Athlete to coach: case study series

British Athletics’ Athlete to Coach programme aims to provide athletes transitioning into coaching with the competencies required to gain a UKA accredited coaching licence.

The programme – which is open to athletes who have represented Great Britain and Northern Ireland or their Home Country as a senior – is run over five consecutive days and is made up of classroom and practical activity, plus an assessment. The process is outlined in detail on the UK Athletics website.

Athlete to Coach is not a short cut into coaching, but a bespoke programme designed to challenge the learner to shift their thinking from that of an elite athlete to one of a coach.

This short series focuses on a recent cohort of participant athletes. It asks what motivated them to apply, what they’ve learned from the process, and what advice they would share with others considering this route into coaching.

Athlete name: Christine Ohuruogu

Qualification awarded: Athletics Coach

“I thought it was a really good idea to forge together my knowledge with actual coaching strategies and principles. It’s really important that we’re able to formalise what we know and also how to pass that knowledge on.

“One of the biggest learnings I took from the course was knowing that just because you do something one way doesn’t mean that it’s the only way to get it done. I think attempting to coach this week has made us see that you have to account for different types of people with different types of learning styles, different ways of seeing information, different ways of processing information and different ways of interpreting information, so you really have to be as broad as possible in your delivery.

“I just think there are really important techniques you learn from this course, simple things like being patient with other people, learning how to listen, and not just assuming that your way is the only way to get stuff done. There are really important principles you can take away from the course that are helpful in other situations too, not just coaching.”