Gold Coast (Australia) - The Tournament Coaches Course (TCC) designed for Female Coaches in the Oceania region has generated success and rave reviews from its participants and mentors.

TCC is designed to help prepare coaches to undertake national coaching roles within the Federation and to develop their skills as mentors.

"The TCC is a project I am passionate about because it's about giving opportunities to future female leaders in the basketball world. It is in line with one of FIBA's pillars, Women in Basketball," shared FIBA Oceania Development Manager Annie La Fleur.

Guest Presenter Lori Chizik complemented the rapid growth of the course and how it has helped build a relationship amongst the participants and mentors.

"I am honored to be part of this program and I want to express my happiness to see the relationship built with this group over just a couple of sessions," Chizik, a former coaching staff of the Australia Opals said during one of the presentations.

"During my session, I understood that we were all kind of nervous but to see the amount of interaction and the exchange of ideas has been phenomenal, it makes me wish I did my presentation now (laughs)," she added.

Photo: Lewis accepting her MVP award during the FIBA Women's Polynesian Cup

Keziah Lewis, a participant of the course from the Cooks Islands and also a national team member praised the initiative and how it has helped develop her as a coach.

"I am learning different things from all the other coaches. I love how interactive the course is, being new to coaching it’s nice to get tips from other coaches that may have experienced the same challenges and to see how they handled it," said Lewis.

Lewis, who was named the 2018 FIBA Women's Polynesia Cup Most Valuable Player admitted her surprise in learning that there are numerous female coaches in the region.

"I honestly didn’t know there were that many female coaches in the region! It’s great to see so many females wanting to give back to their countries," said the 25-year old.

"I hope this project continues to evolve because it has inspired me to pursue coaching. The course has taught me that our role in our player's life is so much more than just on the courts," she added.

The Tournament Coaches Course developed by the FIBA Oceania Office consists of six-session interactive forums from various mentors including Lori Chizik (Planning), Zoe Carr (Talent Identification), Mel Downer (Conducting Trials), Kristen Veal (Leadership), Jackie Brown (Building your system), and Katrina Hibbert (Scouting).

FIBA