Testimonials

What the experts say about us

What the Professionals say about Nino Severino

Creator and founder of The Hub

Leon Smith

Ex Coach to Andy Murray, Davis Cup World Champion Coach, Head of Men’s Great Britain Tennis

I have known Nino Severino for several years in his capacity as coach to Elena Baltacha. In October 2011 I took up the position as Head of British Tennis at the LTA which brought a close working relationship with Nino. I have nothing but high praise for the quality of coaching that Nino has to offer. He is hugely motivational, hard working, very organised and has good communication skills.

He has many years of experience as a Tour coach on the WTA circuit and will be able to use this expertise to help develop the next generation of talented players that he works with.

Leon Smith is ex-coach to Sir Andy Murray who eventually went on to become a multi Grand Slam and Olympic Champion. The prestigious Davis Cup was awarded to Leon Smith’s world beating team which included both Sir Andy Murray and Jamie Murray.
Leon Smith and Andy Murray

Nigel Sears

Ex Head of British Womens Tennis, Former Coach to Grand Slam Champion,
Ana Ivanovic and Emma Raducanu.

Nino did a tremendous job as coach/mentor to Bally, working one on one on the tour is an intense business and he handled it very well. He is always open to advice when it is given and he takes his role very seriously. Their results speak for themselves.

Having worked alongside Nino Severino and Elena Baltacha during my time spent with the LTA as Head Coach of Women’s Tennis…both at home in the UK and at many tournaments abroad, I would have no hesitation in recommending him very highly. Nino has a gift for managing athletes across most sports and a unique skill set of pulling everything together.

He has a clear vision of the pathway forward for whoever he works with and helps to package their programme in meticulous fashion pulling everything together in a very positive team environment.

Nigel Sears and Ana Ivanovic

Abbie Thorrington

Official EIS World Class Athlete and British International Triathlete.

Before meeting Nino I was unsure whether my childhood dream of becoming an Olympic athlete would progress into adulthood. At the time I was competing both Nationally and Internationally at swimming, cycling and triathlon. Although I was physically fit through being very active, when it came to race day I suffered with stomach pains, and in some cases it resulted in a DNF due to the massive amount of pain I was in.

My parents were always massively supportive and tried looking for ways to sort the stomach pains out, from seeing private specialists, speaking to different coaches and funding me to begin working with Nino. At the time we were unsure whether any of
these methods would work, and we were still unsure whether the pains were due to nervousness or a physiological problem.

However if I am completely honest working with Nino over the course of around 3 years helped me massively, and the stomach pains started to go. Not only did Nino work on the physical aspects of training to get me fitter, but also nutritional factors which are very important.

However the greatest influence Nino had was to give me confidence in myself and my own ability. Still to this day I am unsure how he did this, but I feel that if my parents would not have funded me to work with Nino my sporting aspirations could have turned out very differently.

As for today I am currently training, and am funded by UK Sport as a full time triathlete at the National High Performance Centre for triathlon in Loughborough. Since working with Nino I went on and continue to be a regular GB international athlete, competing on a European and World stage. My ultimate aim is to achieve 2012 Olympic selection and become an Olympic Champion.

Abbie Thorrington
GB International

English Institute of Sport

Abbie Thorrington belongs to the exclusive club of Official EIS World Class Athlete’s, she competed in British, European and world Championships.

Elena Baltacha-Severino and Nino at an Olympic event at the ITFC stadium
Abbie Thorrington swimming
Abbie Thorrington running
Abbie Thorrington cycling

Louis Cayer

Head of High Performance Coaching for the LTA, Davis Cup Coach to Andy and Jamie Murray, World Renowned Technical and Tactical Tennis Specialist.

“I am also involved with National Teams: Davis Cup, Fed Cup and Olympics and coach presently the 2016 doubles men International champion Jamie Murray.
I mentioned the above to highlight the fact that I consider myself highly qualified to spot not only talented players but also talented hard working coaches. It is difficult to rank coaches compared to players where competitions lead to define a ranking amongst them. But at least I feel I can rank coaches amongst categories like excellent, very good, good, fair, and poor.

In the case of Nino whom I met when he was coaching Elena Baltacha I immediately saw a high performance coach as for me it is not the sport you coach that really matters but the transformation you can accomplish on a performer in relation to identity, beliefs, values, attitude, mind-set and mental skills and Nino already accomplished a huge transformation with Elena who was now #1 in UK and top 50 WTA players, which is a great accomplishment.

I like that he has high demands but also provide high support and caring which is essential. His personality and his background in martial art provide immediately an environment of discipline and excellence.

In addition to this Nino was so experience in the physical side where most of the tennis coaches aren’t. He was able to gage the working load of Elena and improve greatly her fitness and her on court movement which explained also her ascension to the top of international tennis. He was always aware of potential injury and would know how to adapt not only a macrocycle but also a single lesson when needed based on the player.

He is so professional, knowledgeable in all areas that I felt he was also a tennis expert as he understood quickly the demand of the game and was able to lead Elena and her support team. His confidence is contagious and he is able to inspire and lead easily players and support team. His communications skills back this up perfectly as he is able to explain from his sport science background everything which a player needs to do to perform to his/her best abilities while also plan the working load and specific exercises to avoid injuries and maximise regeneration.

