A study tour “Policy Development and Capacity Building on Sports Coaches in ASEAN Member States” was held from October 30th to November 2nd, 2024. We invited those who work on development of sport coaching system from ASEAN member states and Timor-Leste. 

 【Participant Information】
▪ Country / Organization: ASEAN Secretariat and 9 ASEAN member states (Brunei Darussalam, Singapore, Thailand, Lao PDR, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Viet Nam, Cambodia) + Timor-Leste
▪ Number of participants: 22 in total (sports policy makers or persons involved in sports coach development organizations)

【Why the Sports Leadership Development System?】
In September 2023, at the 4th ASEAN-Japan Ministerial Meeting on Sports held in Chiang Mai, Thailand, the “Chiang Mai Declaration” was adopted, which includes the expansion of cooperation in sports-related measures. 
The Declaration is aimed at strengthening ASEAN-Japan sports cooperation toward the year 2030, and “sports coach development” was identified as one of the areas where ASEAN member states have high needs for development. 

【Program Contents】
1. Introduction of Japanese case studies by organizations related to sports coach development in Japan utilizing the SFT Network
2. Identification of challenges in the sports coach development in each country and making an action plan to achieve their future/ideal vision
3. Observation of JSPO seminar
4. Networking with JSPIN 

On the first and second day, the following SFTC steering committee and SFTC members gave lectures to introduce coach development systems and programs in Japan! Thank you for all the cooperation and lectures!  

≪Organization/Speaker of lectures≫

 

【How the program goes】
▪ Day 1 and Day 2
The listed SFTC steering committee and SFTC members gave lectures to introduce coach development systems and programs in Japan!
Many specific questions especially about the framework of the system were raised by participating countries where coach qualification systems are not yet fully developed. 
Since the Japanese system is not necessarily suitable for the situation in each country, we hope it could be utilized the knowledge learned in accordance with the actual situation in each country.

▪ Day3
It was held at Nippon Sport Science University (NSSU) with the theme of “The Role of Academics in the Coach Development System”.
We invited Prof. Masamitsu Ito, Assoc Prof. Shigeki Sarodo and Asst Prof. Sharly Natsu Yazaki from NSSU and Prof. Jun Kuroiwa from Ryutsu Keizai University as facilitators.
Prof. Kuroiwa is also involved in coach development for the Japan Rugby Football Union (JRFU), and spoke about the coach development system in collaboration with JSPO, while Prof. Ito introduced the coaching education curriculum at NSSU and the collaboration with JSPO, as well as intrduction from Assoc Prof. Sarodo and Asst Prof. Yazaki about NCDA (NSSU Coach Developer Academy), which was launched in 2014 as part of the SFT project. 

In the afternoon, they worked on gap analysis between the challenges each country faces and their future vision on coach development through discussion/sharing with other countries, and created a short-term action plan to be taken by the end of 2024.  

The action plan includes the following ideas (excerpts):
□ Create a working group for coach development
□ Set up a meeting with related organizations
□ Review the current coach development program
□ Conduct a needs survey for coaches

   

 ▪ Day4
We observed the JSPO certified sports instructors training seminar and Action Plan presentation.
Lastly, it concluded with networking time in conjunction with JSPIN (Japan SPorts business INitiative), a platform that supports the international expansion of Japan’s sports industry.

During the observation, some countries have already conducted training course, but it’s not like the JSPO seminar has gathered coaches from various sports/field, thus they were watching with high interest.
Some participants also showed interest in the “menti-meter,” an online service collect discussion results, and were considering how to utilize it after return. 

In between the observation, Prof. Ito (NSSU) and Prof. Kuroiwa explained the aims and key points of the seminar, focusing on the concept of “players-centered,” thereby enabling participants to gain a deeper understanding as it progressed. They also experienced “micro-coaching,” in which practical coaching session using the four questioning approaches “TELL,” “SELL,” “ASK,” and “DELEGATE”. 

For the design of this study tour, lectures to share an overview of policies and initiatives on Day1&2, and observe/experience the practical situation on Day3&4, so that it made the participants to understand easier and deeper the overall structure and initiatives of the sports coach development system in Japan.
   

 ▪ JSPIN Networking
In addition to SFT Consortium members, JSPIN members who are interested in ASEAN countries were invited to the networking event. The meeting was beneficial for both parties, as it provided an opportunity to not only introduce each company’s initiatives, but also to directly discuss the possibility of future business. 

 【Conclusion】
This program was organized by utilizing the strength of “SFT broad network”. 
It was a valuable opportunity for not only the participant countries but also the Japanese side to come together and further strengthen cooperation. 

In the conclusion, one of the participants commented, “Let’s have time to discuss with all including the ASEAN Secretariat what we can do on our own first!” It was a scene that made us strongly feel the connection between ASEAN member states and the keen attitude toward building/developing coach development system. 

We “SFT” will continue to promote initiatives that contribute to the development of ASEAN-Japan through cooperation and collaboration with the ASEAN Secretariat, ASEAN member states and Timor-Leste.