Being a youth sports
coach is a huge responsibility. Most coaches would agree. But this secondary
school coach disagrees. Coach Rao is teaching Slalom Skating to a diverse age
group of kids aged between 5-15 years.
“It is not a
responsibility, it’s not a job either; coaching youth sports cannot be
categorized as an obligation of any sort. Coaching youth sports is a calling, a
passion”, says Rao.
It may sound a little
dramatic but you can see it in action during Coach Rao’s practice sessions. He personalizes
attention for each kid, he even personalizes training for each kid because all
kids may not necessarily pick up at the same pace. While working on game
skills, Coach Rao also works on each child’s emotional and mental bearing. He
handles each child individually while taking care of the entire group as a
team. This is an exceptional skill, and only a dedicated, passionate coach can
do it.
“Coach Rao is like a
third parent to my son”, says Sith’s mom. Sith has been training with Coach Rao
since he was 5 years old. Coach Rao has been handling toddler tantrums, mood
swings, growing phases and everything parents handle in a child. Sith is now
14. Coach Rao has practically groomed and nurtured Sith to become the athlete
Sith currently is, and the athlete he is in becoming. Sith has participated and
won in several national and international Slalom Skating competitions and has
won several medals for his excellence in the sport.
Coach Rao strongly
feels that every word and every action of adults has a very strong impact on
the child’s mind. He advises parents on how to put up a model behavior in front
of the child. He also consults parents on individual problems or concerns their
children might be facing. This also strengthens the coach-parent relationship,
which is the key to the success of a youth program.
And the best part is,
Coach Rao makes his coaching fun and interesting for the kids. He jokes, plays
and laughs with the kids. Kids love his classes. Most of them never want to
miss a class, even if it’s an exam or the kid is unwell.
While training little
kids for serious sports indeed is a huge task, but looking at the way this
coach conducts it, looks like passion can actually change the way one does
things, like turning youth sports coaching into a breeze.
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