​The third edition of ADVANCE, Badminton Europe’s elite coach education programme, has officially launched! The first in-person course took place in Holbæk, Denmark, from 14 to 18 May. For five intensive days, 17 ambitious European coaches began their 10-month badminton coaching journey.

A different kind of Coaching course
ADVANCE stands out among other coaching courses because of its focus on coaches gaining a deep tactical understanding, technical precision, and the ability to develop players from the cradle to the podium.

The course's long duration gives the participants time for a deeper level of learning. Unlike the traditional short-form education, ADVANCE unfolds across four physical courses, combined with mentoring, online learning, and self-study, allowing coaches to reflect, apply, and grow over time. The physical courses work with a seamless connection between theoretical classes in classrooms and on-court practice with demonstrations.

“My biggest takeaway from week 1 was a confidence of my current knowledge and abilities, whilst simultaneously showing me how much I don't know. There is still a lot out there to learn on my coaching journey.” – Josh Hart, Wales

Coaching philosophy & Personal growth
The education will also dive deeper into the coaches' understanding of their own coaching philosophy, their tactical understanding of all disciplines, and their technical understanding of stroke production and footwork. In addition, the course enables coaches to develop players who are independent and reflective.

What makes ADVANCE unique is not only its content but also its commitment to preparing coaches beyond the court. The education covers not just technical and tactical coaching, but also areas such as coaching entrepreneurship, giving participants the tools to build careers in the sport.

As a participant put it:

“When the education is finished, I want to have a very clear coaching philosophy that can help me produce players of a high international standard while motivating them to continue for many years. As a coach, I want to be highly skilled at helping my athletes get such a good understanding about badminton so that they can basically be their own coaches.”  - Jesper de Wall

The World Class Tutors guiding the journey
Participants will be joined by a strong team of tutors, including Kenneth Larsen, the former Associate Professor at Aalborg University and former Danish National coach. Joining him are Jacob Oehlenschlæger and Jonathan Søgaard. They are both former national coaches of Germany and now key figures in Badminton Europe’s Development and High Performance team. Together, the trio brings a wealth of international coaching experience and mentors the participants throughout the ADVANCE programme.

“It's easy as a coach to get comfortable, and what motivated me to apply for ADVANCE is that I wanted the experienced tutors to challenge me and my perspectives on badminton coaching. “ – Jesper De Wall, Sweden

Jacob Oehlenschlæger, who is responsible for the ADVANCE education, reflected on the start of the course:

“It is always exciting to see the participants of a new edition of the BEC ADVANCE badminton coaching course. The coaches got off to a really good start, and it is clear that they are eager to learn. All coaches have been through a thorough screening process, so I’m not surprised by the level of the coaches. It is, however, very satisfying when you see the positive group dynamics and how the coaches interact with each other. The ADVANCE journey has started and it is going to be 10 amazing months.” – Jacob Oehlenschlæger , Development & High Performance Senior Manager, BEC.

What’s next: Upcoming courses
The next physical ADVANCE course will take place in July in Vejen, Denmark, and it’s one all the participants are looking forward to. It will take place at the same time as the Team Europe camp for the most talented U15-U17-U19 players from Europe

Stay tuned for more updates from the ADVANCE journey.

Meet the participants.

Anna Ciok – Poland

Dennis Mao – Germany

Florent Kersters – Belgium

Gregor McVean – Scotland

James Salter – England

Jan-Henrik Gleis – Germany

Jesper de Waal – Sweden

Jonty Russ – England

Joran Kweekel – Netherlands

Joshua Hart – Wales

Laurie Nuorteva – Finland

Mantas Maulé – Lithuania

Mihkel Talts – Estonia

Mika Poste – Germany

Mónika Szóke – Hungary

Stefan Munkholm – Denmark

Tak Ling Lam – Netherlands

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