More than 25,000 youth sports coaches have now been trained in positive coaching practices through the California Coaches Challenge!

This initiative was monumental in Move Your Body, Calm Your Mind’s work to change the culture of youth sports and improve outcomes for our young athletes. Together, with the Positive Coaching Alliance and Center for Healing and Justice through Sport, we surpassed our challenge goals and succeeded in supporting coaches and youth athletes all over California to create safe, positive spaces for sport and healing.

Stronger Coaches. Stronger Kids. Stronger Communities. Coaches play a critical role for kids, not just on the field, but in life. 70% of kids drop out of sports by age 13. Let’s change this by giving coaches the skills, support, mentorship, knowledge, leadership, and encouragement to be a great coach.

The Governor’s Advisory Council on Physical Fitness and Mental Well-being and Move Your Body, Calm Your Mind teamed up with the Million Coaches Challenge to launch 25×25: The California Coaches Challenge. The initiative aimed to train 25,000 coaches in positive youth coaching across California by the end of 2025. Through these trainings, coaches learned a range of youth-centered strategies, including creating safe spaces for all young people, fostering a sense of belonging, and coaching with empathy. This statewide effort instilled the principles of positive youth development, social-emotional learning, healing-centered practices, and culturally responsive coaching in youth coaches.