Curling Workshop/Seminar No. 1 - Off-season.

The preparation of the curling team and individual players in the off-season is a topic that deserves attention. Especially since this year the period of time that we have no ice surface has been extended to almost half a year. Some sports have off-season preparation worked out in the form of sequential manuals, some use a guided process led by a specialist, while others approach the topic in a less sophisticated way and rather leave the planning of activities to individual coaches. Interested curlers gathered on the first Tuesday in June to share their views with each other. The participants agreed on several parameters that should not be neglected in the summer training system, especially physical (fitness) preparation, and also on the need to maintain team communication, to take a purposeful break from curling, to plan what is next and to evaluate the steps implemented so far. Since most of the attendees are interested in coaching junior and youth teams, a lively debate was also held regarding contact with parents and their involvement in the off-season activities of young players. The two-hour session was an enjoyable interlude that in itself was a demonstration of desirable off-season activities. On my part, a big thank you to all present for the quality and thought-provoking contributions, questions, comments and observations. Thanks to Anna and Ežen for the excellent preparation of the workshop Last but not least, thanks to the organizer - the Ice Sports Academy, supported by BF and Yaga.