Louis Cayer

Martyn Waghorn

Derby County Football Club Professional Player and Hub Ambassador.

From my first meeting with Nino we connected instantly on everything performance and sport related. That led me to start training with Nino and from there I noticed a big change in my approach to sport and how I view my game.

He developed a team around me which gave me a platform to perform and improve. Ben the S&C coach, Chris – nutritionist, Alistair – physio and Nino himself – the movement coach.

With the help and guidance from these 4 professionals we were able to identify key areas I needed to improve or work on in order to get the best out of myself and maximise my potential.

With Nino’s guidance, programme management and strategic sessions I felt huge benefits in my whole game.

The way Nino helps athletes think and mentally prepare the mind has really helped me learn how to structure my thoughts around my sport a lot clearer. His attention to detail was second to none but what was also very important to me was we built a great friendship, which made working together very enjoyable.

Martyn Waghorn has used the services and consultancies of The Hub.

MARTYN WAGHORN

Anne Keothavong

Great Britain Tennis Captain, Ex Professional WTA Tennis Play, Olympian, Commentator and Presenter for BT Sport.

I’ve known Nino for many years from my time as a professional tennis player, to my current position as Great Britain’s Fed Cup Captain. I’ve witnessed how he motivates and inspires young people, on and off the tennis court, to better themselves. For this, I can highly recommend Nino as someone who could work well within a team, and demand high standards at all times.
Anne Keothavong

Helen Davies

GB International and Former British No.1 Marathon Runner and Hub Ambassador.

In November 2018, mine and Nino paths crossed. It has been the best thing that has happened in recent years to progress my rather mature international running career.
I asked for some help in social media following a team England marathon in Canada, where I had a much better than expected performance. I asked if anyone knew where I could get some fitness testing done. As a result I was passed Nino’s contact details and shown an article in the local press about his plans regarding The Sports Hub. I sent an email, and within a week a meeting was set up.

The first meeting with myself and my Coach Clive had with Nino and his team is a day I will never forget. He was so attentive to our needs, and enthralled by my story.

He was happy to provide support In any areas we needed. We were made to feel special and supported. We knew we were in the safe hands.

Key areas identified in the first instance where nutrition and testing. Following this meeting Nino set up a meeting with Wez from Muhdo health to organise DNA and EPIGENTICS testing to look at my needs in detail. I was then given detailed fitness testing and biomechanics testing within weeks at The Hub, with the skilled sports Scientists there to get some bench mark data down. To follow on from this I was given exceptional support from a lead nutritionist at the HPU in Colchester, giving me detailed diet plans of intake to support my training demands, optimise recovery and also race day fuelling plans and use of supplements. This support has been imperative to the marginal gains I need to find at the sharp end of my sport, to be a success.

Nino and his excellent team have been available to me whenever I need, for whatever I need and will provide ongoing support, and advice.

Most recently I had a breakdown of my S&C set up after my World championships. I approached Wez Pooley who is an S&C coach for the The HUB with my concerns, with in a matter of days Nino had organised me sponsorship at the FTC whom they have a great relationship with, and alongside this an exceptional S&C coach to work with twice a week, who has brought me huge performance gains within a matter of weeks! This kind of support is essential, and its peace of mind to know I have the use of these excellent facilities, set up and structure in place and that I am working with the right people to get the best possible performances when it matters.

In January Nino arranged with his partners at the HPU in Colchester for me to go and have some extensive treadmill testing done ahead of my year opening 10k race. My S&C coach attended with me, the professional set up at the HPU was exceptional and the testing went perfectly. The information provided gave me confirmation that I could run at quicker than my PB pace in the race 10 days later, resulting in a win and 30second PB. Proof of how important this can be to performance and providing information about current fitness and training zones, imperative to an elite athlete wanting ensure they get the best result from every training session.

Just today Nino has arranged a meet with his team nutritionist Gemma, to allow her to monitor my nutrition more closely throughout my programming and training build up for London Marathon in April, and I will be doing a daily hydration test to monitor this with the support of Niño’s lead sports Scientist Lindsay, both these things will give me even more opportunities to find more marginal gains.

Nino has opened so many doors for me, and given me excellent opportunities, and a complete network of support. He has integrated the whole of my team and his team, to include my running coach, s&c coach, physio, nutritionist, psychology, and sports science into all that we do, and brought it all together, taking the stress and pressure off me and allowing me to totally focus on my training and recovery.

Nino himself has a world of experience and knowledge and I find the close contact we keep and the regular meetings are hugely beneficial opportunities to keep me motivated, positive and looking towards my future running career and professional career beyond that. He inspires me and gives me confidence and mental strength.

I have had an incredible 2019, including my hat trick of wins at Brighton Marathon and a PB at the distances, PB’s and SB’s over all over distances, and selection by British Athletics to run for Team GB at the World 50k Championships in Romania in September, where I ran a British record, was individual silver medalist and team Gold medalist, and placed 3rd on the World ALL TIME list for 50k. I could not have achieved what I did in 2019 without The Hub, without Nino, and 2020 is shaping up nicely already and with the continued excellent support which is ongoing and evolving, I can see this being my best year yet.

Helen Davies
Helen Davies VO2 Max

In no way shape or form is Abbie Thorrington, Nigel Sears,  Helen Davies, Louis Cayer, Leon Smith and Anne Keothavong associated with or endorses The Hub.