Basketball Australia is pleased to announce the five coaches who will take part in the inaugural Elite Female Coach Advancement Program (EFCAP) over the next two years.
The program has been designed to provide identified female coaches with high level professional development opportunities, including access to mentors, seminars on tactical and leadership skills and information sharing.
Sydney Uni Flames head coach and former Opal Katrina Hibbert joins 2019 Australian Under 19 World Championship silver medallist Dee Butler in the program. The former WNBL team-mates have both made a successful transition from playing to coaching in recent years and continue to have a strong influence on the game.
Long-time WNBL player and coach Larissa Anderson will also be in the initial intake for the program. Anderson enjoyed great success at both the SEABL and WNBL level as a coach and is currently an assistant coach with the Melbourne Boomers.
Basketball Australia Centre of Excellence head coach Kristen Veal will also be part of the program when it tips off later this month. A WNBL Life Member, Veal has been in the COE role for more than three years and has also served as an assistant coach on two Australian World University Games teams.
Rounding out the first intake for the EFCAP is another former elite player, Jackie Brown. The former University of California and WNBL stand-out coaches within the Basketball Queensland state teams program and was an assistant of the gold medal winning Australian Under 17 team at the FIBA Oceania Championships last year.
As part of the program, the coaches will engage in a range of on-line and face to face seminars and workshops, as well as complete the Basketball Australia Performance Coach accreditation and other industry-based training.
Program coaches will have Individual Development Plans (IDP) and Basketball Australia will engage with a number of external providers and experts to identify the specific needs of each participant.
The program runs over two years and will provide the coaches with a wide range of opportunities to learn from and share with elite coaches and leaders from within basketball and other sporting codes.
In announcing the inaugural intake of coaches, Basketball Australia Director of High-Performance Coaching Peter Lonergan said it was an important program for the ongoing development of elite female coaches.
“These five coaches have already made significant contributions to Australian basketball and this program will assist them to further develop as coaching leaders,” he said.
“The program is an exciting one for the sport and we plan to have a second intake of coaches commencing early 2021 to build capacity,” Lonergan added.
Applications for the 2021 intake of the Basketball Australia Elite Female Coach Advancement Program will be called for in November 2020.
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