The sporting world has recognized that successfully engaging women and girls into a sporting activity requires distinct knowledge and coaching skills. Research has shown that girls leave sport at twice the rate of boys and 4 in 10 women involved in sport feel they are valued less than men because of their gender. It’s recognized that women face more challenges to progress in sports than men, and as a result, thousands of women and girls believe that they are simply not cut out for sport and competition. While progress is being made, there is still a long way to go. By completing this course, you and hundreds of US Squash coaches will be taking a leap in the right direction to bridge the ‘relevance gap’ in sport for women and girls and ensure it has more meaningful places in their lives.
Sport enriches girls’ lives far beyond mere athletics. Coaches can help develop important life skills like teamwork, leadership, and self-confidence. While many coaching strategies are effective for both genders, important biological and psychological differences between boys and girls warrant tailored coaching approaches. This course will highlight some of these differences and suggest strategies to help female players reach their psychological, social, and physical potential. It will provide coaches with the knowledge and resources to elevate their coaching skills for women and girl players as well as the tips and tricks to keep beginner women and girls wanting to come back for more!
This course is designed for coaches working with women and girls of all ages and levels. Through studying this course, coaches will be armed with a new understanding of the female player, enabling them to communicate better while facilitating common technical changes for female players. The information in this course will enhance knowledge of female physiology and anatomy, as well as the psychological relations between sport and women. At the end of this course, coaches should feel confident in their ability to deliver an engaging and successful coaching lesson/clinic/camp structured specifically towards women and girls. This course is not a lecture or a test, it is a tool to grow and impower. We hope that from this, coaches not only feel prepared to deliver lessons to women and girl beginners but driven to bring more female players through their club doors and into the squash world.
THE FEMALE ATHLETE
The first series of this course will be covering the physiological, psychological, and emotional factors to consider when coaching women and girls. There may come a time as a coach when you’re asked to adjust your style to accommodate the opposite gender or coach a group of athletes you may not be familiar with, and for some, that means coaching women or girls. This series will talk about the social pressures that female players face and what it takes as a coach to recognize and combat these pressures. It will also cover the physiological changes women and girls go through as their body’s develop. Understanding these changes will help coaches build a stronger and professional relationship with their female players.
