Coach development

Annual Conference on Athletic Development

James in practical session

In the early hours of tomorrow morning I fly to Houston to attend the GAIN conference for 5 days. This will be my 5th visit to Vern Gambetta’s athletic development masterclass.

There is no other conference like it: containing a mixture of practical sessions, lectures, talks and discussions. The diverse range of backgrounds of people includes:

• p.e. teachers
• physiotherapists
• athletic trainers
• athletics coaches
• football coaches
• strength and conditioning coaches
• wrestling coaches
• and me.

This means that any discussion about athletes is benefits from many different perspectives, with all of the people having one goal: getting their athletes better.

The sessions start at 0630 (although me and my roomate Andy Stone start at 0545) and run through until 2200.

This is a chance for me to learn, discuss and share ideas that will translate into practical sessions for all our athletes when I return. It also helps me run the coach education workshops as I get a very detailed look at coaching processes and latest ideas from World Class coaches who are leading their fields.

Watch this space for updates.