RELEASE FROM THE CANADIAN FREESTYLE SKI ASSOCIATION>>
The Canadian Freestyle Ski Association is proud to announce that after four years of development the Coaching Association of Canada has endorsed its Supercoach program. The endorsement means that all of CFSA’s coaching programs are now part of the National Coaching Certification Program (NCCP) national system that ensures consistency, excellence and best practices in coaching.
Supercoach is the core coaching program for the CFSA, bridging the entry-level club coach level with the advanced Competition Development coaches. Targeted at coaches who will train athletes aged 8 to 14 through the ‘learn to train’ and ‘train to train’ long-term athlete development stages, its graduate are equipped to lead progressive skill development in all freestyle disciplines.
CFSA Coach and Performance Program Manager Julie Steggall explained that the program has been in development for four years and to achieve certification, it had to make it through the CAC’s rigorous 54-step process.
“It was a real challenge, especially since our coaching materials had not been updated for 17 years,” said Steggall who spearheaded the program. “We had to completely create learning facilitator guides, manuals, and evaluation tools for air, moguls, slopestyle, halfpipe, and aerials.”
She added that developing the program was a collaborative process, drawing knowledge and input from top-level freestyle ski coaches and athletes across the country, in addition to experts from other disciplines like gymnastics, trampoline, and other snow sports.
“The Supercoach modules align with Canadian Sport 4 Life's long-term athlete development model and the Coaching Association of Canada's National Coaching Certification Program. These two national partners were supportive financially as well as providing professional guidance, all of which is embedded throughout all the modules,” said Steggall.
The Supercoach certification requires candidates to go through seven technical training modules and four NCCP sport modules, which include topics such as ethical decision-making practices and safety in sport. The program modules can be taken in one intensive four-week summer academy, or module-by-module over a two year period.
This year’s Supercoach academy is scheduled to take place in Whistler from July 1 to 28. Steggall said the CFSA is working with Provincial Sport Associations to target key clubs and programs that will benefit from Supercoach certified leadership.
Anyone interested in any of CFSA’s coaching programs, including Supercoach, can get more information at http://freestyleski.com/wp/coach/training-programs/ or can contact Steggall at: coaches@freestyleski.com
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About the Canadian Freestyle Ski Association
The Canadian Freestyle Ski Association is the governing body in Canada for the sport of Freestyle Skiing. With the support of its valued corporate partners like Columbia; and, the Government of Canada, the Canadian Olympic Committee, and Own the Podium, the CFSA develops Olympic and world champions in all disciplines of the sport.
For more information about the CFSA, visit us at www.freestyleski.com.