A cycling coach, as you may have guessed, coaches cyclists, helping riders to improve their technique and understand the sport as a whole. To do the job, you’ll need to be a skilled cyclist yourself, and have passed a British Cycling coaching badge.
As a coach, there are a variety of paths you can take, from coaching young children in schools to shaping a high performance programme aimed at athletes looking to compete in the Olympics.
Coaches also attempt to raise the profile of the sport amongst youngsters and advise others on their lifestyle choices, in order to push everyone to their fullest potential – either on a bike or off one.
Salary & benefits
A typical salary for a full-time coach in a local role would be between £18,000 and £26,000, depending on their location and the capacity in which they are employed.
Coaches working at a more professional level can expect to be paid considerably more and would even get a share of the winnings of any team they were a part of.
Working hours
Many positions are actually not full-time roles, and are combined with other work to make up someone’s salary. However, there are full time coaches and they would usually have to work extremely unsociable hours in order to travel to competitions and make sure their athletes were in tip-top shape.
Entry
To gain entry to the profession you will need a British Cycling qualification, which can be attempted once you are 18 years of age, have been Red Cross Emergency First Aid trained and have obtained the correct insurance documents.
Many employers, especially at a competitive level, would want you to have a degree in a sports related subject as well.
Training & progression
Once you are qualified, the progression of your career is down to how good you are at your job and how well you coach people to be better at their own cycling.
There’s no way you’re going to be picked up by a top club if you’re not producing results, so it’s all about making sure you’re doing the best you can and improving your racers, and therefore, your own standing.