The USEF has embarked on a program to make coaching support available through several programs including participation in the United States Center for Coaching Excellence (USCCE) programs. This is a new look at the concept of coaching athletes through their youth, amateur or professional career. One of the ideas explored from the beginning is the idea of a coach developer or a “coach of coaches.” Do we have the ability for coaches to expand their knowledge commensurate with other sports?

Equestrian is unique in that we play sports with an animal, but is not unique in the way that a human athlete learns the techniques and philosophies about the sport itself. The techniques of riding horses have been around a long time, but the understanding of how people learn any sport especially at different age levels, has become a true studied science in recent decades. 

Equestrian is not a high school sport, and even at the college level, most programs are run at the club level. The NCAA strives for their coaches to have studied, in one form or another, coaching in a bachelor’s degree program. Some sports like basketball require a license before you coach a program. Equestrian is mainly a private education system where knowledge is passed down from generation to generation. While the horsemanship skills can be at a very high level, the knowledge of coaching practices is born by the instructor either through their own experiences or from a mentor that educated them.

Professionals in equestrian sport are not just elite high-performance riders but also trainers and coaches that are the backbone of the industry from a service side of the equation. These professionals are the ones who train horses for others, produce young horses for others, instruct amateurs and youth in their desire to compete and learn horsemanship. Professionals are the direct coaches, beyond instructing, that propel individual members on the road to achievement. This large group of members needs to be supported more by educational opportunities, programs to reward good training and coaching, and recognition of their achievements.

As a whole, the equestrian world has not investigated the world of coaching from the other sports and applied those philosophies to the horse world. There are always exceptions to the rule, but as a general way of progressing, it has not been through the academic side of coaching people in a discipline. 

There are many programs out there that have a coaching education drive to them. The USEF has selected, after study, the USCCE as a platform to introduce these ideas. The USCCE is closely involved with the USOPC and is aligned in their program of producing coaches.

Several affiliates have programs that have brought equine and sport technical education to instructors of their individual discipline. The idea of bringing the USCCE into the equation is that this program is not about teaching the content of horsemanship and riding skills, but the “how” to coach any sport. So, it is not about the “WHAT,” it is about the “HOW.”

USDF has a longstanding instructor certification system as does USEA. The USHJA has revamped their program these last few years. These programs, rightfully so, have introduced the levels of instructing the fundamentals of the discipline to interested trainers and instructors. The USEF is not trying at all to replace these important programs provided by the affiliates but rather to add another opportunity for coach/instructor development.

Sport instructing is like coaching but often focuses more on the technical aspects of teaching specific skills or techniques within a sport. While coaching encompasses a broader range of responsibilities including strategy, motivation and team dynamics, sport instructing is more narrowly focused on the mechanics and fundamentals of the sport itself.

In contrast to coaching, which often involves ongoing guidance and support over a longer period, sport instructing may be a more short-term, or session based, depending on the specific needs and goals of the participants. Overall sport instructing aims to improve technical proficiency and understanding of the sport among participants, helping them to develop their skills.

The USEF has invested in the teachers of these instructor programs and made available the USCCE/ICCE Level One Coach Developer Program. This course was held here at the USEF headquarters in January 2024. There will be another Level One workshop held in November at the USEF office here in Lexington. There are additional workshops each year where the USCCE has spots available for USEF participants. In these workshops, many other sports are represented, so the interaction between hockey or tennis or track and field is always a benefit to the education program.

If you would like to learn more about the Level One Coach Developer Program and attend a future workshop, please contact Karen C. Adams at [email protected].

If you are interested in material to read, or programs to follow about coaching, click here.