DEVELOPING HIGH PERFORMANCE COACHING CRAFT THROUGH WORK AND STUDY

Abstract

Introduction: background and aims The ongoing quest for elite athletes to produce world best performances at major international competitions, such as the Olympics, has generally required talented athletes to be better prepared (e.g. physically, mentally, tactically) than their opponents. This desire for success in the sporting arena has become increasingly international and a key driver in the pursuit for excellence. High performance coaches are considered central to the development of successful elite athletes (Lyle 2002). These coaches are usually purported to lead and manage the coaching process in facilitating athletes’ (and nations’) goals for international glory. Key questions include: (1) How might coaches guide the development of athletes in the pursuit of excellence? and (2) How do high performance coaches learn their craft? For the purposes of this chapter, we are more interested in the second question. The development of coaches is key to improving the quality of high performance sports coaching (Mallett et al. 2009) and in turn, how athletes experience that coaching (Armour 2010; Mallett 2011). Hence, the development of high performance coaches is central to optimising the coach-athleteperformance relationship (Mallett 2010). Findings from research examining how high performance coaches learn can guide future development opportunities. Specifically, an appropriate mix of formal (e.g. university or higher education), nonformal (e.g. conferences, workshops) and informal (e.g. coaches’ work, social networks) modes of learning (Coombs and Ahmed 1974; Mallett et al. 2009; Nelson et al. 2006) can meaningfully contribute to coaches’ continuing professional development.