Life @ EA

This is a series of 30-minute interviews are with Accies who have been prominent in the world of sport, either on or off the field of play. Throughout the interviews, we will hear about the skills and life lessons they learned at the Edinburgh Academy to help them succeed in their chosen sports role. Whether as a player, a coach, a writer or an administrator, all will reflect on school life in and out of the classroom and their journey through sport as a career. 
 

Series interviewer, Charles Runcie, was a pupil at the Academy, starting in Miss McKenzie’s Prep 4C at Arboretum Road in 1966, through to Mr Robertson’s VIII Mod class at Henderson Row, a decade later. He enjoyed a 34 year career working in sport at the BBC, joining at Radio Scotland’s Queen Margaret Drive in 1982 before heading south in 1987 to Broadcasting House and BBC Sport. He was latterly Head of Sport for English Regions, a role which as a Scot he always thought quite ironic. 
 

In episode six, Charles sits with Jazz Banks and discusses her experience as a student-athlete at the University of Central Michigan, as well as talking about her time playing hockey at EA and in the Scottish system. Jazz was a member of the U16, U16, U18 East of Scotland Squad from 2013-15, and became a member of the U18 Scotland Indoor Squad (2015). While at EA in her final year she scored an impressive 20 goals in the season. With the balance between her degree in Public Relations and Marketing and the student hockey commitments, it seems it was an incredibly demanding schedule.

If you missed the last episode with Rodger Arneil, you can view it here.