Vol. 493 No. 3
421 Mr. Sargent asked the Minister for Tourism, Sport and Recreation whether he has satisfied himself that all appropriate steps have been taken to ensure that sports coaches who employ the use of hypnosis to achieve improved athletic performance are appropriately qualified to accredited standards in the use of that technique; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15844/98]
Matters relating to coaching are the responsibility of the respective national governing bodies of sport. The National Coaching and Training Centre (NCTC), which assists bodies in raising the standard of coaching and training of coaches, operates a national coaching development programme in partnership with 52 national governing bodies. I understand from NCTC that the programme does not recommend the use of hypnosis as a coaching method.
