Chris Pronger:

Worth Repeating: Trevor Linden on the Rising Costs and Pressure in Youth Sports

Trevor Linden played 19 seasons in the NHL, captained the Vancouver Canucks to the 1994 Stanley Cup Final, and performed under the most intense pressure imaginable. But as a sports parent to his 8-year-old son? He's about as low-pressure as it gets.In [http://gets.In] this segment, Trevor discusses the advent of travel tournaments to major markets for teams with very young players, the rising cost of youth sports, and how adults set the example of what is acceptable with their behaviour. Listen to the full episode: ⁠Spotify⁠ [https://open.spotify.com/episode/0QWvVeFx6JJFXT9AFLsYOw?si=d319ef91510947bd] ⁠Apple⁠ [https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/trevor-linden-youth-sports-arms-race-travel-tournament/id1834970608?i=1000751164347] Watch on ⁠YouTube [https://youtu.be/wrBAyIYXXrc?si=x96YlwhHfNJGAcEs]

Shannon Winzer: We're Failing Our Coaches, Why Parents Lose the Plot & The Gift of Free Play

Shannon Winzer has coached volleyball at the highest level on two continents:national teams in Canada and Australia, and now as head coach of the Dallas Pulse in Major League Volleyball. She's also a mother of three kids actively playing youth sports and a volunteer lacrosse coach in her community. That combination gives her a perspective on youth sport that very few people have. What she sees frustrates her deeply. Coaches who have lost sight of the developmental needs of young people. Organizations selling dreams to parents who don't know enough to question them. A volunteer coaching workforce that is expected to do everything and supported to do almost nothing. And a youth sports culture so focused on winning, medals, and the next academy program that it has completely forgotten why kids play sport in the first place. In this conversation with Scott Rintoul, Shannon is direct, honest, and at times quietly furious. She talks about talent identification, the myth of early specialization, what the best professional athletes all have in common, the role of school sport, and the one question every parent should be asking their child but probably isn't. Her diagnosis of the biggest issue in youth sport is simple: we've lost perspective on what the purpose of youth sport actually is. Better Sports Parents is helping parents positively contribute to the youth sports environment. Subscribe for new episodes every week. Chapters 00:00 Opening 01:58 Introducing Shannon Winzer 03:18 Why She's So Passionate About Youth Sports 03:59 Her View on Youth Sports Today 05:22 Why Parents Lose the Plot 07:17 What Shannon Wants for Her Own Kids 08:44 Do Parents Understand Their Role in Youth Sport? 10:04 Fighting Your Child's Battles vs. Supporting Them Through Their Own 11:44 When a Child Approaches the Coach vs. When a Parent Does 12:01 What Learning Looks Like: Reframing Failure 13:49 Please Don't Coach From the Stands 16:23 Why Coaching From the Sideline Adds Noise, Not Help 20:26 Why Shannon Got Into Coaching 22:03 Shannon's Youth Sports Background 24:03 Academies: When They Help and When They Don't 28:19 Setting Boundaries as a Sports Family 30:09 The Greatest Gift We Can Give Kids: Free Play 33:28 How Coaches Can Create Space for Creativity 36:21 Ask What They Love, Not Just Why They Play 39:27 We Are Failing Our Coaches 42:18 Coach Retention, School Sport and the Teacher Problem 47:02 The Missing Recreational Pathway in Volleyball 51:29 Why Shannon Chose Volleyball Over Basketball 52:28 Multi-Sport at the Professional Level 55:53 People Selling Youth Sports 57:42 Shannon's Biggest Issue: We've Lost Perspective 01:01:08 We Need a Framework, Not Just Funding 01:04:31 The Number One Purpose of Youth Sport 01:08:36 Competition and Participation Can Coexist 01:10:48 The Myth Around Talent ID Resources ⁠Shannon Winzer⁠ [https://provolleyball.com/staff-members/shannon-winzer] ⁠Long-Term Athlete Development⁠ [https://coach.ca/sites/default/files/archive/2020-02/CAC_7516A_11_LTAD_English_Brochure_FINAL.pdf] ⁠Better Sports Parents⁠ [https://www.bettersportsparents.com/]

