Competition Development Practical Requirement

In order to become certified as a Competition-Development level coach, the coach must

• complete training in all 10 modules (including multi-sport courses and the two diving-specific training weekends),
• complete a successful evaluation (including written and video tests, practice and competition evaluations and assignments), and
• attain the Competition-Development practical requirement

In order to attain the practical requirement, the coach must have one or more athletes attain the Competition-Development performance standard average. The following conditions must be met for the athlete results to count towards the coach’s practical requirement:

• The performance standard must be met using an average of the athlete’s highest score at a Group 1 meet and his/her score in that event at the Age Group National Championships in the same season
• The performance standard average must be met by two different divers or by the same diver in two different competitive seasons
• The performance standard average can only be attained after completion of training at both diving-specific weekend courses
• The performance standard average must be met by an athlete who has been personally coached by the coach for at least one season; the coach will show t he annual training plan created for the athlete at the beginning of the season, show how the plan was followed and where adjustments were made during the season
• The performance standard must be met with a list of dives that EXCLUDES the following dives (if these dives are included in the list, the list will not count towards the practical requirement for the competition-development coach):

20XA, 30XA, 511X, 51X1, 521X, 541X

Where “X” stands for all numbers possible

2011 Performance Standards are:

** The performance standards for each age group will be reviewed each year following age group nationals and may change with current trends.

A NOTE ON THE PRACTICAL REQUIREMENT:

This new practical requirement is quite different from that of the old NCCP levels. Reasons for the change include the following:

• The Competition-Development coach refers to coaches who are coaching junior level athletes, therefore no senior national standards should be required of the coach at this level.
• The performance standard is an average of a Group 1 score and a national score in the same event, to take some of the pressure off performance at the Age Group Nationals.
• It is recommended that the coach does not inform the athletes of the performance standard he/she is trying to attain for coaching certification. The athletes already place enough pressure on themselves to attain their national qualifying scores or other performance goals; and we do not want the athletes feeling added pressure to perform for the sake of their coach.
• The performance standard can only be attained AFTER the two diving-specific training weekends in order to show that the coach is using the knowledge gained during the Competition-Development course in order to achieve a certain level of success with this his/her athletes. If the coach could use results from previous seasons, the performance standard would not indicate anything about the training gained in the Competition-Development course. No previous results will be considered.
• Certain dives have been deemed ineligible for attaining the performance standard. These dives have been identified as dives that do not train the important techniques required by junior divers today, and/or they do not progress towards more difficult dives currently being used internationally. In some cases, these dives are used as “filler” dives that can be taught quickly, without regard for proper technique, in order for a diver to have enough dives in the diver’s list to compete. DPC feels strongly that it is more important to teach developing divers correct techniques, and to build sound building blocks for the future of the athlete, then it is to have enough dives to compete or to attain a specific score right away. By excluding these dives, the intention is to see more junior divers performing basic dives in tuck and pike position – thus training spotting and come-out techniques that will carry forward to more difficult dives – and that proper twisting techniques will be learned early on.

SUBMITTING FOR PRACTICAL REQUIREMENT

It is the responsibility of the club and provincial section to track athlete results that may result in a coach achieving their Competition-Development practical requirement.

Eligible results should be submitted to DPC where they will be checked and confirmed. DPC will confirm whether or not the results fulfill the requirement and forward valid results on to the National Coaching Certification Program (NCCP) for certification status.

DPC is not responsible for tracking athlete results for Competition-Development coaches and recommends that individual coaches follow up with the club or provincial section.