Kieler Yacht Club: Head coach Kai Bertallot on working with young talent and his departure

Are you on dry land now, Mr Bertallot?

(laughs) That's not quite true, as I will continue to work as a coach for the Kiel Yacht Club. I'm also keeping my permanent training group, and working with the children and young people will provide me with a great balance in the future. I still really enjoy it and would therefore like to continue training in sailing. However, I will of course be handing over some tasks and responsibilities.

And which areas are these?

This mainly relates to administrative work. This includes the complete organisation of the youth department, from organising various club events, such as the Christmas party, to coordinating and assigning coaches, as well as finding coaches. There are a lot of things going on in the background that you don't realise at first glance. I was also the educational supervisor for our FSJ volunteers and responsible for their supervision.

Who will take over these tasks in the future? Do you have a successor that you have been able to train?

My second coach at the time, Noah Piotraschke, had taken over the duties on an interim basis. They were looking for someone to fill my position. The profile required is very narrow. There must have been a few applications. The KYC has a new sports coordinator in Philipp Sudbrack, who will probably take over some of the administrative tasks. Patrick Böhmer is the new head coach of the 29ers. The tasks will therefore be spread over several shoulders in the future.

How did you come to work as a full-time trainer at the KYC?

After graduating from high school, I completed a voluntary social year at the Flensburg Sailing Club. Because I liked it so much up here in the north, especially in terms of sailing and my coaching work, I moved to Kiel to study. During my studies, I worked as an honorary coach at the KYC and later got a working student position. After my teaching degree, the position of full-time coach was vacant for over a year, so I asked myself: "Why not?" And so five planned years turned into seven and a half.

Does that mean you would recommend the job to others?

Definitely. It was a wonderful and instructive time that I definitely wouldn't have wanted to miss. Of course, it was also exhausting at times; for example, we had to keep adapting to new guidelines during the coronavirus period. Organising training for 150 active athletes is also time-consuming in day-to-day business.

What are your goals for what lies ahead after your time as a full-time coach?

I am now focussing on completing my 18-month traineeship. Of course, I also want to continue spending a lot of time on the water with my children and young people as a coach. Let's see what happens next in terms of sailing. I would definitely like to get back into a 505 again. I'm also sporadically active for the KYC in the German Sailing League.