Developing Coach Developers in a Finnish Ice Hockey Context: The Case of the Coach Developer Academy

Recognising the important role that coach developers (CDs) can play in supporting sport coaches, national governing bodies are increasingly seeking to engage them in professional development pathways and programmes. In this article, we introduce the Coach Developer Academy (CDA), a season-long intervention that is situated in the Finnish cultural context. It is an initiative between Finnish Ice Hockey Association and Haaga-Helia University of Applied Sciences. CDA is designed for CDs who are employed by the junior ice hockey organisations in Finland. Specifically, this article explores the three modules that are central to CDA: (a) Communities of Practice in Sports, (b) Developing Coach Developer Skills, and (c) Planning and Implementing Learning Process. As part of this, the learning tasks and assessment methods that were a part of each of the modules are discussed. We offer reflections from the CDA facilitators that highlight strengths, lessons learned, areas of improvement, and the opportunities for CDA growth. Our intention with this Practical Advances article is to share a case-based example that will contribute to the visibility and discussion of CD development efforts in the peer-reviewed literature.