A Safe, Healthy, and Clean Sporting Environment

Athletes often turn to performance-enhancing drugs to get ahead. Unfortunately, performance-enhancing substance abuse is not limited to specific sports, age groups, or levels, and it is not limited to steroids and human growth hormone. Prescription medications, stimulants, inhalers, and other medications are often abused to gain a competitive advantage. This course provides an overview of performance-enhancing substances and methods, including the side effects and dangers of their use. You will master how to look for warning signs and examine some of the reasons why athletes resort to these methods. Through scenario-based learning, you will become armed with tools to prepare you to successfully navigate this difficult topic with your athletes.

After completion of this module, you should be able to develop a safe, healthy, and clean team culture that includes guidelines around performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs). To achieve this objective, you will be able to:

• Understand your role as a coach when it comes to educating athletes and parents.
• Recognize the categories of PEDs, what they do, and their side effects.
• Appreciate the common reasons young athletes may use PEDs.
• Identify the signs and symptoms of PED use and abuse.

Seat time: Approximately 18 minutes of seat time. The learning path for this course includes a pre-course questionnaire, course, and post-course questionnaire.

Evaluation: You will be evaluated on the assignments within the module through knowledge check points and a course summary quiz. A score at least 80% on the summary quiz is required to successfully complete the module.

TrueSport Coaching Field Experience (optional): Complete all four TrueSport Coaching Education Program online modules as a pre-requisite to completing the TrueSport Coaching Field Experience. Field Experience materials are included with all course registrations.

Explore the other courses in the TrueSport Coaching Education Program.

The TrueSport Coaching Modules have received recognition from the U.S. Center for Coaching Excellence for alignment with the National Standards for Sport Coaches (Ethical Practices).