Coaching Roles and Requirements

Coaching Roles

Becoming a coach with Special Olympics has many rewards, one of the main ones being working with such an amazing group of athletes. Our training programs and certification requirements are designed to ensure that our athletes receive the best care possible and to provide you with the tools to meet the needs of any athlete involved in our organization with confidence and skill.

Below are the duties and responsibilities for the head coach, assistant coach, and program volunteer positions within Special Olympics.

Head Coach:

Ensure those involved with your programs are officially registered with SOS
Orientate assistant coaches, program volunteers, and athletes to the program
Evaluate the mental and physical skill levels of the athletes
Adapt training and teaching techniques for athletes
Provide equal training and competition opportunities for all athletes
Ensure that practices consist of warm-up, motor skill development, sports skills and cool-down
Be a good role model by exhibiting good sportsmanship
Practices should emphasize individual skill development and progression should be carefully considered, and instructions simplified if needed

Assistant Coach:

Assist athletes in developing sports skills
Adapt training and teaching techniques to suit all athletes individually
Hold basic first-aid knowledge
Report emergencies to the head coach
Attend available coaching clinics in your sport and National Coaching Certification Programs
Be a good role model by exhibiting good sportsmanship
Implement lesson plans developed by the head coach
Assist with equipment set-up and organization of the practice site

** In order to be an assistant coach, you must be trained or certified in accordance with Special Olympic Saskatchewan coach training/certification guidelines. Please review the coaching requirements below.

Coaching Requirements

A large soccer team is in a huddle together. This includes athletes in their soccer uniforms as well as coaches and volunteers. We can only see everyone's backs. Some of the athletes have their hands raised in fists, participating in the group's cheer.

Respect in Sport

All volunteers, including coaches, are required to complete their Respect in Sport (RiS) certification. This online course provides an overview of the potential issues and circumstances that one may face while participating in any sports program, with a main focus on bullying and harassment. The RiS course assists coaches and volunteers with how to identify certain behaviours and what to do in a case where a situation may arise.

You can find more information on completing your RiS training by visiting:

Resources for Volunteers and Coaches

Two basketball athletes can be seen on the court. One athlete, you can only see their back. The other athlete is looking up and about to throw the ball in the hoop.

Making Ethical Decisions

All volunteers taking on a coaching role, whether a head coach or assistant coach, must also complete their Making Ethical Decisions – Active for Life (MED) online evaluation. This training helps coaches identify the legal, ethical, and moral implications of difficult situations while equipping these coaches to handle such situations confidently.

You can find more information on completing your MED training by clicking:

Resources for Volunteers and Coaches

An action shot photo of speed skaters on the ice. Three speed skaters can be seen going around the edge of the rink. They are slightly out of focus due to the speed they are skating.

Sport Specific Requirements

Special Olympics Canada (SOC) has a coach training course specific to Special Olympics coaches. The SOC – Competition Sport workshop is for coaches who are looking to work with athletes at various levels of domestic and international competitions. The main goal of this course is to prepare the coach for training with athletes at local, regional, provincial, and national competitions with a primary focus on safety, fun, fitness, fundamentals, performance, and basic sports skills.

For dates of upcoming SOC – Competition Sport Workshops in Saskatchewan, please visit our:

Event Calendar

Head coaches and assistant coaches within Special Olympics will also be required to complete the NCCP Sport-Specific Training courses. Each sports-specific requirement is outlined in the table below. For dates and locations of any sport-specific courses, please get in touch with your sports Provincial Sport Governing Body (PSGB). Floor Hockey, Snowshoeing, and Powerlifting sport-specific workshops are organized and facilitated by Special Olympics Saskatchewan. For more information and to sign up for sport-specific seminars, please contact the Special Olympics Saskatchewan at sos@specialolympics.sk.ca at 306-780-9247.

Stay tuned for upcoming information from Special Olympics Canada on a bocce coaching course, a golf caddie course, and a peer mentorship program!

Please note that Respect in Sport, Making Ethical Decisions and SOC Competition Sport are all required to be a Special Olympics Saskatchewan coach or assistant coach.

Summer Sport Coach Requirements

Sport	NCCP Sport Specific Course
10 Pin Bowling	Community Sport Initiation
Aquatics	Fundamentals Coach (Swimming 101)
Athletics	Sport Coach (Competition)
Basketball	Learn to Train (Competition)
Bocce	125 Coaching Hours
Golf	SOC PGA Golf Course
Power Lifting	SOC Powerlifting Coaches Module
Rhythmic Gymnastics	Gymnastics Foundations (Intro, Theory and Rhythmic)
Soccer	Soccer for Life
Softball	Community Sport Coach - ongoing participation

Winter Sport Coach Requirement

Sport	NCCP Sport Specific Course
Alpine Skiing	Entry Level Coach Workshop or CSIA Level I
Cross Country Skiing	Community Coach (Intro to Community Coaching & Community Coaching)
Curling	Club Coach
Figure Skating	CanSkate (Level 1 and 2) Primary STARskate (Level 3 and 6)
Floor Hockey	SOC Floor Hockey Module
Showshoe	SOC Snowshoe Coaches Module
Speed Skating	Assistant Coach - FUNdamentals Leader Head coach - FUNdamentals Coach
5 Pin Bowling	Community Coach