Long Term Athlete Development(LTAD)
“Canadian Sport for Life (CS4L) is a movement to improve the quality of sport and physical activity in Canada. CS4L links sport, education, recreation and health and aligns community, provincial and national programming. LTAD is a seven-stage training, competition and recovery pathway guiding an individual’s experience in sport and physical activity from infancy through all phases of adulthood. CS4L, with LTAD, represents a paradigm shift in the way Canadians lead and deliver sport and physical activity in Canada.”
Canadian Sport for Life, October 27, 2011, <http://www.canadiansportforlife.ca/>
Curlers in Manitoba and Canada have a long tradition and history of success on the national and international stage. In order to maintain this tradition a systematic approach to the development of an athlete needs to be undertaken. The curling LTAD model provides the structure under which the growth and development of an athlete can take place. While many may belive LTAD is only about the competitive athlete the opposite is true. The LTAD Model is about providing every athlete entering the sport with the opportunity to grow, develop and have a positive experience with the sport so that they enjoy their time on the ice and make curling a life-long sport.
In Manitoba the Sport for Life and LTAD have been endorsed by our major funding partner as such going forward the funding of CurlManitoba will be based on the implementation of a LTAD model in Manitoba. To assist in the implementation of a LTAD model in Manitoba CurlManitoba formed a committee from all walks of our sport, coaches, athletes, young, old, rural and urban. The first step was to bring the group together and perform a gap analysis of CurlManitoba programs and services as compared to the Curling MTAD Model. The committee met on two weekends and held two conference calls. Thank you, to all who volunteered their time on this task. The committee identified that most gaps occurred in the beginning stages of the LTAD as such a recommendation was made to start in these beginning stages.
The Stages for the LTAD are:
- Active Start
- FUNdamentals
- Learn to Train (L2T)
- Train to Train (T2T)
- Train to Compete - 1 (T2C1)
- Train to Compete - 2 (T2C2)
- Active for Life
As we go forward you will start to notice that many of the programs, services and events that CurlManitoba runs will include a note of which stage the program, service or event falls into.
At this point in time CurlManitoba will maintain most of our current programs while we pilot new programs and services. As we proceed you will begin to notice change with some of our current programs and services as we modify them to better meet the needs of our athletes and coaches and you will also notice the elimination of some programs and services that no longer fit in the LTAD model.
Some of the new programs that we are piloting for the 2011-2012 season include:
League in a Box – Beginner Junior
The League in a Box is being piloted by 10 Curling Clubs throughout Manitoba. All the clubs will provide feedback at the completion of the program. Appropriate changes will be made and the program will be available for all clubs in Manitoba. The content includes 21 weeks of planned training, fun, and games. This program is aimed at the FUNdamentals stage.
Report Cards
Report Cards have been developed for the first 5 stages of the LTAD. The Curling Clubs with the pilot program will host evaluation days for their participants. Once a stage is accomplished the athlete will be awarded a badge.
Instructional League
CurlManitoba is operating an Instructional League at the Wildewood Curling Club on Tuesday evenings from 7:30-9:30 pm. The league is targeted to adults in the FUNdamentals stage and or the Active for Life stage.
Road Show
Using the services of some of our elite curlers in Manitoba CurlManitoba is doing 10 clinics though out the province. This program is targeted to athletes in the FUNdamentals, Learn to Train and Active for Life stages.
Athletes with a Disability
In addition to these programs CurlManitoba is partnering with Special Olympics Manitoba to incorporate many of their athletes and coaches into our existing programs and events thereby increasing the level of service we can provide. Through a grant from the Canadian Curling Association we will also be working with the Canadian Wheelchair Curling Champion team from Manitoba to provide a number of Learn to Curl opportunities for athletes with a mobility impairment.
For more information on Curling's LTAD plan please click on the link below
