Alexx Diep was enjoying his time as a lifeguard when he was approached by his colleague about making the switch from guarding poolside to coaching poolside as a local collegiate team needed a coach. Although Alexx says in high school he never saw himself becoming a coach, his background in swimming made him an excellent candidate to transition into a coach and 22 years later, it has evolved into a great career.

The impact coaches can have on any level of swimmer is one of Alexx’s favorite parts about being a coach. He also enjoys the cultural aspect of sport and how it allows him to travel the world and experience different social circles. “I love the social and cultural aspect of coaching and all the traveling that comes with it. I’m fortunate to be able to bring my family along with me on numerous training camps and competitions so it turns into a family affair.”

After enrolling in the Advanced Coaching Diploma, Alexx knew he was in the right place as he was surrounded by many like-minded coaches. “There were many times at the beginning of the programs that I realized a lot of my peers had the same mindset as me and thought the same way in terms of progressing as a coach and how much they care for their athletes.”

This program was a great reminder for him that his techniques as a coach were valued, but just needed some fine tuning. He was able take the content that was taught over the two-year program and tweak it to apply it in a new way to his own coaching style. He says it was a reminder that I have been doing the right thing throughout my years of coaching, I just needed more structure and depth of knowledge.

Alexx also credits the structure of the program and how it is perfectly suited for those who must balance a full-time job, a family and life outside of sport. “This program is designed to engage coaches who have families and full-time coaching positions to be able to still learn and not fall behind on school or life. The way it’s set up is perfect.”

The program was carefully crafted for instructors and experts to moderate the classes and tune into each individual coach’s needs and their availability to tend to the needs or questions of the coaches was incredible. “The mantra of expert lead and coach driven are lived through the program and it’s exactly what I needed.”

Alexx cherished the program so much that he now feels a void in his life as he graduated from the Advanced Coaching Diploma. His goals are to pursue grad school and continue learning about teaching. He specifically wants to target Generation Alpha and learn how they learn best so he can incorporate that into coaching the younger generation and continue making an impact on his athletes of all ages. 

Dave Waknuk’s career goal was never to become a post-secondary basketball coach, but 16-years of coaching later he is entering his 6^th season coaching the University of Lethbridge Women’s Basketball Team, marking his 3^rd year as head coach.

Despite his own skills as a player not quite excelling in the game, his love and interest for basketball lead him into several volunteer opportunities coaching youth groups which ultimately started his coaching career. His post-secondary student-athletes remind him of how rewarding being a coach is as he states his enjoyment of watching them grow throughout their college careers.

“At our level of post-secondary you get to see them come in out of high school, young and trying to figure it out and then you get to watch them grow up and leave with degrees and get into the real world”, says Waknuk. “To see the people they’ve become and the lessons that they’ve picked up along the way is pretty fun; it’s definitely the most rewarding part of coaching.”

Dave knew the Advanced Coaching Diploma was right for him as it was something he wanted to do to continue to improve and learn more about coaching. “I had a quest to continue to challenge and grow myself in the career of coaching and I’m glad this avenue brought me to the ACD.”

As someone who loves coaching himself, he encourages those who share a passion of being a coach to enroll in the Advanced Coaching Diploma. “This program is for coaches that want to improve and grow and taking coaching seriously while enjoying it and having a passion for it,” Explains Waknuk. “If you have a passion for coaching, this program is a dream scenario because you get to get in with some experts at the highest level and people that are taking it seriously around you.”

Although the ACD isn’t targeted towards any specific sport, Dave said he would challenge coaches to look at this path more because there is so much that can be applied that can push coach past their expectations. “Just because this program is not based on my sport doesn’t mean that I won’t get so much more out of it. Coaches get to work with information collected by high level experts and the ACD gives you the depth to go as deep as you want. You’re going to get the most out of this program if you really want to grow and improve and come in open minded and able to commit to the process.”

Now a proud alumni of the ACD, Dave plans on continuing to challenge himself and continue coach education after experiencing a “family-like environment” lead by Jason Sjostrom who encouraged and supported the group along the way. “This program ignited my passion to further my coach education and keep looking for those next opportunities that lead me into the sport 16 years ago”.

Like many coaches finding their way into the career of coaching, an injury during an athletic career leads to several athletes becoming coaches and that’s exactly what happened to Deon Flynn.

