AIS Mentorship Program Shapes Future Coaches

After benefitting from regular check-ins with mentor Shayne Bannan, Paddle Australia's Senior Women's Coach Laurence Fletcher didn't need convincing to rejoin the Australian Institute of Sport's (AIS) High Performance Coach Mentorship Program for a second year.

Bannan and Fletcher are among 46 new and returning mentor-mentee partnerships in the 2026 program, which pairs developing coaches with mentors that have a wealth of experience and knowledge across high performance coaching.

This year's cohort spans 35 sports and organisations and includes a record 26 Para coaches - eight mentors and 18 mentees.

With Bannan sharing his decades of experience coaching elite cycling teams in Australia and around the world, Fletcher says the experience has been "invaluable," helping him navigate not only the demands of coaching athletes but also the broader leadership responsibilities that come with a senior role.

"The ability to have someone who sits external to our sport, with the range of experiences Shayne has as a coach and leader, has allowed me to have conversations outside some of my internal circles and grow and reflect at a deeper level," he said.

"The value I get from those conversations is knowing I don't have someone just blindly backing me. Someone is there to objectively question, challenge and support as well.

"It's something that I'd love to continue all the way through my coaching journey and probably a toolkit that every coach needs to have."

Across roles from Cycling Australia National Performance Director to AIS Head Cycling Coach and GreenEdge Cycling General Manager, Bannan has delivered at the highest level of global cycling. The 64-year-old, who says he still reflects on the people who helped shape his own career, feels mentoring is an opportunity to have the same impact on developing coaches.

"There's a high calibre of coaches in this program with some fantastic intel," Bannan said.

"The ability to pass on knowledge and experience and have really good honest conversations with the younger generation of coaches about our experiences is really valuable."

Having spent their first year building their connection, Fletcher and Bannan are now eager to delve deeper into their work together and keep progressing individual goals with the support of the AIS High Performance Coach Development team.

Learn more about the HP Coach Mentorship Program.

The HP Coach Development Mentorship Program 2026 cohort: