Coaches must face up to the challenges

Coaches as Problems

It is an unfortunate fact that even though each of the national sports associations involved in the Grassroots Talent identification programme has been provided with funding to offer coaches a stipend to participate in the activities on Saturdays, the vast majority are unwilling to do so. They have no interest in giving anything back after having benefited from the training.

Additionally there are some coaches who seek a stipend that defies logic. For example, for a three-four session on a Saturday there are some coaches who believe that they should be paid a stipend of just under $100.00. If that were permitted such coaches would be among the highest paid persons paid a per hour rate anywhere in St Vincent and the Grenadines.

There are still other coaches who reveal themselves as bad examples for athletes and for the organisations they represent. They do not pay any attention to punctuality, mode of dress or sports etiquette. Their manner of communicating with athletes, however young, is reprehensible, driving athletes into a mode of either working in fear of them or leaving the sport at a very early stage without ever realising their talent in the particular sporting discipline.

Interestingly, it is these same coaches who do not give anything back, who fail to prepare scientifically sound development programmes for athletes who are among the first to make noises about not being allowed to travel with national representative teams abroad.

Facilities

At the most recent General Council of the NOC, Wednesday 31 October 2007, affiliates lamented the immense difficulties experienced in accessing appropriate facilities for the development of their sport.

They bemoaned the inordinate share of the facilities pie that is given over to cricket while the several other disciplines scramble to access a blade of grass on which to convince athletes that their particular sorting disciplines are attractive.