The Sports Ministry has started a new program to help top athletes become coaches, referees, and technical officials. They call it the ‘Special Capacity Building Course’. This decision comes because India needs more good coaches at the highest level.

Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya spoke about the course. “We see that India lacks elite coaches. This course will help former Indian athletes who are working office jobs in government offices and companies. We can bring these athletes back into sports, not just as coaches, but also as referees and technical officials. Experts from the NIS, Patiala, will train them,” he said.

Famous badminton coach Pullela Gopichand also talked about this issue. In a recent interview, he said that former athletes working office jobs often don’t get enough respect. He said they need to learn new skills to do better. “Education and sport have to go together, and athletes need skills for life after sports. We are not comfortable in office jobs without training. I know many talented athletes, but it’s not easy,” Gopichand said.

This course is designed for athletes who have played at the highest level and are now working in government or government-owned organizations. Athletes who have won medals or participated in big events like the Olympics, Asian Games, and Commonwealth Games can join. National Games medalists, national champions, and medalists from Youth Olympics and World Championships are also eligible.

The course has four levels: foundation, pre-intermediate, intermediate, and advanced. Each level takes up to two years to complete. You can do it both in person and online. Each level has 10 credits, for a total of 40 credits.

The ‘Special Capacity Building Course’ will teach modern coaching methods, sports science, yoga, and leadership. The goal is to improve the athletes’ professional skills. Also, participants will go on trips to other countries to learn from international experts.

Therefore, this course will help former athletes use their experience to improve Indian sports. They will learn new skills and become valuable coaches and officials.

Moreover, this initiative addresses the shortage of qualified coaches in India. It also provides former athletes with better career opportunities. By training them, the Sports Ministry is ensuring that their skills and knowledge are not wasted.

In addition, the course will cover various aspects of sports, including modern training techniques and sports science. This will help the athletes become well-rounded coaches and officials.

Furthermore, the foreign exposure tours will give them a chance to learn from the best in the world. This will help them bring new ideas and methods to Indian sports.

Consequently, the ‘Special Capacity Building Course’ is a significant step towards improving the quality of coaching and sports administration in India. It will help to create a strong foundation for future generations of athletes.