On February 1st, over 20 speakers will convene in Oakland, CA to present on coaching youth ultimate. The Youth Ultimate Coaching Conference, organized by Bay Area Disc, boasts a line up of well-known and respected speakers like coaches Ben Wiggins (RISE UP), Jamie Nuwer (USA U19 Girls), Mike Payne (Revolver), organizers like William Bartram (DiscNW), Mike Lovinguth (USA Ultimate) and coaching professionals like Tina Syer (Positive Coaching Alliance), Suzanne Sillett (Coaching Corps), and Evan Kennedy and Ben Stein (Playworks). Revolver and soon to be San Jose Spiders star Beau Kittredge will deliver the keynote at the event.

Organizer Valerio Iani believes the topics to be discussed at YUCC to be crucial to the development of ultimate as a whole. While much of ultimate is enthralled with legitimization and visibility, Iani argues that youth coaching development is truly vital to the sports future. “The big ticket debates revolve around Ultimate in the Olympics, pro-leagues and TV coverage, but I believe that the future of Ultimate really depends on the next generation of coaches,” said Iani. “Exposure and infrastructure are essential, but ultimately teachers and coaches are the pivotal figures that will transmit their knowledge and passion to new generations of Ultimate players. We decided to host YUCC to contribute to this critical component of developing our sport.”

Through the conference, Iani hopes to cultivate a professional community of coaches by sharing best practices and programming. He wants each attendee and speaker leaving YUCC with renewed enthusiasm and a vision for building youth programs at any level. “Face-to-face opportunities like the US Open Convention, the UCPC and our YUCC can be powerful tools that connect, educate and inspire a new generation of Ultimate educators—as well as generate shareable educational content that can reach a broader audience through social media channels,” Iani explained.

Skyd Magazine has partnered with YUCC to film and share 8 presentations from the event and help to spread those goals.

Iani and Bay Area Disc are already expecting to run YUCC again intend for it to become an international pinnacle of youth ultimate coaching knowledge. But for now, he’s focused on making this year’s event truly worthwhile. “YUCC has something for everyone!” said Iani. “We chose topics that will be useful not only for coaches, but also for players, parents, teachers and school administrators interested in learning more about building, organizing and managing a team or an Ultimate program.”

For more information about the conference, click here.

Feature photo by Brandon Wu – UltiPhotos.com