Coaching an athlete with a disability can be an intimidating prospect, but a new toolkit from Paralympics New Zealand looks to change that.

PNZ has launched LevelUp a new series of online modules for sports coaches. The modules are designed to help coaches gain the skills and confidence to coach disabled athletes. 

“This is a really important resource for the sector,” says Paralympics New Zealand CEO Greg Warnecke.

“It removes a barrier that has stopped disabled people from being able to participate in sport.  

“The initiative has been borne out of coaches telling us that they are scared of doing the wrong thing, or they don’t know how to coach disabled athletes. LevelUp will help them coach effectively and creatively – and most importantly give them the confidence to include everyone.”

The free-to-use resources have been designed with coaches, to make sure they are fit for purpose.

They cover topics such as “What is Para sport?”, terminology, classification, and coaching considerations for a wide range of impairments – from limb deficiencies to intellectual impairment.

The material complements existing coach development resources provided by National Sport Organisations.

PNZ community partner ACC are excited to support this initiative.

“What we love about LevelUp is that it’s for coaches in any sport, no matter whether they’re just starting out, or looking to grow their coaching skills. Everyone can benefit,” says ACC CEO Megan Main.

“At ACC we see first-hand the value of active recreation in rehabilitation after an accident. That’s why we’re excited about the impact LevelUp is going to have for disabled New Zealanders.”

Wheelchair rugby – Gareth Lynch, left, and Hayden Barton-Cootes.

Para athletics coach Steve O’Kane believes the modules would have saved him “hundreds of hours” of looking for the information on his own.

“The LevelUp modules would have given me such progress with my coaching of disabled athletes,” says O’Kane.  

“I’ve been coaching for over 20 years, but when I first started with Para athletes five years ago, I had no experience at all. I had no knowledge of how their condition was going to impact on their participation in athletics.”

Paralympics New Zealand is hoping to inspire all coaches to take the same journey as O’Kane and include disabled athletes into their coaching – but without the hundreds of hours of study.

Designed to be absorbed in bite-size chunks, the courses are easy for coaches to access in their own time, at their own pace.

They are hosted on Sport Tutor – the Sport NZ learning platform already used by many National Sport Organisations for coach development.

As O’Kane puts it: “Grab the opportunity. Sign up for this course. Both you and your athletes will grow.”

“The LevelUp modules would have given me such progress with my coaching of disabled athletes,” says Para coach Steve O’Kane. 

What is LevelUp?

• LevelUp is a series of online modules for coaching disabled athletes no matter whether you are just starting out or want to grow your skills.
• It is a free and accessible training course for coaches. It’s available on the Sport NZ learning platform, Sport Tutor. That means you can learn in your own time, at your own pace.
• LevelUp resources are made up of nine modules. Once you complete the first 2 modules, it will unlock seven additional impairment specific modules.

For more information visit: https://paralympics.org.nz/levelup/