Our Vision
Sports coaches guide athletes to achieve optimal performance, and this goes beyond enhancing physical ability. The Sports Coaching Lab (SCL) aspires to advance the sports coaching profession and take it to the highest standards of excellence.
The Sports Coaching Lab: Advancing Professional Coaching in South Africa
The Sports Coaching Lab (SCL) emerged from Our Founder, Dr. Desiree Vardhan’s doctoral research at The DaVinci Institute, supervised by Prof. B. Anderson from The DaVinci Institute. Her doctoral study, Sports Coaching Realities in South Africa: An Exploratory Study, explored why athletes continue to engage with unqualified and inexperienced coaches.
Grounded in qualitative research, her findings led to the formalisation of key communities of practice to advance sports coaching in South Africa. The SCL was established as a development hub to drive professionalisation, training, and innovation within the field. Thus, it is dedicated to shaping a structured and impactful sports coaching system, empowering coaches and athletes through education, collaboration, and research-driven insights.
Our Founder
Dr. Desiree Vardhan is a Sports Coaching Specialist with over 30 years of experience as an athlete, coach, and sports administrator. She has held strategic leadership roles globally, including leading Team South Africa as Chef de Mission.
A driving force in sports coaching development, she co-authored the South African Coaching Framework and introduced the ICCE Coach Developer Program in South Africa. As Chair of the ICCE Emerging Nations Workgroup, she collaborates globally to advance coaching standards. Her doctoral research at The DaVinci Institute led to the creation of the Sports Coaching Lab (SCL), a platform dedicated to professionalizing and innovating sports coaching in South Africa.