Celebrate "Sports Day"

An active lifestyle is vitally important - regardless of age, ability level, or amount of commitment. September 18th is Sports Day. Encourage somebody to get involved, be more active, or volunteer. For more info, go to cbc.ca or click the link:

http://www.participaction.com/en-us/SportsDayinCanada/SportsDayInCanada.aspx

Why they play

Never lose sight of why people, the very young to the quite old, play sports. In general, there are three main reasons that vary in importance during a sport career - enjoy the sport, spend time with friends, improve in the sport. Coaches need to be mindful of why athletes participate. For a child, they may be trying the sport for sheer enjoyment purposes. For a teenage or varsity athlete, they may be trying to increase skill sets in order to reach a next level. For adults, sport may offer a regular gathering of friends with like interests.

That said, a coach or leader is entrusted with many important responsibilities, some of which are listed below:

• provide a safe environment
• make the sport appealing to their audience, even if the athlete is paid
  
• improve the ability of the athlete through appropriate instruction and challenges
  
• understand the participant's goals and help them towards achievement
• make the sport experience positive so that participation continues and it is looked back upon with fondness