Coach profile : Omar Mohamed

Introduce yourself! :
Omar Mohamed, Head Coach of Calac- Natation Lasalle

When did you start your coaching career? :
In 2016

How did you get started in this business? :
I was a swimmer at the national level in my country (Egypt), I swam for the national junior team, then I continued my athletic career until 2016. Then I came to Quebec City. It was a bit difficult to continue swimming at a high level, but I still had the passion to stay in swimming, and then I was really interested in starting my coaching career. The aim was to help athletes develop their skills to become better athletes and better people.

What turns you on the most in your role as a coach? :
Every day there's a new challenge, there's always a new goal to strive for with my athletes, to keep developing. Every practice, every competition is a new challenge for us.

How would you describe your coaching style?
I'm still a young coach, in a development phase to find my style.
But it's very necessary to have a clear context, to be well organized to be able to apply an effective development plan for my swimmers.

What would you like to improve or develop in your practice, in your role as a coach? :
Firstly, to develop myself as a coach, there's always room to improve, either with the relationship and communication with athletes, or to better prepare my training plan.

What do you wish for your profession? What are your wishes for the future of the coaching profession?
To become a top-level swimming coach (National and above)

Why did you choose the Conseil du sport de Montréal's Lab entraineur-es Montréal program?
I was really interested in exchanging and sharing my knowledge with other coaches, not just in my sport. The one-year duration seemed optimal to me, because all the coaches are available to share their experience and exchange with each other, not just during LAB meetings. We're connected online, to share readings, problems or ask questions.
I also already knew Marc-André Duchesneau, having done some training with him with Swimming Canada.

What has Lab entraineur-es Montréal taught you in your practice?
A lot of things.
It really helps me to see things differently, to ask questions, to define my goals and the goals of my athletes, how I can have a better reflection or analysis for the situations I see in my daily life, and then have much simpler solutions. Exchanging experience with other coaches, and learning from their experience also helps me a lot.