Sports Central’s Coaches Club initiative begins its last series of the year in Wanaka next week, with three events over the next five weeks.

This series boasts an experienced lineup of presenters: In one session Cycling New Zealand’s Chris Foggin will present a coach’s guide to learning skills and in another session Bridget Meyer from the Halberg Foundation will speak on how to be an inclusive coach. 

In the third event Netball South’s Georgie Bryce, the Otago Rugby Football Union’s Aaron Callaghan and Sport Otago’s Grant Milne will tackle the thorny issue of how to give young athletes the best chance to succeed in the long run.

“These presentations will be of interest to parents, athletes, coaches and sports administrators,” Sports Central’s Wanaka-based community sport advisor Tiny Carruthers said.

Tiny said Coaches Club has grown in popularity in the past two years with more than 120 coaches having attended at least one of the previous sessions.

Young bike riders are given coaching tips on how best to ride the jumps at Lismore Park. PHOTO: Bikevember

Each of these presentations is free to attend but pre-registration is essential. Details of how to register for Coaches Club can be found on the Sport Otago website here or email Tiny at [email protected].

In addition to these three club events, local coaches are also invited to participate in a nation-wide virtual coaching conference at the end of November.

The ‘Connecting Coaches’ conference is an Otago wide initiative with four keynote speakers, including Dame Noeline Taurua and Jamie Joseph, presenting on the theme of adapting coaching in a changing world. Wanaka’s Nico Porteous will also make a presentation.

Tiny said coaches could “zoom in” from home but he was encouraging those interested to come together at the Wanaka Recreation Centre which will act as a hub for the conference, where discussions and ideas could be shared after each presentation.

The conference will be held online on November 27 and 28, including an opportunity for coaches to connect at a happy hour at 5:30pm at Urban Grind on the Friday evening (November 27). Registrations, which cost $99 for the two days including the happy hour, are required. To register go to the Sport Otago website here or email Tiny at [email protected].

The virtual conference is a new initiative in response to the pandemic, recognising that attending conferences in these uncertain times is unlikely, Tiny said. For more details about the conference click here.