“Instead of staying home and waiting for the injury to heal, my coach at the time thought it was still important for me to come out to the practices and be around the team to support the athletes” Deon reflects. Unfortunately, his injury lasted longer than expected but that allowed him to provide more help to the team and step into a coaching role. He remembers experiencing similar feelings as a coach as he did as an athlete which ultimately sparked his interest in coaching. “Anytime you are helping people it feels good and the feeling is definitely enhanced when an athlete looks to you for guidance. You feel like you have a sense of purpose.”

Being a passionate fan for sports in its entirety, Deon couldn’t imagine his life without sports and acknowledges the natural progression turning into a coach from being an athlete, it just happened sooner than he thought it would.

Deon is a highly certified track and field coach and was always on the hunt to continue his coach education. When he stumbled across the Advanced Coaching Diploma pamphlet at the Sports Leadership conference a few years ago, he knew it was meant to be. “As soon as I read that the ACD was coach driven, expert lead, peer enriched, mentor supported, and a structured learning community, I knew it was exactly what I was looking for.”

He credits the ACD in directing him towards becoming a more athlete centered, cooperative style coach. “In the past I was more sensitive to the needs of the master plan as whole, but after going through the ACD program I can honestly say that’s not the case anymore. I’ve adapted my coaching style to suit the needs of the individual athlete.” His approach: build people first and athletes second. He spends time building relationships with the athletes, making them feel psychologically safe and building or repairing their confidence after a difficult performance.

The Advanced Coaching Diploma is targeted towards high performance coaches that spend more than 12 hours a week coaching, which Deon recommends to coaches that want access to cutting edge sport research science and information and have a desire to be a more effective coach. Deon remembers director of coaching services, Jason Sjostrom, telling him that at the completion of this course he can expect to be a different coach coming out of the program.

“The ACD provided me with the greatest learning moments ever. When you go through the ACD program, you learn so much through the course content, your peers and self reflection. You’re not going to be the same coach on the other end” recognizes Flynn. “If someone decided to apply for this course, I would tell them to sit in their seat, strap in and hold in tight because it’s one crazy rollercoaster ride. And when it comes to a stop, I am certain you will say it’s the best rollercoaster ride ever."

“It was a blessing in disguise”, says alpine ski racer Marie-Michèle Gagnon when reflecting on her injuries sustained months before representing Canada at her third Olympic Games after crashing on her training run in Lake Louise in October 2017.

An MRI taken the next day concluded a cleanly torn ACL, a common injury for this sport, however Gagnon also suffered a torn labrum in her shoulder. 

“I know the risk of my sport, especially with speed events, and I understand that injuries are part of it. Almost all skiers that I know have had severe knee injuries so it’s almost a rite of passage in our sport,” she acknowledged.

While it was tough to watch some of the events that she couldn’t attend due to her injury, with the Olympic Games being one, a World Cup is just as important for her.

“It’s the same group of competitors, if not more at a World Cup compared to an Olympic Games; the one difference could be the fame associated with the Olympic Games and the more attention it receives, but I’m not skiing for that,” explains Gagnon.

“As a kid, I just wanted to be the best skier in the world. I knew that the Olympics was part of that, but I just wanted to do really well as a skier. And that’s why I continue to ski.”

Despite the disappointment of missing her third Games, Gagnon stayed optimistic. “Obviously missing the Olympics was upsetting but I ended that season on a high because I was skiing so fast and showing good promise on the speed, so I saw it as a blessing in disguise.” As a 2-time Olympic slalom event competitor, Gagnon shifted her focus to downhill, the fastest-paced race of the alpine skiing events. 

The eight-month recovery meant Marie-Michele could not only spend more time in one place and with her family, but also give her the time to relight the fire inside of her as she began her rehabilitation journey with CSI Calgary and R2P Code. She made the temporary move to Calgary to work with some of the best sport science professionals in the business.

“I was really focused on my recovery. My team at CSI Calgary was so supportive and I was so comfortable working with them. I trusted them because I know how hard they work.”

She says she heavily relied on her testing results to give her the clearance and confidence she needed to return to her sport safely.“Even after a few weeks [of testing] I saw so much improvement because I know the training and the effort I put into building up my strength and the dedication my team put into me was really working and paying off. Seeing my R2P Code testing results helped me focus on exactly the areas I needed to improve on, and it gave me guidance and motivation to keep working in the right direction.”

And in the right direction she goes, as fast as ever.