ITU Development recently concluded its three-part tour in Asia to assist various National Federations in the development of coaches and talent identification. ITU made visits to Kuala Lumpur and Chinese Taipei before heading to the final stop in Chiang Mai, Thailand, each for a duration of three days.

Throughout the trip in Asia, ITU offered unique agendas to address specific needs of the emerging NFs. While some federations seek assistance with training advice to sustain the coach and athlete talent already developed, others are interested in receiving expertise on which athletes should receive support.  In general, Ki Woo Kyong, the Asia Sport Development Coordinator, was confident each NF’s needs were met throughout the trip.

In Chinese Taipei, ITU facilitator and coach Luc Morin, delivered his knowledge and experience to the local coaches and athletes on “how to identify talent”, periodisation, and junior development, whereas in Kuala Lumpur, ITU staff focused more providing opportunities for the coaches to practice their coaching skills during the training sessions. At the final camp in Chiang Mai, the focus for the Thai federation was educating coaches and athletes on training techniques, analysing data, and individualising athlete training programmes.

“This camp really guided us to the right direction. I have been curious on how leading athletes are training and why they are training like that. We have trained our athletes with our experiences and knowledge adopted from the training book. This project helped to look at other options,” said Niwat Imong, Thailand’s National Team Coach.

Luc Morin, the ITU facilitator on site, found the Thai staff to be very receptive to the new training methods, adapting quickly and efficiently.

“They demonstrated a rapid assimilation of new skills and technique,” Morin said. “Thailand’s coaches are on the right path to combine their experience and the presented concepts for the development of excellence,” said Morin.