SPORT

Background: Sports-related injuries among young athletes remain a major concern in school sports programs, often resulting from inadequate preventive measures and insufficient coaching knowledge. Coaches play a vital role in ensuring athlete safety; hence, understanding their knowledge, attitude, and practices toward injury prevention is essential. This study assessed the level of knowledge, attitude, and injury prevention strategies among coaches of school sports teams, and examined the associations between selected demographic factors and these variables. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional research design was used involving 50 coaches with at least one year of experience. Data on sports team KAP were collected using a structured questionnaire administered to school sports coaches across the institution. The instrument assessed respondents’ knowledge of sports injuries, attitudes toward injury prevention, and the strategies they implement. Data were summarized with descriptive statistics of frequencies, and valid percentages, while Chi-square test was employed to determine associations between KAP variables and selected socio-demographic factors at p ≤ 0.05. Results: Findings revealed that most coaches possessed moderate knowledge of sports injury prevention, although gaps were identified in specific domains of injury risk awareness. Significant associations were observed between years of coaching experience and attitudes toward preventing head and knee injuries (p = 0.024 and p = 0.043, respectively), as well as between years of experience and the use of FIFA 11+ and flexibility training on the pitch (p = 0.000 and p = 0.001). Additionally, the type of sport coached was significantly associated with attitudes toward preventing other injuries (p = 0.025) and the adoption of the FIFA 11+ program (p = 0.048). Conclusion: Although coaches demonstrated positive attitudes toward injury prevention, their knowledge and practical application of standardized prevention protocols remain inadequate. Strengthening capacity through continuous education, certification, and evidence-based workshops is recommended to enhance coaches’ competence and ensure safer sports participation among students. Keywords: Knowledge, Attitude, Injury Prevention, Coaches, School Sports.