Aspire Academy today inaugurated the second annual Youth Athletics Coaching Congress in cooperation with the Qatar Athletic Federation (QAF) and the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA). The event, which will run until Tuesday October 20, brings together a large panel of internationally-recognised coaches and sport science specialists to discuss future development in the athletics industry.
Over three days the high-profile speakers are sharing their profound knowledge about different topics related to the development of youth athletes and more than 250 people registered for this year’s edition of the event. 40 of them are coming from outside of the country and among the people in the audience is also a great number of coaches from Qatari clubs, local and international schools.
Mr. Dahlan Al Hamad, President of the QAF and the Asian Athletics Association (AAA) and Vice President of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF); Mr. Ivan Bravo, Director General of Aspire Academy, and Mr. Vahid Kardany, representative from the OCA, welcomed the attendees to the congress and wished them fruitful and productive discussions that positively contribute to the growth of athletics in the region. “Sport has developed from being a hobby to being a science that we must study. We have to adapt to the new concept of sport and in order to do so we need to have qualified coaches. This is one of the most important factors for the success of athletes. If a coach is able to develop an athlete with the right foundation, and if he provides the appropriate coaching guidance, then he can create a champion”,
Before the congress started with first topic, a panel discussion on the “Journey to Excellence” took place, that featured the South African former long-distance runner and Olympic medalist Elana Meyer from South Africa, as well as three outstanding Qatari track-and-field athletes: high jump World Champion and Aspire Academy graduate Mutaz Essa Barshim, middle-distance runner Musaeb Abdulrahman Balla and endurance runner Abubaker Haydar, another Aspire graduate. They talked about their journey, the importance of coaches in their careers and what challenges they had to overcome in order to make the step from youth to senior level.
Following that, a number of technique breakout sessions focusing on running, jumping and throwing were held and the day concluded with a number of practical breakout sessions focusing on the same topics. Day two of the congress will focus on the theme of “Training Elements” and will include event-specific training theory sessions, as well as gym and nutrition masterclass sessions
