Young Coaches Team in The Finnish Coaches Association

Country: Finland 

Duration: Not defined 

Procedure for involvement: Open call. All interested young coaches were welcomed to join the team when it was first established. Each year, the team checks who wishes to continue, and new young coaches are given the opportunity to join if there are available spots. No elections. The Board of the Finnish Coaches Association confirms the composition of the team. 

Specific Criteria: 

• Age under 30 years old 

• Member of The Finnish Coaches Association 

• Interest in working in the team and the ability to dedicate time to it 

Description: 

The purpose of the Young Coaches Team is to support the Finnish Coaches Association in developing its operations to better serve the needs of young coaches, to amplify the voices of young people in decision-making, to reach out to young coaches, and to engage them in the association’s activities. The team was established in 2020 and currently consists of around ten sports coaches under the age of 30 from various sports. There is a representative from the Young Coaches Team in each of the Finnish Coaches Association’s committees. 

For the past two years, the team has been implementing an Erasmus+ funded project called Young Coaches – Makers of the Future. The goal of the project is to ensure that sports coaches under the age of 30 become a more integral and permanent part of the Finnish Coaches Association and, through that, play a stronger role in shaping Finnish sport. The project also aims to strengthen young coaches’ opportunities to operate within Finnish sports more broadly, for example within national sports federations and clubs. Through the project’s activities, young coaches gain knowledge and encouragement to take on roles that advance high-quality Finnish sport. 

As part of the project, the Young Coaches Team has organized Coach Café events and two major national events for young coaches, offering opportunities for education and networking. 

The team also creates content from a youth perspective for the Finnish Coaches Association’s social media channels.

Source: https://www.suomenvalmentajat.fi/yhdistys/nuorten-valmentajien-tiimi/