New wave of women to bolster High Performance coaching ranks

Australian Athletics continues to invest in an inclusive future for High Performance coaching, recently hosting a three-day workshop for the Women in High Performance Coaching Program focused on connection, growth and ongoing professional and personal development.

Building on the success of the 2022-2024 inaugural program, the 2025-2027 program welcomes ten fresh faces who have already achieved coaching success at the national or international level.

The program is designed to enable more women to step into and stay in High Performance coaching roles, providing development opportunities that strengthen knowledge, skills and confidence.

Middle-distance coach and former Australian representative Kerry Schreiber said the workshop hosted in Melbourne set the tone for the program, participating alongside five coaches from the inaugural cohort and four mentors to ensure strong networks and visible role models.

“You had extremely knowledgeable and invested group of coaches and presenters together with some key AA -HP staff, creating an unspoken energy that brought everyone to the table,” Schreiber said.

“It showed just how powerful the collective experience, connections and support women coaches bring to our sport. It’s driven by the desire of the women before us to ensure our experiences are better and provide ongoing opportunities in the high-performance environment.

“I’ll take away a stronger belief in my own capability – not just as a woman in coaching, but as a coach, full stop.”

Beginning with a keynote from Lauren Burns, the Olympic taekwondo champion challenged coaches to look beyond sessions and results; instead building strong relationships, emotional regulation and clarity about the leaders they want to be.

To bring the concept to life, participants wrote down a commitment to the coach they aspire to become on wooden boards and broke through them, confidently stepping into their identity.

“Breaking the pieces of wood in half was very symbolic of the concepts of empowerment and belief that you can do it even when you don’t think you can,” Schreiber said.

“There are several layers to the workshop: investment, calculated risk, and passion. It’s the opportunity to learn from women who have lived and breathed High Performance, and to take those lessons into my own coaching.”

From mapping their individual coaching journeys to hosting Bill Davoren who introduced the Australian Institute of Sport’s Coach Development Framework, coaches assessed their strengths and areas for development across the pillars of self, people, strategy, system and performance.

Michelle De Highden further challenged participants to consider the legacy they want to leave in athletics, with a common theme prevailing not only for results, but to leave the system stronger than they found it and create clearer pathways for women in the future.

“There is a responsibility to continue that legacy, to contribute to the environment and to help create better experiences for the women who come next,” Schreiber said.

More information about the Australian Athletics Women in High Performance Coaching Program can be found HERE.