Adapt To New Realities Says HPC Chair Talemo Waqa

Coaches and team managers will have to change their approach to coaching and how they manage their athletes amidst the restrictions of COVID19 and the challenges it represents says Fiji Association of Sports and National Olympic Committee's (FASANOC) High Performance Commission Chairperson Talemo Waqa.

Talemo, who is also an Oceania Sports Education Programme(OSEP) Mentor, recently facilitated the training and education of coaches and team managers hoping to be members of Team Fiji to the 2022 Pacific Mini Games and Commonwealth Games.

"We now have a new norm so to speak so they need to be innovative and think outside the box in the management of their athletes and teams," he said.

"It is also important that coaches and team managers adapt to different ways of coaching and training especially with all the restrictions and challenges they face nowadays."

Talemo said there are certain measures that OSEP and FASANOC are working on with coaches and team officials to ensure athletes are well prepared and ready to compete. He said it was important that coaches and managers are kept up to date with the rest of the world in terms of sports innovation and training techniques.

"What are innovative ways that coaches can do to help athletes because the rest of the world is doing the same?”

Earlier this year coaches and team managers underwent OSEP accredited courses which Talemo said was to standardise the expertise of Managers and National Coaches to competition level unless they were already certified by their respective International Federation at Level 2 for coaches.

"We would prefer that coaches and team managers take the OSEP Courses every four years to ensure current trends and programs are updated," he said.

The OSEP courses are recognised internationally by the International Olympic Committee movement who through the Olympic Solidarity arm, fund the courses.

Talemo said as OSEP Educators and Mentors of the coaches and managers that attended the Strength and Conditioning and Team Managers Courses held this year "we expect the participants to change their mindset from having a reactive approach to a more proactive approach," he said.

"We are mindful of the challenges of the new norm in COVID 19 restrictions and protocols that has an effect on how programs are now planned and budgeted."

FASANOC Chief Executive Lorraine Mar said the objective of the OSEP courses are twofold. The first is to ensure the entourage accompanying the athletes understand their roles and responsibilities in supporting the athletes in the lead up and during Games times. The second is to ensure standardization across sports so that they apply the learnings for their own development and competitions both locally and overseas.

The 2022 Pacific Mini Games will be held in Saipan, Northern Mariana Islands from the 17th of June, 2022 and will be the 11th edition of the Pacific Mini Games and the first time to be hosted by the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands. Team Fiji’s contingent is expected to be125 athletes and officials for the 2022 Pacific Mini Games.

Team Fiji hopes to send a team of around 120 athletes and officials to the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England that will begin on the 28th of July, 2022.

‍