Modern Theory & Practice of Coaching for Sporting Excellence

Each athlete is a “product” of the professional experience of his or her coach, whose knowledge and skills determine the quality of this “product.” The modern level of sporting achievement creates demands on the professional knowledge and skills of specialists involved in the training of athletes. At the same time, it should be known that the long-term process of training an athlete, from youth sports to the highest levels, is largely conditional, because mistakes made by coaches at any stage of this path can keep the athlete from reaching full potential.

Sports specialists should understand that the object of their activity is the human body and its complex relationship with the environment, and that the laws of physiology are the only ones on which the theory and methodology of sports can be based on. An athlete in all the diversity of his or her life manifestations is a part of nature, subject to its laws. That’s why the goals of any individual athlete can only be realized if his or her actions are based on knowledge of the laws of nature. Human sports activity cannot be an exception to the rule. At the same time, the athlete’s body is a special mechanism, functioning according to general physiological laws, but always in accordance with the specifics of his main sports activity, which inevitably makes significant training adjustments necessary. Thus, the long-term training of an athlete is an initially physiological process, and then a pedagogical one.

The skill of a coach depends, firstof all, on the depth of his or her professional knowledge, and on his or her ability to use this knowledge in the work environment. The coach is obliged to possess modern knowledge in his or her profession. Furthermore, educators who teach coaches need to learn the text from the poster in front of the entrance to Stellenbosch University (South Africa): “The destruction of any nation does not require the use of atomic bombs or the use of long-range missiles. Only a decrease in the quality of education is required! ”