Worth Repeating: Kim Gaucher on Giving Kids the Freedom to Make Decisions

Kim Gaucher was a member of the Canadian Women's Basketball Team for more than 20 years, captaining the team in multiple Olympic Games. Her prolific NCAA and professional career led her into coaching and eventually her current role as Head of the Players Unit with FIBA, the governing body of international basketball. In this segment, Kim discusses the benefits of kids playing in unstructured environments, how players benefit when they're not coached during games, and how the focus on individual skills has taken away from team play. Listen to the full episode: ⁠Spotify⁠ [https://open.spotify.com/episode/6UwPeeLowHe1tZDlwPG6WR?si=dfff5cbd1da64c94] ⁠Apple⁠ [https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/kim-gaucher-open-the-gyms-increase-accountability/id1834970608?i=1000746825790] Watch on ⁠YouTube⁠ [https://youtu.be/5mksK9QU7YA?si=GO8p79WY33KmEOcw]

Brian Johns: The Rat Race of Youth Sports, Parents Need Help & Who is the System Serving?

Brian Johns is a three-time Olympian and was a world record holder in the pool. He also thought he knew what youth sport looked like — until he became a parent. What he found when he put his daughters into youth sports was an eye-opener even for someone who has spent decades in sport at every level. Sports operating in silos, parents left to figure everything out alone, nine-year-olds being tiered into competitive groups without equal resources. He started writing and speaking about it because the problems were obvious but the solutions felt stuck. In this conversation with Scott Rintoul, Brian draws on his background as an Olympian, a coach, and Head of Coaching Science at Form Swim to make the case that youth sport isn't failing because people don't care, it's failing because organizations are just trying to survive, and nobody is coordinating the bigger picture. He argues that the answer isn't just more funding or more facilities. It's collaboration, purposeful programming, and a willingness to put the child in front of the organization. 🎙️ Better Sports Parents is helping parents positively contribute to the youth sports environment. Subscribe for new episodes every week. Chapters 00:00 Opening 02:09 Introducing Brian Johns 03:05 What Made Him Start Writing About Youth Sport 05:57 The Biggest Revelation: Everything Is Siloed 08:23 Brian's Youth Sports Background 09:33 His Parents' Approach: Let Him Choose 11:07 Why He Kept Playing Other Sports Despite Excelling at Swimming 12:55 How the Culture of Swimming Has Changed 15:45 Purposeful Practice vs. Empty Volume 16:06 Peak Performance Ages in Swimming: A Unique Challenge 19:55 Managing Young Phenoms: Communication Is Everything 24:14 Creating Community in an Individual Sport 27:41 Competing Against Other Sports for Kids' Time 32:26 You're Not Just Competing With Other Clubs 37:45 Can Sports Organizations Work Together? 43:00 The Death of School Sport and What It Cost Us 45:13 Reframing Sport: Accessibility vs. Competition Is a False Choice 48:29 Pathways for Kids Who Don't Make the Team 53:21 Zoom Out: We All End Up at the Rec Center 54:11 Unprecedented Funding: Can Canada Actually Deliver? 56:10 The Infrastructure Problem Nobody Talks About 01:01:24 Free Swimming Lessons: Vancouver's Experiment 01:03:09 Who Is the Youth Sport System Actually Designed to Serve? 01:07:07 Who Needs to Step Back and Why 01:11:17 Brian's Biggest Issue in Youth Sport: Lack of Collaboration 01:13:59 Identity Beyond Swimming: How Coaches Can Help 01:16:48 Performance vs. Learning: The Flip Turn Story Resources ⁠Brian Johns ⁠ [https://olympic.ca/team-canada/brian-johns/] ⁠Vancouver's Free Swimming Proposal ⁠ [https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/vancouver-free-swimming-lessons-9.7205899]

Worth Repeating: Brendan Morrison on Keeping Perspective as a Parent

Brendan Morrison played over 900 games in the NHL and centred a line known as The West Coast Express, the league's highest scoring line for a couple of seasons. As a parent, he and his wife Erin have raised four children, all of whom became NCAA Division I athletes... but that was never Brendan's or Erin's goal. In this segment, Brendan discusses the pressure too many parents place on their kids in youth sports and how to keep a realistic perspective without killing your child's dreams. Listen to the full episode: ⁠Spotify⁠ [https://open.spotify.com/episode/1dB5IzguZxPONl7N5NY3dQ?si=02c0f6bc0ebb44ab] ⁠Apple⁠ [https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/brendan-morrison-pyramiding-kids-too-soon-managing/id1834970608?i=1000747834314] Watch on ⁠YouTube⁠ [https://youtu.be/W_LZFXvXsX4?si=AHblzwBSSuiDbm13]