BC Wheelchair Sports Association Offers Targeted Coaches Conference September 2, 2003 - BC Wheelchair Sports Association (BCWSA) is offering a great opportunity to enhance coaching in the wheelchair sport community. The BCWSA Coaching Conference will be held October 4 to 5, 2003 at Douglas College, New Westminster. "This is groundbreaking for the area of wheelchair sports," says Kathy Newman, Executive Director of BCWSA. "Never before have we had a coaches seminar that targets wheelchair sports and the specific needs of the coaches and athletes." "The conference is designed to provide coach education and hands-on training skills for coaching wheelchair athletes," says Marni Abbott of the Coaches Association of BC. "We want to educate coaches with topics that provides them with the latest information, highlight 'best practices' and commonalties in coaching wheelchair sports." The conference brings together a team of sports experts who will offer interactive seminars on a variety of topics including Steve Ramsbottom who will offer a course on Strength and Conditioning. Ramsbottom is a strength and conditioning specialist and owner of the Humanperformance Centres. He graduated from the University of BC with a degree in Human Kinetics. Nikos Apostolopoulos is the founder of Stretch Therapy® and will offer a seminar in the technique of Microstretching®. He is the Director of the Serapis Stretch Therapy Clinic, the first Clinic in the world pioneering the development of therapeutic stretching. The third area addressed at the seminar is mental training led by Dr. Laura Farres who has a Ph.D. in Education from the University of Ottawa. Her formal training is in the area of psychopedagogy and the psychology of performance. She applies her knowledge and skills to exercise, health and sport contexts through her private consulting practice, Mind in Motion Consulting Inc. The early bird rate for the conference (before September 15, 2003) is $30.00. After that date, the conference rate is $40.00. BCWSA is a not-for-profit organization devoted to providing opportunities for athletes with physical disabilities. Since being founded in 1971, the association has worked to provide access to quality programs for athletes with disabilities. This has always been the focus and continues to be what drives the association. In partnership with other Provincial Wheelchair Sports Associations across Canada, BCWSA is dedicated to promoting wheelchair sport and community awareness. For more information call 1.800.335.3120 or email Marni Abbott at info@coaches.bc.ca