KUALA LUMPUR – Is former national squash queen Datuk Nicol David transforming herself into a world-class coach?
Nicol, who is the head coach of the Nicol David Foundation (NDF), has passed her World Squash Coaching (WSC) Level 2 exams after completing the course in June.
“This is my opportunity to take that next step in coaching. I want to continue coaching people who want to learn squash, and at the same time, I want to be an instructor to get more squash coaches involved, as we are in need of coaches, especially women coaches,” Nicol told World Squash.
However, the eight-time world champion said that her priority now is to create a good support team that will have a positive approach to training.
“I want to put the players and/or team first… I also want to create the best environment to train because it is key to developing all-around,” said Nicol.
“In the future, I want to coach more individuals so they can become leaders in their own space,” she said.
Having completed the course, Nicol has been using her newly acquired knowledge to coach with her own foundation and with the Squash Racquets Association of Malaysia (SRAM).
Meanwhile, giving an overview of the coaching course, Nicol said it started off with factors around skill learning, a recap on the Level 1 coaching course, motivation and goal setting.
“It also included arousal and stress control, the energy system, strength and conditioning, fitness testing, PSA planning and participation, fitness components, principles of training, anticipation and deception, tactical development, periodisation for squash, and performance analysis.
“It sounds like a lot, but all these components are important to equip coaches with more detail about what goes into preparation for a training time frame, especially the technical, tactical, physiological, and psychological aspects,” the eight-time world champion said.
Nicol said that the collaborative nature of the course was her favourite part, adding that the teamwork during the completion of each module gave participants the ability to learn from each other while getting different perspectives.
“It encourages the coaches to be their own instructors with the tools given to follow some structure and guidance,” said Penang-born Nicol, adding that she would recommend the course.
“It’s great because the only way to improve as a coach and player is to keep learning and growing.
“More coaches should take their WSC Level 2 to have a better understanding of squash and to be more knowledgeable in the sport.”
Nicol said, with the support of SRAM and the PSA Foundation, they will be hosting a Women in Coaching Level 1 course in Kuala Lumpur on August 29, 2023.
The aim of this course is to assist the next generation of female coaches in starting their coaching journey. – August 22, 2023