Coaching Styles, Challenges, and Athletic Performance of Student-Athletes in Selected Secondary Schools in Damulog, Bukidnon

School sports programs play a vital role in promoting students’ holistic development by enhancing physical, social, and psychological competencies. However, their effectiveness depends largely on coaching practices and the contextual challenges faced by teacher-coaches. This study examined the coaching styles, challenges encountered, and athletic performance of student-athletes in selected secondary schools in Damulog, Bukidnon. A predictive–correlational research design was employed involving 200 student-athletes selected through proportionate stratified random sampling. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire adapted from the Leadership Scale for Sports and related studies. Descriptive statistics, Spearman’s rho correlation, and ordinal logistic regression analyses were utilized. Results showed that training and instruction (M = 3.79) was the most preferred coaching style, followed by democratic behavior and positive feedback, while social support and autocratic behavior were moderately preferred, and among the challenges, facilities and equipment limitations (M = 3.30) emerged as the most prominent concern. Correlation analysis revealed a significant but weak relationship between coaching styles and performance category (ρ = .173, p = .014), but no significant relationship with awards (ρ = .047, p = .509). Conversely, challenges showed a significant positive relationship with awards (ρ = .178, p = .011) but not with performance category (ρ = .126, p = .074). Ordinal logistic regression analysis indicated that the models were statistically significant for both categories (χ² = 7.381, p = .025) and awards (χ² = 6.255, p = .044), but with very weak explanatory power (Pseudo R² = .016–.044). Notably, only challenges significantly predicted awards (B = 0.497, p = .020; Exp(B) = 1.64), while coaching styles were not significant predictors. The finding that challenges are positively associated with awards may appear counterintuitive; however, it suggests that athletes and coaches operating in more demanding environments may develop greater resilience and competitive readiness, leading to higher achievement outcomes. Overall, the results indicate that coaching styles and challenges alone are insufficient to explain student-athlete performance, highlighting the need for a more comprehensive, systems-based approach to sports development.