The ISSF Academy has conducted its first C Course in Spanish in the city of Guayaquil, Ecuador between the 15th to 23rd of June last. The course was hosted by the Federacion Ecuatoriana de Tiro Olimpico under the supervision of its president, Joselito Roberto Padilla Gomez.
The course saw 31 students from Spain, Ecuador, Guatemala, Argentina, Columbia, Brazil, Peru, Panama, El Salvador, Chile and Venezuela all take part in an intensive course conducted by ISSF Academy tutors Dr. Kevin Kilty (IRL), Dr. Zeljko Todorovic (MNE), Prof. Claudio Robazza (ITA) and Mr. Goran Maksimovic (SRB).
To facilitate the students, the course featured simultaneous translation of the tutors lectures provided by the host federation. This allowed the course to proceed at the required pace and to cover all the material that is required for a successful C course.
That this course marks the first C course in another language other than English has been highlighted by ISSF Academy head tutor Dr. Kilty as a major milestone in the development of the ISSF Academy. Dr. Kilty said, “It has been a goal of the ISSF Academy for many years to address the needs of the many federations and coaches who cannot attend our C, B and A courses due to the requirement to have English language skills. It has been a personal goal of mine to deliver our courses and to provide direct support to coaches and federations through the ISSF Academy in their own language. To be here in Ecuador to introduce the first ISSF Academy C Course in Spanish is a very proud moment for me.”
The worldwide success of the ISSF Academy D-courses has seen a strong growth in the appetite for coaches to continue their education and a request for the introduction of the C Course in Spanish was given the approval by ISSF President Olegario Vázquez Raña.
The course participants were delighted to have the opportunity to continue their studies. Shotgun coach Mr. Thiago Liborio Romanelli of Brazil said, “I really enjoyed the D course I took last year and I had hoped that at some point in the future I would be able to continue by attending a C Course and to finally have that opportunity is fantastic. The tutors have been excellent and I certainly have learned much from them.”
Pistol coach Ms. Sara Botero from Columbia said, “It was quite an experience to get to meet world-class teachers and to accomplish the level of work they were expecting from us. It was very challenging working with Dr. Todorovic, and with the rest of the team and I’m already looking forward for the next course.”
Federacion Ecuatoriana de Tiro Olimpico President, Joselito Roberto Padilla Gomez spoke highly of the tutors and the participants who attended the course.
“This course is a major achievement for Ecuador and we were delighted to welcome so many coaches from our fellow federations. I wish to extend my gratitude to ISSF President Olegario Vasquez Raña and to ISSF Secretary General Franz Schreiber for their support for the course and and to the tutors of the ISSF Academy who made the course a great success and experience for all.”