04/21/2020
Listening to a roundtable discussion this morning of top university basketball s&c coaches in Amercia. Very interesting, you can find it easily up on youtube. Just search coaches vs covid (day 4 morning session).
One of their discussions tied in perfectly with what myself and 3 other coaches talked about in a recent podcast (check out my last post for details).
Initial question was how to prepare athletes for return to play. After such a long break, a full GPP is probably needed. But a coach from Southern Carolina, Scott Greenawalt proposed: "Is this exactly what players need?"
Elite players in America have been playing competitively all year around, focusing predominantly on just basketball since the ages of 9 or 10 years old. Another coach, Brady Welsh spoke of players arriving and picking up stress fractures their opening season. An injury that is sure sign of chronic overtraining and lack of recovery.
This is a very similar issue we have in Ireland. Players not getting enough recovery and then get picked on elite programs like making a national basketball team, where their hours of training jumps up again and injuries happen.
Or more often in Ireland, the best athletes are wanted by multiple different teams and sports. Playing on 3 or 4 teams between basketball, GAA and then club and school. Often times, with no communication between coaches or care for the athletes well being.
Really makes me think of the flawed nature of youth sports and how in important something like the LTAD model is. There needs to be a better way to develop elite athletes.
It's a backwards system if it takes a pandemic for athlete's to get the required recovery and rest.
