Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has prioritised the need for future local coaches to gaining a knowledge in first aid in future. Accordingly, it will be compulsory for coaches following the Level 1 qualification course from the Coach Education Unit at SLC to acquire a thorough first aid knowledge, according to Coach Education Unit head Heshan de Mel. “As a first step, all Provincial and District coaches were brought under the hammer of a first aid course organised by SLCs Coach Education Unit and conducted by Lanka Hospitals on February 10, 2020 at the Lanka Hospitals Education Center. A total number of 54 coaches participated in this first aid program.”

The breakdown is as follows: Southern Province – 07 Coaches, Northern Province  – 06 Coaches, Eastern Province – 04 Coaches, North Central – 08 Coaches, North Western – 05 Coaches, Western Province – 14 Coaches, Central Province – 06 Coaches and Uva Province – 04 Coaches.

Emphasis on first aid know how for coaches is in keeping in line with countries like Australia, New Zealand and England who have made it a must for a coach to go through a first aid program to be eligible to sit for the Level 1 coaching course. As a first step, the SLC Coach Education Unit has taken the initiative to accentuate on all Provincial and District coaches to follow this program to gain proficiency in first aid which is considered important to becoming a fully fledged cricket coach.

By Srian Obeyesekere

-The opinions expressed here are the views of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of Sri Lanka Cricket-