NOC*NSF and Nyenrode jointly strive for new leadership in sports

Breukelen – Papendal – Olympic sports federation NOC*NSF and Nyenrode Business Universiteit signed a declaration of intent today for collaboration in the area of leadership development in sports. By selecting ambitious top talents for the Nyenrode Sports Leadership Program at Nyenrode, among other efforts, the NOC*NSF aims to make an active contribution to the professionalization of leadership in the sports world.

“Now is the time to change the rules of the game when it comes to leadership in sports. Old systems are being let go to make room for new ones,” says Gerard Dielessen, General Director of the NOC*NSF, the Dutch industry organization for sports. “A new generation is also pounding at the gate, ready to elevate sports to a new level with modern tools. As a partner in education and leadership, Nyenrode is a good fit with the ambitions of the NOC*NSF.”

Maurits Hendriks, Technical Director of the NOC*NSF: “We aspire for the best possible guidance for the athletes on Team NL. In our Master’s program for national coaches, we devote attention to four key domains: coaching, training, managing and leading. In this Master’s program we work together with experts who have proven their expertise in practice. With Nyenrode Sports Inc., we are expanding our team with a renowned and very welcome partner in the area of Sports Leadership.”

“Sports and leadership are two themes that can lead to fascinating new insights in an academic environment. Through the collaboration with the NOC*NSF, we are creating opportunities to achieve fast results,” says Prof. Dr. Miša Džoljić, Rector Magnificus of Nyenrode Business Universiteit.

“There has long been an undercurrent of change in the professional sports world,” explains Bartel Berkhout, Program Director of Nyenrode Sports Inc. “With the innovative Sports Leadership Program, we give top talent the chance to develop themselves into leaders and breathe new life into the sports ecosystem.”

Next generation sports leaders

The shared vision of the NOC*NSF and Nyenrode Sports Inc. is that there is a need for a new generation of leaders in sports. This next generation of sports leaders aspires for personal and professional growth, both of themselves and their team or organization. Intensive development of top talent selected by the NOC*NSF in the innovative Nyenrode Sports Leadership Program should take the professional sports world to a new level. Nyenrode will also make an academic contribution within the NOC*NSF’s existing Master Coach Program.

International

The focus of the collaboration lies on the international sports ambitions of the Netherlands. Plans include, for example, jointly offering master classes during the Winter Olympic Games in PyeongChang, South Korea in 2018. Possibilities will also be explored for how Nyenrode Sports Inc. and the NOC*NSF can jointly participate during the SportAccord convention in Bangkok, Thailand as well as various world and European championships.

The training activities will take place both at elite sports center Papendal in Arnhem and at Nyenrode Business Universiteit in Breukelen.