THE PROJECT

Physical activity and participation in team sports is highly recommended, especially at early ages, where young people can find a direct link with a sports discipline that offers them what they need to practice it for a long time. This is one of the challenges we have today, that our young people feel identified with a sport and that they enter a healthy lifestyle where they can relate to the positive values that sport can bring them. Hence the importance of finding coaches/motivators who can inspire young people and work with them in an inclusive way where they all feel involved in the activities and are important members of the team.

Here the role of the coach/motivator and their social skills are crucial to achieve the most productive relationship possible with the athletes and their staff    thus bringing out the best in the team. When we talk about bringing out the best in the team, we do not only refer to the results they achieve, but also to the capacity of identification that the young people have with the team and with the sport in general. We know that young people who participate in a physical activity with a strong caring environment develop greater empathy for their peers and express greater interest in future participation

We want to avoid situations of anxiety for young people, which may come from training methods or low participation in training or matches. These possible situations can be controlled with adequate preparation and putting into practice social skills such as Emotional Intelligence (EI)

We have witnessed how sports practice has often become achievement focused activities designed to achieve success and in that way sometimes the perspective and importance of processes is lost. We have experience that shows us how in certain occasions the leadership that a coach can have influences the direct results of the athletes.

The factors that we consider that can be influenced by a coach are among others:

• Interest in practicing sport

• Learning ability

• Skills in social development

• Concern in good practices

Sometimes the problem of not applying the right leadership style comes from not knowing the right tools and not being prepared to use them. We have seen how poor management of emotions and leadership styles have ended up with burned-out athletes abandoning sports practice, with the consequences that this entails. We have also seen how a correct use of the lifeskills has achieved very successful results, thanks to a more adequate management of the situations where the importance of  the relationships has a very significant role.

The project will follow 3 key objectives: