The Club Captains of Golden Grove Little Athletics Centre (GGLAC) provide an important connection between the GGLAC Committee and the athletes. The Club Captains contribute to the development of the club through supporting athletes and through representing their views within the club to the Committee. GGLAC seeks to appoint Club Captains who will uphold the values of the club and the association motto of family fun and fitness.
At the beginning of each season, GGLAC will look to appoint Club Captains who;
- Display leadership qualities.
- Demonstrates respect for coaches, athletes, club members, officials, volunteers and the wider athletics community.
- Show commitment to honest effort and strive for improving performance.
- Demonstrate pride in GGLAC.
- Act as a good role model for other athletes.
- Applaud good performance and effort from all individuals and clubs regardless of the outcome.
- Uphold and demonstrate the principles of fairness, respect, responsibility and safety.
- Foster friendship, integrity, success, trust, enjoyment, equality, loyalty, opportunity and compassion.
- Role and responsibilities of the Club Captain
- The role of Club Captain is to provide an important connection between the Committee of GGLAC and its athletes.
- Club Captains will have the following responsibilities:
- Provide support and encouragement to athletes.
- Undertake representative duties as requested.
- Develop a rapport with other athletes within the club which enables the athletes to communicate concerns and raise issues.
- Meet and welcome new members.
- Support Club fundraising activities.
- Represent the athletes of the Club at committee meetings when necessary, to raise issues and provide feedback to the committee as a representative of the athletes of the club.
Process for selection
The Committee of GGLAC will call for nominations for the following season from eligible athletes after the AGM.
Interested athletes will be sent an email asking them to complete the expression of interest form prior to Sept 30th in that year. They will be required to outline how they meet the selection criteria, their interest in the position and how they will be able to fulfil the role of Club Captain. Applications must be hand written and submitted via email to GGR@salaa.org.au.
The committee will review all applications for suitability to the position. The consideration process will consider the quality of the application, the athlete’s history with the club, and dedication to the club (volunteering, encouragement of younger athletes, attendance at home, away and championship events). Where the committee cannot come to a decision based on written applications, a panel may be convened to conduct short face-to-face interviews or similar which will assist in the selection process. The panel will consist of the head coach, president, and secretary (members may be excused and replaced with an alternative if there is a conflict of interest). The selection panel will consider the responses from the shortlisted candidates and make a recommendation to the Committee for appointment.
Whilst ideally both a female and male Club Captain would be appointed it could also be that in some years, two captains of the same gender may best fulfil the needs of the club. Alternatively, the Committee may decide to only appoint one Club Captain in any given season.
Club Captain Selection Criteria
The Club Captains will hold current GGLAC membership and be in the under 15 age group or above. They must have had continuous membership at the Centre for at least two seasons.
They will be appointed to the position based on their ability to demonstrate the following behaviours:
- Liaise with and take directions from coaching staff.
- Commitment to be involved in and attend training sessions.
- Regular attendance at Club home meets, away meets and championship events.
- Demonstrate the potential for excellent leadership skills, the ability to develop a rapport with athletes and to lead by example.
- Ability to communicate with other athletes, encourage good conduct and sportsmanship and to acknowledge all athletes’ achievements.
- The Club Captains, along with all Club members, are bound by the SALAA Code of Conduct and are expected to abide by these rules at all times.
Voting Process
Any committee member related to any of the applicants will be excluded from the voting process and discussions. They will not receive copies of any applications. Voting will be done via an anonymous online survey. All committee members eligible to vote will rank the applicants by simple number vote with the number one being the preferred athlete. The two athletes with the lowest number at the end of all votes being counted will be appointed to the captain role. In the event of a tied vote, the President will have the deciding vote. Where there is a conflict of interest, this will fall to the Vice President.
Once the Committee has approved the appointment, the successful athletes will be personally notified and will be asked to accept the appointment before it is announced to the rest of the Club members. The appointment will be for the duration of the season until the AGM is held. The successful applicants will have their names engraved on the GGLAC Club Captains Perpetual Shield.
Whilst ideally we would like to share leadership opportunities amongst athletes, an athlete may be selected for a second season. Unsuccessful applications are encouraged to apply again the following season. The decision of the Committee is final. The GGLAC committee reserve the right to release a club captain from their position based on a majority vote if they are deemed as not meeting the criteria during the season.
Review
This policy will be reviewed annually by the Committee.
Policy developed: Jul 2015
Policy reviewed without change: Jul 2016, Jul 2017
Policy reviewed, and changes accepted: Sep 2018
Policy reviewed without change: Sep 2019
Policy reviewed, and changes accepted: Aug 2020, Feb 2021
Date for next review: Feb 2022