On Friday morning myself and Coaching & Clubs Officer, Andy Fleming, set off to Aberdeen for the Scottish Disability Sport Para-Sport Festival.
Scottish Volleyball were delighted to be invited to deliver at the event and with the work we are doing at the moment with Volleyball Aberdeen to set up a Sitting Volleyball Club, this would be a great link for both parties.
As we arrived at Aberdeen Sports Village, the buzz in the sports hall was clear to see from the morning sessions. Our job was to maintain that after a lunch break and give the participants a great experience, with the support of the North-East Scotland College Sports Students.
Our 3 rotations had us delivering to 5–8-year-olds, 13–18-year-olds and finishing up with the 9–12-year-old group.
Andy got the sessions up and running and introduced all 3 sessions using balloons which went down well with the kids, and also the helpers. Balloons were popping, kids were smiling and laughing, target 1 met.
As we moved onto skill specific work using the net to aid the delivery of the game, now was the time the participants started to get competitive as they were set little challenges, which they completed, and then some.
As with each session, we ended with little games to give the participants a brief experience of what they might experience at a potential club opportunity.
It was a great day filled with lots of fun, smiles and extremely willing participants to give it a go.
This was the first Para-Sport Festival we have delivered to since the return of indoor sport and we cannot thank Alison Shaw from Scottish Disability Sport for the opportunity. We are looking forward to attending more in the future.
A huge thank you to the students of North-East Scotland College, Scottish Disability Sport and finally Therese Mitchell from Volleyball Aberdeen.
As we are delivering at more of these festivals across Scotland, we really want to ensure there is an outlet for these young people to go onto a club activity. If your club is interested in getting involved in Sitting Volleyball, or you would like to create your own club, please contact us via the email address here.
Please also note that our Sitting Volleyball Coaches Course will be delivered through October, so use this opportunity to upskill the coaches and volunteers within your club to be ready to deliver this fantastic discipline. the courses will be announced on our website, you can contact our Coaching Officer for more information.
Martyn Johnstone
Education & Participation Officer
