What It Takes To Coach In Para-Sports?
Para-sports is one of the highly motivating and impactful careers one can opt for, as they allow a person to help in maximizing the potential of athletes with disabilities through competitive sports. In para-sports, essentially all the classifications are done for athletes with various impairments-to include physical, intellectual, and sensory impairments-and the coaches need to be passionate about sports, yet understand the different needs of the para-athletes. Training For Diverse Needs At its very core, it is not different from regular sports coaching of athletes to get the best from them. In para-sports coaching, the challenges come through the variability in the conditions that an athlete carries with him/her. For example, an athlete may have cerebral palsy or spinal cord injury or visual impairment, among others. Every session for any athlete has to be individualistic, based upon the athlete’s limitations, abilities, and expectations. In other words, like able-bodied, para-athletes might necessitate more significant adaptations in gear, techniques or facilities when it comes to accessibility and security. Psychological And Emotional Challenge Probably, the most important component of working with para-athletes is developing an environment that will allow acceptance and integration. Most para-athletes experience stigma and discrimination within society and this is really tough to be able to defeat. Psychological and emotional issues are really challenging in nature as it includes the struggle for equality within the world of sports as well as in the community. Addressing these issues in his speech on The Sportz Planet SportSci Summit Season 2, was major Dr. Maj Ameya Kagali, quite a popular persona in para-sports. On the urgent call for greater appreciation and understanding needed across society at large and even through the fraternity sports, Dr Kagali mentioned. According to him, it’s not only about training but also providing the athlete with that feeling that makes them valued and supported. He said that acceptance goes beyond accommodating the physical needs of the athletes in order to change mindsets. His points stressed that the role of the coach is key to this transformation and creates an environment where the athlete can safely exist without the risk of discrimination and bias. Acquiring Adaptive Skills and Know-How Besides, paralympic coaches require more information on general adaptive techniques as well as on specific information. For instance, they should understand how the variety of disabilities will affect motor abilities and performance during athletics. Adaptive training on particular equipment can take the form, for instance: a wheelchair, or prosthetics, or even specialized visor wear for the sightless athlete. Professional development and innovation in the knowledge of new technologies or methods is an essential technique for para-sports coaches. Para-Sports Resource Constraints Finding resources is one of the major dilemmas that the coaches face while participating in para-sports. Mainstream sports offer most money and sponsorship, hence most of the media attention often goes to those sports thus not being as appealing as mainstream ones. This means that facilities or adaptive gear of quality and all other qualified assistants are always wanting in para-sports. Innovativeness of resource utilization becomes therefore essential in this regard, since most of the coaches must deliver on the shoestring. Effects Of Para-Sports Coaching Skills involved in serving para-sports are multi-angled and aligned to the cognizance of disabilities, incorporating athletic training which is replete with emotional care. A coach needs to be flexible, ingenious, and dedicated to conquering the problems attendant upon this very specialized field of sports. As Dr. Kagali aptly said once again, the future of para-sports would depend on how the community embraced athletes for their abilities rather than disabilities. Indeed, the work of coaches makes a great difference because it breaks barriers for the athletes, builds their self-esteem, and even enables them to realize their dreams. In this manner, para-sports coaching can change the story’s course, open ways to acceptance, recognition and success. The Sportz Planet Desk,Atharva Shetye
