Institute of Sport Hosts Paralympics Ireland Coach Development Workshop

11 Coaches from 7 Paralympic Sports attended a day long coach development seminar in the Irish Institute of Sport. The seminar is part of a successful collaboration between Paralympics Ireland, Coaching Ireland and the Irish Institute of Sport. The aim of the coach development programme is to provide leading edge professional support to coaches who provide key coaching support to top Paralympics athletes in the final phase of preparation for the London 2012 Paralympic Games.

Gary Keegan, Director, Institute of Sport stated ‘Paralympics Ireland are a key high performance partner to the Institute of Sport. We are delighted to offer some of our key experts and facilities to assist Paralympics Ireland as they continue to provide top quality support to their athletes and coaches in the lead in to the 2012 Games. Working closely with Coaching Ireland, in 2011 we hope to expand our high performance coach development programme in order to support top high performance coaches as they meet the demands of international competition’

February 8th 2011: Gary Keegan, Director, Institute of Sport gives coaches from Paralympics Ireland a tour of the Institute of Sport facility

The daylong seminar was attended by coaches from the following Paralympic sports; Football, Equestrian, Table Tennis, Swimming, Rowing, Archery and Athletics. The central theme for the workshop focused on best practice case studies demonstrating how coaches utilize specialist science and medicine support in the coaching process. Jim Lafferty, Head Coach, from Paralympic Swimming collaborated with Toni Rossiter, Physiologist, Institute of Sport, to present a leading edge case study on how physiological assessment has assisted the development and management of Paralympic swimmers in training and competition. Coaches also witnessed a case study presentation from Daragh Sheridan, Head Coach, CPSI Football Team and Alan Swanton, Performance Analyst, Institute of Sport, detailing application and delivery of a performance analysis service at the 2010 CPISRA European Football Championships in Scotland where the team went on to secure a European Bronze Medal.

Nancy Chillingworth, Performance Director, Paralympics Ireland commented ‘The provision of professional development support to our top coaches is a critical goal in our London 2012 preparations. Coaches are central to top athlete performance and today’s case studies provided invaluable examples of how sport science principles are being applied into the coaching process within Paralympic sports. We are delighted to collaborate with Coaching Ireland and the Institute of Sport in providing this critical support to our coaches’

The seminar concluded with a workshop focusing on  key lifestyle management strategies for coaches. The workshop which was presented by Daragh Sheridan, Head of Performance Skills in the Institute of Sport, highlighted a range of key lifestyle issues that can impair coaching performance. A critical emphasis was placed on the development of key life skills that are designed to enable coaches to manage the demands of their lifestyle. Life skills examples include: time management, problem solving, goal setting and relationship management.

Declan O’Leary, Head of Coaching Services; Coaching Ireland stated ‘Coaching Ireland is delighted to be part of this exciting coaching support programme. We aim to complete 3 workshop seminars in 2011 that are designed to address the key performance needs of Paralympic coaches in the run in to the London 2012 games. In tandem with the direct learning approach that a workshop offers, we will also be offering a mentorship service for coaches to access critical expertise and guidance as they wish throughout 2011’