Online Courses
The FAST process (II2 eligibility)FreeThis guidance is specifically for NEO’s using the FAST assessment and supplements the eligibility guidance notes. It will take you through the evidence which may be needed to support your application, depending on the type of health condition.
Introduction To SafeguardingFreeThis course provides an introduction to Safeguarding and how Virtus keeps people safe in sport.
Autism AwarenessFreeThis course provides an introduction to our new II3 eligibility category and sport for athletes with autism.
NEO Induction CourseRestrictedNational Eligibility Officers (NEO) are central to the athlete eligibility process in Virtus.
Virtus Volunteer InductionFreeVolunteer training module with a series of online lessons that all new volunteers need to undertake within the first few months of volunteering. After completion you will collect a certificate.
Inclusive Sports Practice for CoachesFreeThis course is for all coaches who want to adopt an inclusive sport practice ensuring that everyone can enjoy your sport, improve their skills and perform to the best of their own abilities.
Coaching Individuals with Intellectual Disability and/or Autism (produced by the IDEAL project)FreeLearn about intellectual disabilities and autism in physical activities and sports. Explore various competition options.
Learn about coaching techniques for individuals with intellectual disabilities and/or autism. Gain practical skills from experienced coaches to support your athlete’s growth. Discover the importance of inclusion.
- Coaching Elite Athletes with Intellectual Disability and/or Autism - Advanced course (produced by the IDEAL project)FreeDiscover elite coaching methods for athletes with intellectual disabilities and/or autism in this course. Gain insights from experienced coaches on topics like differences in coaching approaches, international competitions, training tactics, classification and mental preparation strategies for competition days.
- Let’s get moving! (Produced by the IDEAL project)FreeWe all know that being physically active is good for you – both for your physical and also your mental health. For people with intellectual disabilities and those with autism this is even more important as they not only face a higher risk of developing multiple health conditions, but often their limited life opportunities can also restrict access to healthy activities.
Virtus Tennis (in partnership with the ITF)FreeThis online course is for anyone interested to learn more about developing tennis players with intellectual impairment to a high-performance level and can be accessed for free. It includes a view of Virtus Sport, the Virtus Tennis Programme, Athlete Identification and Performance, and the Virtus partnership with ITF and National Associations. It will take you approximately 20 minutes to complete. Course certificate can be downloaded through the ITF academy website. Additional ITF Academy courses are also available on the ITF Academy home page for anyone interested in tennis.
- Start Hockey (provided by FIH)FreeThis guidance is for coaches supporting players with an intellectual impairment
Webinars
Anti DopingFreeVirtus Anti-Doping officer, Juliana Soares covered a wide range of topics from introduction to doping, doping rules, procedures for athletes testing and athlete rights in this webinar.
Sponsorship For Athletes With Intellectual ImpairmentFreeSecuring sponsorship for athletes with intellectual impairment and autism can be difficult, given their impairment being invisible. In this webinar, Monica Valentin-former athlete manager of Tokyo 2020 Gold Medalist and Virtus ambassador, Gabriel Bandeira (BRA) shares her knowledge and experience whilst giving tips on “How to secure sponsorship deals for athletes with intellectual impairments?”
The Coach - Motivate The AthleteFreeInspirational stories from coaches of gold medal winners at Paralympic/Virtus Global Games. We are joined by two top level coaches as guest speakers: Dr. Ingi Einarsson (swimming coach – Iceland) and Tony Guihot (basketball coach – Australia) who will share their experience as team coaches of successful athletes with intellectual impairment. They will provide advice on how you can overcome the challenges and barriers on the path to success based on their own experiences spanning many years.
- Autism AwarenessFreeThis webinar discusses why sport and exercise are crucial for health and wellbeing of people with autism, and how Virtus facilitates this.
Using social mediaFreeIn this webinar, we will talk about the importance of social media and how you can use it to build your organisation’s digital presence, and branding using it. We have also focused on how to leverage on 100% online audience. A step-by-step guide to creating and managing your organization’s social media pages will also be shared during this webinar.
- IDEAL 2FreeIn this webinar the IDEAL 2.0 project is presented in a panel discussion with the 7 researchers involved in this project. Virtus Academy is delighted to be one of the main partners in the EU funded project, with the aim to faciliate inclusive and equitable sport for athletes with intellectual disability and/or autism. The panel members discuss the goals of the project, their own roles, and how the project has the potential to benefit Virtus and all Virtus athletes.
Tokyo 2020 Athlete StoriesFreeAfter a successful Tokyo2020 Paralympic Games for II athletes, we hear from four amazing medallists – Breanna Clark (USA) GOLD T20 400m, Peter Palos (HUN) GOLD Table Tennis class 11, Valeriia Shabalina (RUS) S14 Gold and Silver Medallist, Jessica-Jane Applegate (GBR) S14 Gold and Bronze Medallist
Promoting Paralympic Athletes in TokyoFreePromoting Paralympic Athletes in Tokyo was presented by Nithi Suppiah.
Sport in the post-COVID worldFreeTowards An Inclusive, Accessible And Sustainable Post COVID-19 World. The theme is especially relevant to the impacts seen and felt by the Virtus community. It not only highlights the challenges, barriers and opportunities for people who live with disabilities, it speaks about how sport for athletes with intellectual impairment – our core business – has been seriously challenged in the context of the global pandemic.
