Coaching Journey

Written by Jo Di Monda

My coaching journey began similarly to most parents; sitting on the poolside at Wycombe Abbey School every Tuesday while watching my son swim laps of the pool and trying to keep my 8-year daughter occupied.

I was approached by the then Chairman, George Hannaford, politely asking for volunteers to help as either a lifeguard or a coach.  He managed to convince me to have a go!  So, the following week I started to shadow Chris Connell who was in charge of the Development One squad.  My confidence started to grow each week and then I began helping on a Saturday morning.  This continued for a number of weeks until I felt comfortable enough to want to able to coach independently, with other coaches on hand if I needed assistance.

I embarked on the Swim England Level 1 Assistant Coach course with Kate Cooke.  Honestly, I definitely felt out of my comfort zone.  There was a lot of technical language which was completely new to me, however, with the help of Kate and Anna I managed to plough through and pass.

With the new skills and knowledge, I began putting this to good use each week; for example, completing a quick warm-up with the children in D1 before they entered the pool.  Most of the swimmers that I coached are now in C1/2.

I have been coaching for approximately 5 years and as Rocco is due to complete his A Levels after Easter, I decided it was time to hand the baton to another parent to have a go.

It’s been a brilliant experience.  My ethos has been for the children to come swimming each week and enjoy the sessions with a hunger to return the following week.  I was by no means an expert, but just did the best I could.  I will continue to coach when needed by the club, but for now, I am enjoying the view from the gallery once again.  If I have sparked your interest and you would like to find out more, please come see me!