“In Loughborough, becoming an Olympian is the normal…everybody has that same goal” - Powerbase Sessions with Swimmer Daniel Wiffen
Current Loughborough University student, Daniel Wiffen, credits his strength and conditioning coach, Chris Thorpe, for his intensive training programmes that contributed to his gold win in Paris on 30 July.
“Every session’s different, we go in different training blocks so this cycle’s six weeks, where we’ll do specific exercises to help us in the pool.”
The 23-year-old makes use of the enviable sporting facilities on Loughborough's East Midlands campus, including various measurement technologies to improve the efficiency of his gym sessions outside of the pool.
Daniel relates his training in Powerbase gym back to real-life applications in the pool such as maintaining core stability so swimmers stay on a straight path in the pool.
“We do a lot of squats and jumps because we’re trying to replicate our turns, pushing off; making sure we’re quite powerful off the walls [of the pool].”
The Loughborough Sport ecosystem has played an integral role in ensuring that athletes' attending the competition in Paris are prepared to the best of their ability, both physically and mentally.
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Notes for editors
Press release reference number: 24/121
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 and named the best university in the world for sports-related subjects in the 2024 QS World University Rankings – the eighth year running.
Loughborough is ranked 6th in The UK Complete University Guide 2025, 10th in the Guardian University League Table 2024 and 10th in the Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2024.
Loughborough is consistently ranked in the top twenty of UK universities in the Times Higher Education’s ‘table of tables’, and in the Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2021 over 90% of its research was rated as ‘world-leading’ or ‘internationally-excellent’. 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.
Current Loughborough University student, Daniel Wiffen, credits his strength and conditioning coach, Chris Thorpe, for his intensive training programmes that contributed to his gold win in Paris on 30 July.
“Every session’s different, we go in different training blocks so this cycle’s six weeks, where we’ll do specific exercises to help us in the pool.”
The 23-year-old makes use of the enviable sporting facilities on Loughborough's East Midlands campus, including various measurement technologies to improve the efficiency of his gym sessions outside of the pool.
Daniel relates his training in Powerbase gym back to real-life applications in the pool such as maintaining core stability so swimmers stay on a straight path in the pool.
“We do a lot of squats and jumps because we’re trying to replicate our turns, pushing off; making sure we’re quite powerful off the walls [of the pool].”
The Loughborough Sport ecosystem has played an integral role in ensuring that athletes' attending the competition in Paris are prepared to the best of their ability, both physically and mentally.
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 and named the best university in the world for sports-related subjects in the 2024 QS World University Rankings – the eighth year running.
Loughborough is ranked 6th in The UK Complete University Guide 2025, 10th in the Guardian University League Table 2024 and 10th in the Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2024.
Loughborough is consistently ranked in the top twenty of UK universities in the Times Higher Education’s ‘table of tables’, and in the Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2021 over 90% of its research was rated as ‘world-leading’ or ‘internationally-excellent’. 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.
