Marty Handson Scholarship Program Tips Off With Leadership and Mindset Session

GOLD COAST (Australia) – Over 20 participants joined the first online education session of the Marty Handson Scholarship Program, facilitated by Rob Coulter and Nathan Cooper-Brown.

Complimenting the FIBA Global Strategy, the Marty Handson Scholarship Program supports empowering national federations through boosting grassroots programs, enabling access to coaching development across the region.

Participants from Fiji, Kiribati, New Caledonia, Northern Mariana Islands, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tahiti, and Tonga took part in the session which focused on leadership and mindset.

Nathan Cooper-Brown said that having the opportunity to share his experience and knowledge with emerging Oceania coaches through the program is a privilege.

“This was a wonderful reminder of how global basketball really is,” Cooper-Brown said.  “It was such a wonderful privilege to share experiences and insight with coaches from all over Oceania, who are extremely passionate about developing athletes and growing the game.”

The current Australian U17 Men’s Head Coach, Cooper-Brown talked through leadership attributes and the importance of being authentic.

I’ve been extremely lucky to have played and coached at so many different levels and been impacted by many incredible people

“Passing on their wisdom is a rewarding part of this job.  The journey of finding your why, becoming your most authentic you, and leading through connection and care, are lessons I thoroughly enjoyed learning, and was keen to discuss with the scholarship coaches.”

Papua New Guinea U17 Women’s Coach, Jennifer Maroroa took part in the session and acknowledged the importance of communication and culture when it comes to leadership.

“From the session, I now better understand the qualities of a good leader and those traits that I need to develop to be a good coach,” Maroroa said.  “I understand that I need to work on my coaching philosophy and tie this into creating a vision and strategy that are clear and accepted by the team.”

The Marty Handson Scholarship Program is a three-month program implemented in partnership with Basketball Victoria to prepare coaches and develop their skills for the upcoming events taking place in Oceania including the FIBA Oceania U17 Championship and Pacific Games.

FIBA