The Honorable Lenard Montoute, Minister for social Transformation, Human Resource Development, Youth and Sports alongside decathlon champion and former star athlete Daley Thompson today launched a new programme that will focus on the development and implementation of a national sports coaching plan for St. Lucia.  Minister Montoute welcomed the new programme, which will work with local sports organizations to produce a national sports coaching plan for St. Lucia with special focus on football, cricket, netball and volleyball.

“This programme will help map out the future direction of sports coaching in St. Lucia said Minister Montoute. This is an excellent example of how the ministry, EU and private business can work together to offer local youth better opportunities through sport.”

As well as producing a national coaching plan, the programme will help train local coaches and sports participants and produce training manuals and training modules for local sports coaches to use.

“This programme will help improve coaching on the island,” said Daley Thompson. “Good quality coaching was vital to me when I was younger, so I am delighted to be associated with this project and help launch the programme.”

The Ministry successfully solicited international support for the development of sports on the island. The coaching programme has been provided by the European Union under special Framework of Assistance (SFA) 2002. Mr. Thompson will help publicize the new EU funded project, which is being implemented by the Sacred Cows Group, a St. Lucia-based company, whose sports-based foundation held soccer coaching and training camps on the island earlier this year.

UEFA pro-licensed coach and Sacred Cows technical director Keith Alexander is overseeing the practical element of the programme.

Leading cricket coach Mark Harper, former Guyana national team coach, has already begun working with the local national cricket team. Former St. Kitts & Nevis national team manager and ex-technical director of football for St. Vincent & the Grenadines Cyril Podd will work with the local football programme.

Dr. Tess Kay from Loughborough University’s Institute of Youth Sport and Dr. Ruth Jeanes from the University of Central Lancashire will undertake a needs assessment of the four key sports in the coming weeks.

Other participants expected shortly include former New Zealand National netball player and selector Margaret Foster MBE, who will nurture netball talent and former Olympic swimmer and leading sports psychologist Anthony Beks. Professor John Lyle, a leader in the field of sports coaching, will help direct the national sports coaching plan and spearhead a major visioning exercise.

The programme will run for the next 3 months and will include a major visioning exercise, bringing together all major stake holders to discuss their vision for sports in St. Lucia scheduled to take place in December.

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