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A total of 126 local primary and secondary school teachers have enroled in a series of coaching courses under the Hongkong Bank Foundation (HBF) School Coach Accreditation Programme (SCAP) from 14 to 29 July this summer. After attending the presentation ceremony held at the Hong Kong Sports Institute today (29 July), all participated school teachers expect to highly apply the knowledge learnt from the courses in the coming academic year in order to provide an opportunity for the young generation to have a balance of development in academic and physical aspects.

Professor Frank Fu, Chairman of the Hong Kong Coaching Committee (HKCC), thanked the support from the HBF, the Hong Kong Badminton Association, the Hong Kong Basketball Association, the Hong Kong Squash and the Hong Kong Table Tennis Association. "The sporting potential of the younger generation is mostly uncovered at schools, thus, school coaches play an important role on their sporting life." said Fu in his speech at the ceremony. The objective of SCAP is to provide an opportunity for teachers who are in charge of school teams and sporting activities to obtain professional training in sports coaching. With these professional knowledge, the juniors could be better nurtured and become a new force to Hong Kong sports.

This year's summer programme comprises two modules which are the Sports-General Theory and the Sports-Specific Theory and Practical in four different sports including badminton, basketball, squash and table tennis. Participants who obtain 80% attendance rate in this nine-day course were presented with attendance certificates and five were awarded the Outstanding Awards for their excellent performance during the period. Meanwhile, those who passed the examinations in both modules and further go through another 30-hour practicum in their respective sports on a voluntary basis within one year would be awarded a School Coach Certificate.

The HBF has been supporting this Programme for more than 10 years. Teresa Au, Head of Corporate Sustainability Asia Pacific Region of The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited, said, "With the remarkable success achieved by Hong Kong athletes in Major Games in recent years and the various international sports games round the corner, a sporting culture has taken a strong root in schools and the wider community. We see a strong rise in the demand for school coaches. HSBC will continue to work closely with the HKCC, National Sports Associations (NSAs) and schools to enhance the accreditation programme so as to train more qualified accredited school coaches."

At the Ceremony, Professor Fu and representatives of the NSAs furnished a small tree with nutrients symbolising their encouragement to all participants to keep nurturing their student athletes not only for the contributions to school but also for the sports development in Hong Kong.

The SCAP, initiated by the HKCC in 1998 and a major component of the Hong Kong Coach Education Programme (HKCEP) funded by the HBF, aims to enhance the coaching standard of school teachers, especially non-PE teachers, who work with sports teams and co-curricular activities in primary and secondary schools, and to provide opportunities for them to obtain formal training and accreditation.

Heung Chi-kau, a teacher from Ng Wah Catholic Primary School, has participated in three different SCAP training courses in athletic, basketball and tennis respectively. He highly appreciated the course. "The Programme is very unique and comprehensive which is the main reason for my continuous participation. The course has offered me an opportunity to update my knowledge and strengthen my understanding in the training techniques, sports theories and curriculum arrangement which are beneficial for my managing sports training tasks in the coming school year," Heung said.

Teacher Fong Wing-lun, both a teaching assistant in Lai King Catholic Secondary School and a judo athlete who represented Hong Kong in last year's East Asian Games, has participated in athletics and football before. This summer, he took table tennis. "I'm deeply impressed by the professionalism and dedication of all tutors and coaches whom I met for the past few days, and I hope to inspire my students with this kind of enthusiasm and commitment to sport through the training courses and sports activities at school," Fong added.

Since its inception, the Programme is widely supported by various sectors of the society including the NSAs, principals and teachers, and has offered training courses in 10 different sports including athletics, badminton, basketball, football, handball, sports aerobics, squash, table tennis, tennis and volleyball. Since 1998, more than 2,000 school teachers have attended the SCAP with over 910 schools teachers being accredited under this Programme, and in return help promote sports culture in schools.

The HKCEP has been funded by the HBF with a total commitment of more than HK$2,100 million since 1992. Throughout the years, over 20,000 coaches have benefited from the training and recognition programmes in the HKCEP. Apart from the SCAP, other major components of the HKCEP include Hongkong Bank Foundation Coach Accreditation Programme, Hongkong Bank Foundation Continuing Coach Education Programme and Hongkong Bank Foundation School Coach Seminar, as well as Hongkong Bank Foundation Coaching Awards.

Recipient List of the Outstanding Awards (PDF)