Colorado Springs, CO – The National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) is proud to announce that Coach Joel Raether has been selected as the NSCA’s Professional Strength and Conditioning Coach of the Year for 2020. Coach Raether becomes the sixth recipient of the award, which has been handed out since 2014. Award winners are selected by a volunteer committee, the NSCA’s Coaching Task Force, who determine the winner based on their contributions to the NSCA, their community, and the coaching profession.

The exercises mentioned in this article are a small sampling of the drills available to the strength and conditioning coach when using rope drills. By adding these movements to a swimmer’s dryside training, swimmers can gain muscular endurance that will complement wetside training.

Liane Blyn, Director of Olympic Sports at Appalachian State University and world record holding powerlifter, talks to the NSCA Head Strength and Conditioning Coach, Scott Caulfield, about what she tries to impart to interns to prepare them for the field, how being a Certified Athletic Trainer (ATC) has benefitted her as a strength coach, and advice for up-and-coming strength and conditioning coaches.

The NSCA is proud to recognize the outstanding work of our professionals around the world. Please take time to nominate your peers when you see excellence that deserves recognition.

This article focuses on providing first-hand insight into the alternative licensure program (ALP) route from a current coach in the field.

After going to a conference, networking, and returning to your normal schedule and location with all the new ideas, tips, and tricks, what happens then? The purpose of this article is to show how using questions and reflecting can help turn professional development activities into actionable improvements in your coaching practice.

Hear from the 2023 NSCA Assistant College Coach of the Year, Gary Calcagno, from Oklahoma State University. In this episode, Calcagno shares highlights from a more than 30-year strength and conditioning career and how being resourceful as a once aspiring coach prepared him for lasting professional success with NSCA Coaching and Sport Science Program Manager, Eric McMahon. Calcagno also discusses his long history with the NSCA, recent areas of progress across the profession, and the role of quality leadership in managing a successful strength and conditioning program. You can reach Gary by email at gary.calcagno@okstate.edu | Find Eric on Instagram: @ericmcmahoncscs or Twitter: @ericmcmahoncscs

Megan Young, Performance Coach at Auburn University, talks to the NSCA Head Strength and Conditioning Coach, Scott Caulfield, about the data revolution and combining science and coaching to validate the “coaching eye.” They also discuss the importance of your professional network, building a strong performance team, and the need to unify the profession.

If you want to manage the performance of assets worth hundreds of millions of dollars, you better know what you’re doing. At the elite and professional levels of sport, strength and conditioning coaches are responsible for managing the performance of teams’ most valuable assets – The Athletes.