Participants lap up introductory sport psychology workshop

After five days of an introductory sports psychology workshop, put on by the St Vincent and the Grenadines Olympic Committee, in collaboration with the Pan American Sports Organisation, the over 30 attendees are better equipped to deal with the charges under their care.

Staged at the Xpert Computer Centre conference from Monday to this Friday, participants, after three days of attending, were grateful for the opportunity to broaden their knowledge base.

Ronique Dowers of the division of physical education and sports described the first three days as “time well spent”.

“The workshop is timely, for me it was an eye opener, as I am involved in dealing with people on a day to day basis and I think I am better now, after attending this workshop,” Dowers related.

Group work presentations were  one of the notable features at the workshop

“I like the way the facilitators were dealing with the various topics…. They allowed us to bring our experiences to bear, instead of telling us.”

Dowers said that he was looking forward to learning more on sports psychology, as he prior to the workshop, took many things for granted.

Meanwhile, Vincentian born, female basketballer – Sancho Lyttle, who played in the WNBA as well as in various countries in Europe, but who is home on vacation, said that she could not pass up the occasion to broaden her knowledge.

“My time of playing is slowly coming to an end … I need to see sports from a new view point… I have always been receiving information from coaches, seeing it from their point of view … So if I decide to be a coach, I have to see it in the eyes of looking on to the athletes that I have to take care of,” Lyttle underscored.

Lyttle made it clear that she has not made up her mind about a future career in coaching, but said that she is preparing for such eventuality.

She believes though that arming herself with knowledge, as is the case of the sports psychology introductory workshop, would complement her years of acquisition of tactical and technical abilities in basketball.

“I think that you should always be learning new stuff, new ways and new ideas about dealing with people in sports… So whether you play it or coach, there is always new stuff to learn and new stuff to do,” Lyttle commented.

Dowers and Lyttle were among a list of active sportsmen and women and practicing coaches of various sporting disciplines.

Disseminating the information to the participants over the five days were Professor Michele Moore, Rae Samuel and Dr Themesa Neckles.

Moore, in her projection said, “We are hoping that this workshop will build momentum, so that the ideas and strategies that we have given them … We are hoping that a new network would be established when we have left”.

As a consequence, Moore is hopeful that a second similar workshop be held next year to assess and follow up on the participants’ progress and their intervention strategies.

Among the aims of the workshop was to excavate key ideas from sports psychology to enhance the way coaching happens in SVG, as well as to familiarise participants with the ideas from sports psychology that will inform their coaching practice.

The trio of visiting facilitators said that the participants would have a greater confidence and commitment to use ideas from the sports psychology to inform coaching practice.