Becoming a Triathlon Coach
Serpentine currently uses a mix of third party (external) coaching and coaching provided by qualified volunteer Serpentine coaches assisted by experienced members. We would like to increase the number of qualified triathlon coaches in the club so that we can provide better training oportunities for our membership. Our coaches all volunteer their services and financial support is available to coaches of all standards to help them progress through the British Triathlon ‘Coach Education Programme‘.
If you are interested please contact the Committee triathlon coaching rep to talk about how you can help out the club through coaching. Alternatively you can speak to any of the club’s regular coaches about their experiences and see if you can help out in their sessions before you go on the relevant British Triathlon course.
The information below is taken from the British Triathlon website and is correct as of October 2007. Please visit the British Triathlon website to read more about the Coach Education Programme, the individual levels, how to book a course and and the dates/locations of coach training courses across the UK.
The ‘Coach Education Programme’
The British Triathlon Coach Education Programme has been produced in conjunction with Sports Coach UK to improve the quality and consistency of triathlon coaching at all levels throughout the UK. The course content has been developed in line with the UK Coaching Certificate (UKCC). The programme currently consists of three levels of award, catering for basic skills for groups through to developing performance training for individual athletes.
British Triathlon Coaching Awards have been designed to:
- Promote quality triathlon coaching
- Place an emphasis on the “HOW to coach skills”, applied to the technical elements of triathlon
- Be athlete-centred
- Ensure best practice amongst coaches
- Promote continuing professional development amongst coaches throughout their coaching career.
To ensure high quality and consistent delivery, all courses are delivered by trained British Triathlon Coach Education Tutors, who have a wealth of triathlon and coaching knowledge and expertise. Support for coaches is also provided at a local level by a team of Regional Development Officers and Coaching Coordinators.
1st4sport Level 1 CCTRI (Assistant Coach)
What is involved? The L1CCTRI is an inclusive 3 day course delivered over 2 weekends. The Level 1 Coach has an assistant role in a session, normally supporting Level 2 or 3 coaches. This course is interactive and involves group discussion, presentations and most importantly practical coaching experiences throughout all three disciplines. Throughout the course, you will be introduced to the HOW 2 COACH skills, eg, how to build rapport, how 2 demonstrate etc and apply this to the technical skill development components of triathlon.
The Level 1 coaching role has been defined as: “assist more qualified coaches, delivering aspects of coaching sessions, normally under direct supervision”
1st4sport Level 2 CCTRI (Session Coach)
What is involved? The L2CCTRI is now a 5 day course, delivered over 3 weekends. This course is interactive and involves group discussion, presentations and most importantly practical coaching experiences throughout all three disciplines. It has been designed to build on the training and experience gained at Level 1 to further develop skills as a triathlon coach and broaden the remit of a coach. Throughout the course, you will be introduced to more of the “HOW 2 COACH” skills and apply this to the technical components of triathlon.
1st4sport Level 3 CCTRI (Development Coach)
What is involved? The L3CCTRI is now an 8 day course, delivered at weekends, over the course of a 3 month period. This course is both interactive and involves group discussion, presentations and most importantly practical coaching experiences throughout all three disciplines. It has been designed to build on the training and experience gained at Level 2 to further develop your skills as a triathlon coach and broaden the remit of a coach even further to include one to one coaching. Throughout the course, you will be introduced to more specific skills of working with individual athletes on a one to one basis.
The Level 3 qualification is designed for individuals who are dedicated to coaching and want to improve in both knowledge (triathlon and coaching) and practical skills or coaching. This is reflected in the length of the course, the cost and the course content.
The course is designed to build on the Level 2 course, where coaches will be introduced for the first time in their coaching development to the interdisciplinary nature of sport science and annual planning for coaching on a 1-2-1 basis with individual athletes, from novice to age-group level, and covers more advanced swimming, cycling and running techniques. In addition to the discipline modules, coaching will be introduced to delivering field based testing methods, i.e. non-laboratory tests.