About the Coaches Association of British Columbia

Vision

The voice of BC coaches and the leader in the development of coaching.

Mission Statement

We exist to facilitate the development, certification, support and ongoing education of coaches so that they may provide all BC sport participants with the very best in coaching services.

The purpose of Coaches BC is to:

• Serve all coaches in BC
• Enhance the value of coaching in our communities
• Forge and maintain strong partnerships and relationships with organizations and individuals that can benefit coaching in BC
• Improve the quality of our coaches and optimize coaching in BC to provide positive and meaningful experiences for athletes

Coaches BC is here to help support your efforts and to meet your needs as a coach. We want you to be the best coach that you can. If the information you require cannot be found on our website, please contact the office and we will do our best to find the information you seek, or point you in the right direction.

History

This history of CABC / Coaches BC is meant to provide a quick overview of the milestones and significant achievements spanning over the past 20 years. For additional readings on the history of Coaches BC, please refer the links at the end of this page.

In 1990, a Canadian Conference on Coaching was held. A resulting strategy identified during the conference was the need for all provinces to establish a provincial coaching association. After many meetings driven by people such as Bob Bearpark, Jack Miller, and Richard Way; in February 1993, the Coaches Association of British Columbia (CABC) was born.

On April 5th 1993 Gordon May was hired as the Manager of CABC. Under Gord’s leadership over the next almost 20 years, CABC (now known as Coaches BC) achieved many milestones while focusing on becoming the "voice of BC coaches and the leader in coaching development". In the summer of 1993, the first edition of CABC’S quarterly magazine, BC Coaches Perspective, was released. Soon after, in the fall of 1993, CABC proudly announced that all full CABC members will be able to receive coaching insurance coverage.

1994 was a busy year for CABC as several new coach support initiatives and resources were developed and released. A CABC 1-800 number became available allowing coaches from across the province to easily access CABC services, a resource library was established and became available to CABC members, and a Coaching Contract was developed to assist BC coaches in ensuring fair treatment while negotiating with employers. June 1, 1994 marked the first CABC Annual General Meeting held at the SFU Harbour Center.

Over the next several years CABC continued to grow its legacy through further accomplishments and initiatives. A Coaches Code of Conduct was developed as well as, in partnership with the then called Ministry of Sport, a Coach Employment Resource Guide designed to assist in the hiring standards of BC coaches. The first joint publication of BC Coaches and Coaches Perspective was launched and named BC Coaches Perspective. Soon after, the CABC held a total of over 1000 members. In 1997, the first CABC Coach of Year Awards winners were announced. All of these initiatives are still alive and well today.

In the summer of 2000 the Coaching Female Athletes resource was developed and launched. This was followed by several additional coach resources and initiatives, including the first ENews distribution in the spring of 2003 and the resource “The Coach Parent Handbook” in the fall of 2004. In January 2005, CABC began to implement the new NCCP coach certification format in BC. This year also saw a continued focus on CABC membership when an online membership registration system became operational (winter of 2005) followed by the launch of a Members Only area on the CABC website in the fall of 2006.

Another landmark in the history of CABC occurred in September 2007 when CABC received an Official Proclamation from the Ministry of Tourism, Sport, and Arts for the first ever BC Coaches Week. Shortly after, CABC moved its office to Richmond BC where they have continued to create new coaching resources and services while expanding upon existing ones for the past several years. In April 2011, CABC officially changed their name to Coaches BC, and in May 2011 Coaches BC hosted their first Learning Facilitator Conference held in Whistler, BC.

Coaches BC is very proud of the legacy that has been built and looks forward to continuing to serve all BC coaches by working to enhance the expertise and value of coaches in communities and organizations throughout BC.

Additional Readings

The following articles provide a brief overview of specific events and people that contributed to the Coaches BC legacy over the past twenty years. If you would like see a particular milestone or event mentioned in future articles, or have a personal Coaches BC story that you would like to share, please email it to info@coachesbc.ca.

The Early Years

a) Genesis