Graduate at Shiplake for a year before heading to Loughborough University, where he is now in his third year studying Sports and Exercise Psychology and continuing to coach and immerse himself in sport in a variety of ways.