USA Triathlon is now requesting nominations for its 2020 USA Triathlon Coaches of the Year. The national governing body also invites the multisport community to nominate triathlon coaches to be considered for the US Olympic & Paralympic Committee’s 2020 Coaches of the Year.
Nominations are open to the public, and all nominees must be current USA Triathlon Certified Coaches. Individuals may nominate coaches for both the USA Triathlon and USOPC awards in multiple categories using an online form.
Nominations are due by Tuesday, December 1 for USOPC awards, and Thursday, December 31 for USA Triathlon awards.
USA Triathlon Coach of the Year winners will be determined by a selection panel of coaching and sport education professionals, including the USA Triathlon National Coaching Committee and USA Triathlon education and high performance staff. The selection panel will also review nominations for all USOPC awards and submit one coach in each category to the USOPC for consideration.
In addition to the below categories, USA Triathlon is also presenting its inaugural Community Impact Award. This award honours a coach who has ‘demonstrated significant impact in his or her community and who lives out the USA Triathlon mission of growing and inspiring the multisport community.’
The following award categories will be awarded by both USA Triathlon and the USOPC:
- Olympic Coach of the Year: Must be a coach of a national-level team, or the coach of an elite athlete who competes at the highest level of the sport
- Paralympic Coach of the Year: Must be a coach of a national-level team, or the coach of an elite athlete who competes at the highest level of the sport
- Developmental Coach of the Year: Must be coaching at the youth club, high school or junior level, or a coach who is directly responsible for training athletes to reach the junior and/or elite level
- Volunteer Coach of the Year: Must be a coach who does not receive payment in any form for his or her involvement in coaching at any level
- College Coach of the Year: Must be a coach at the NCAA (or NCAA Emerging Sport) level
- Service Provider of the Year: Must be a service provider such as a strength and conditioning coach, physical therapist, sport psychologist, dietician or other affiliated with a U.S. National Governing Body (e.g., USA Triathlon) or High Performance Management Organization (HPMO) who has made an impact for an NGB
- Coach Educator of the Year: Must be a Coach Educator or ADM (American Development Model) Sport Educator who has made an impact in the Coaching Education space
The USOPC will also present its annual Doc Counsilman Science Award, which recognizes a coach who utilizes specific techniques and equipment as an integral part of his or her coaching methods or who has created innovative ways to use sport science.
For all Coach of the Year award categories, special consideration will be given to coaches who demonstrated creativity and innovation in continued support of athletes through the COVID-19 pandemic – including adaptations to coaching, digital transformations, social innovation, entrepreneurship or significant projects implemented.
Winners of both the USA Triathlon Coach of the Year and USOPC Coach of the Year awards will be announced in late January 2021.
