Badminton Europe recently hosted together with the Czech Badminton Federation two impactful development activities in Prague, Czech Republic, from 5 to 9 June — the first activity was the BWF BEC Tutor Refresher & Upskilling workshop, and the second one, the RSL BEC Shuttle Time Conference.

The BWF BEC Tutor Refresher & Upskilling workshop, a three-day activity, was designed as a two-way process, in which BWF Coach Education Tutors could deepen their understanding of their role within the Coach Education programme, as well as share their successes and challenges as tutors thus far.

Sharon Springer from the BWF wraps the first event: “It was great to see the passion that the tutors have for the BWF Coach Education programme. The workshop helped us ensure that our workforce is up to date on some of the newer tools and developments available to them. We were also able to explore what has worked well for them and identify some of the challenges they have faced over the years. I am sure that this will help us keep the programme moving forward and growing stronger.”

After the three-day workshop, it was time for 17 Shuttle Time National Coordinators to network and develop the Shuttle Time programme further in the RSL BEC Shuttle Time Conference. 

Shuttle Time National Coordinator Genevieve Tyler from Badminton Wales presented how they have been delivering Youth Leadership Workshops in Wales — Badminton Wales has been delivering these courses for 4 years now. “Youth Leaders come on board aged 15-18, they are already interested in leadership, and they use badminton as a vehicle to then go out to the primary schools and children to inspire them in extracurricular activities,” Tyler explained. Tyler has seen how this programme has gotten Youth Leaders into badminton and helped them develop, and also how they get to inspire children in the schools.

Miko Kongstad, Shuttle Time National Coordinator from Greenland, summed up his main take-aways from the Shuttle Time Conference. “It has been really interesting to meet the other countries and see how they are executing their plans in their countries.” When going back to Greenland, Kongstad plans on contacting schools to then connect these schools with local clubs.”

“I am satisfied that we managed to organise this face-to-face event with so many Shuttle Time National Coordinators involved. These days in Prague included presentations from the Members, many group tasks, fruitful conversations, problem solving and strategical thinking, and also a lot of fun and active interactions. We also received a resounding confirmation from the participants that conferences like this one are desired and beneficial to our Members. Additionally, I would like to express my sincere gratitude once more to the Czech Badminton Federation for their outstanding co-hosting of these two events in Prague," BEC Development and High Performance Officer Tommi Saksa concluded.