His story captures the experiences, mentors and life lessons learned from a young age that helped shaped his athlete-centred coaching philosophy

Shane is a former New Zealand (Black Sticks) men’s hockey player.

On retirement, Shane moved into coaching and became the Black Sticks men’s coach for two Olympic campaigns - Beijing in 2008 and London in 2012.

He then moved into the head coaching role with the Belgium Men’s hockey team (Belgium Red Lions) where over a five-year period he transformed a dysfunctional and underperforming team into World Champions (2018), European Champions (2019), Rio Olympic Silver Medallists’ (2016) and Tokyo Olympic Gold Medallists’ (2021).

Shane McLeod

This documentary celebrates the inspiring journey of ex-Black Sticks coach Shane McLeod who led the Belgium ‘Red Lions’ hockey team to World Cup and Olympic glory. His story focuses on the experiences, mentors and life lessons learned from a young age that helped shape Shane’s athlete-centred coaching philosophy. 

Brought to life through hockey, Shane’s engaging coaching approach serves as an inspiration to all sport coaches - from the elite level to the grassroots and embodies the Coach For Life Philosophy.

Shane's coaching philosophy

Create a circle of trust

Build strong relationships

Be a counsellor 

Get to know your players 

Always be positive

Embrace and learn from failure

Don't punish genuine mistakes

Building resilence

Always be a great role model

Building a coaching team

Getting parents onboard

Define what success looks like

Involve players in the game plan

Athletes need an "on-off" switch

Create a positive environment 

The 3 types of young athletes

Play multiple sports

Managing youth workloads

Priorities for youth coaches

Attributes of great coaches

Character traits of a great coach

The invaluable role of a coach

Sport helps life learning

Sport teaches life lessons

Shane's ultimate goal as a coach

The Players Coach

The Players Coach

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