Whether you're involved in coaching teams or athletes, or if you are an athlete or a family member of an athlete, this article is of interest.
I will analyse the evolution of the coach's role over the past decades to the present and its current/future development.
The Monitor
In the early days of modern sports (meaning regulated sports), there probably existed a figure more like a "monitor," someone who played an organizational role, programmed, and monitored a sports activity for their group. I would venture to say that most of the time, it was about organizing a game against an opponent, which is likely why we also call a game a "match" in English.
The Instructor
As is the case in all human activities, competition governs progress, and the desire to win evolved the figure of the monitor towards that of an instructor. In addition to performing organizational tasks, there was a shift towards instructing athletes to improve their performance and thus aim for more victories. Probably, the focus was largely on the technical area and perhaps a bit of tactical concepts.
The Sport Physical Trainer
The desire for improvement never ceases, especially if you want to be on par with or surpass your rivals. Hence, in this evolution, there is a shift from instructing to preparing. Preparing athletes to improve their performance, probably with a global vision where physical conditioning becomes a priority. This marks the beginning of technical staff as specialists are required.
The Coach
We have now arrived at the decades closer to the present day, and in fact, this is still prevalent today. The coach monitors, instructs, sports trainer based on a competitive or formative objective, and must have the ability to design and execute the roadmap that guides their team or athlete to achieve this specific objective. They will already have a staff to execute specific areas.
The 'Manager' (The Coach 3.0). Present and Future
Welcome to the digital age. Everything has changed. This necessitates the evolution of the coach's role.
Now, we not only monitor, instruct, sport trainer, or coach, but we also manage knowledge. The competitive advantage, what will make you stand out and move from being a coach to a 'Manager,' will be your ability to integrate all the knowledge you manage.
When I talk about 'knowledge management,' I mean all the knowledge that the members of your staff have, the environment, the technologies that provide us with millions of data points on performance in each training session or game, and much more.
Conclusion of the Article
The topic is worth hours, days, and weeks. But the article must end. I will conclude by commenting that:
If you are a coach and haven't made the change yet start now, or you'll be left out. We founded Vibliotec with the idea of providing training in all kinds of content to help you make this transition from coach to manager, with continuous training in multiple areas of knowledge, far beyond the chalkboard.
If you are a player or athlete, do not rush your judgments about the decisions your coaches make. There is a lot of highly complex work behind each decision. However, always maintain open communication with your coaches and ask them what more you can do.
If you are a parent or family member of athletes, especially young athletes, and want the best for your child, limit yourself to being just that: a parent or family member. I recommend Pep Mari's course: " There is only one Messi. The world is full of Messi's parents." You'll find it on our website.
I take this opportunity to make a plea for all my coaching colleagues to soon become 'Managers' as I did back in the day. I value our work and ask for all the respect and recognition that such a complex job deserves today. I hope reading this article helps understand our work.
Xavi Guilà