Castlegar coach gets national honours
By Kyra Hoggan
Castlegar’s own head skating coach has been named one of the top 10 coaches in Canada by the NCCP, the National Coaching Certification Program.
Sabrina Hinson, 27, was not even aware she’s been nominated for the honour until she received a call saying she’d been short-listed.
Raised in Nova Scotia, Hinson has been skating pretty much since she could walk, and coaching since she was 17 years old. Driven by a desire to see more of her country, Hinson conducted an Internet job search and found herself in the Kootenays as head coach for the Castlegar, Nakusp and Revelstoke skating clubs.
This year saw Hinson receive a spectacular Christmas gift when she got the call from the NCCP.
“My club in Nakusp sent (in) a form nominating me, along with reference letters, without telling me,” she explained. “So I was totally surprised when they called to tell me I’d been shortlisted as one of Canada’s top 20 coaches.
“They sent me a long list of requirements to continue – I needed a DVD of my on-ice lessons and skating sessions, more reference letters, photos of me with my students, and a biography that included my future goals for myself personally, as well as for my skating club.”
She sent the materials in a found out just recently that she’d been named one of the country’s top 10 coaches.
“It means we (myself and the other nine coaches) get an all-expenses-paid trip to Toronto for a full week at the end of May,” Hinson explained. “We receive brand-new training from SkateCanada expert coach Monica Lockie.
“There’s also an awards ceremony, and we get to participate in workshops for the national coaches conference, which is running that week,” she said.
Hinson said she was truly stunned by the accolade.
“I had no idea they even nominated me,” she said. “I’m really honoured, and really pleased to be recognized …I love coaching so much, to get an award for it is just icing on the cake.”
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