The 16 participants of the ADVANCE European Coaching Education have just started their ten-month journey of developing and improving their badminton coaching skills and competencies. The first course of the Erasmus+ supported education took place in the city of Holbæk, Denmark, from 14 to 18 September 2022.
16 coaches from 13 different European countries are willing to share knowledge and new inputs with each other. The proactivity, eagerness to learn and ambition to become a better coach have been key ingredients to getting it started.
The first day began with an ice-breaking session that allowed coaches and tutors to get to know each other. Consecutively, the coaching philosophy was one of the hot potato topics of the day, where all the coaches were challenged on defining their coaching philosophies and how to turn it into specific daily actions.
Jacob Oehlenschlaeger, BEC Development & High-Performance Senior Manager and ADVANCE’s Manager stated:
“We have been waiting for this since the day we initiated the idea of the ADVANCE project. It was great to finally get started with the education. The participants were very committed and got off to a good start. I’m really looking forward to the upcoming courses and discussing more badminton related topics with them”.
The cherry on top of the cake came with a special guest, Matias Camino, Head coach of Holbæk Basketball club, who joined the course to convey his inspiring and remarkable personal and professional growth within his career as a coach.
Nathan Van der Bruggen (BEL), badminton coach and Shuttle time coordinator, shared also his first experience as a participant in this ADVANCE course:
“I loved how the different sports come with different approaches sometimes, but in the end, we do the same, we work with people. I’m not sure if I can exactly copy it but for sure I will be able to use his approach with some of my players”.
On the second day of the course, Kenneth Larsen (PhD), former national coach of Denmark, mistook the opportunity to chip in with his experience on learning theories and communication styles. Topics that will be worked on throughout the whole education.
The first course addressed multiple topics such as the practical implementation of learning theories in badminton, the development of a badminton coaching modell and the development or creating excellent learning environments for kids.
The next physical encounter of the ADVANCE European Badminton Coaching Education will take place in the Netherlands, from 4 - 8 January 2023. Meanwhile, the coaches of the education will continue developing their coaching skills and understanding of badminton through online meetings with their individually assigned mentors.