High-performance coaching is a deeply gendered field of work. Despite international and national efforts, women are still systematically underrepresented in coach education and in leadership positions. For example, at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, only 13% of the accredited coaches were women. While there is substantial international research on gender inequality in high-performance coaching, in-depth knowledge on the current qualification and work situation of women high-performance coaches is limited. To address this gap, the Women in Sports Coaching: Investigating qualification and professional pathways in German elite sport (QualiFT) study was designed, which we report and reflect on in this protocol. The overarching aim of this mixed-method study is to investigate gender-specific barriers and support factors for women coaches’ career pathways in high-performance sport as well as to develop needs-based solutions in collaboration with key stakeholders. Employing a participatory mixed-methods design across three sub-studies, the project combines a blend of data collection and analysis methods, such as an online survey, biographical mapping interviews, focus group discussions, expert interviews, and document analysis. Statistical evaluation of license and survey data as well as qualitative insights from practitioners, experts and document analysis enable a multifaceted understanding of structural and individual barriers and support factors for gender equity in coaching. In so doing, the study provides a foundation for developing research-based measures to promote gender equity in high-performance sports coaching.

ABSTRACT We examined how coaches navigate the challenges of high-performance sport while ensuring athlete welfare. Using an ethnographic approach spanning 18 months at a high-performance gymnastics center, data from coaches (n = 6), parents (n = 7), and athletes (n = 12) were collected through both participant and non-participant observations (n = 30), semi-structured interviews (n = 22), post-session analyses with coaches (n = 5), and document reviews. Analysis revealed the struggle coaches experienced balancing athlete welfare with the pressure to perform. Specifically, five key themes were developed: (a) managing athletes’ expectations, (b) maintaining transparency with all stakeholders, (c) acting in alignment with values, (d) personal coping mechanisms in a highly scrutinized environment, and (e) managing other coaches’ egos. Findings indicate that coaches endure tremendous internal and external pressure to reconcile and balance athlete welfare with the demands of high-performance coaching, which took a significant physical and mental toll. Surprisingly, the most concerning issues for coaches were relationships with other coaches and being told they were “too nice” to make it as an elite coach. Findings demonstrate an urgent need for sporting organizations and coach education programs to provide more systematic and comprehensive support for coaches. This would help retain them in the profession and provide ongoing support and development for those who continue to endure the many challenges of the profession.

Giving voice to high-performance sports coaches to spotlight their perceptions of psychological well-being.

A systematic review of the prevalence of disordered eating in fitness professionals.

ABSTRACT Developing high-performance (HP) coaches remains a challenge for sporting bodies with limited guiding research. This study, integrated multiple perspectives and methodologies, examined the transition to HP coaching to inform Irish Rugby’s coaching support. It involved three stages: (1) semi-structured interviews with recruiters (N=8) to explore employment factors, (2) Applied Cognitive Task Analysis with HP coaches (N=5) to understand cognitive demands, and (3) simulation interviews with aspiring HP coaches (N=10) to assess role readiness. Analysis used reflexive thematic analysis (1) and integrative qualitative content analysis (2/3). Recruiters prioritised credibility, breadth and depth of coaching skill and organisational fit in employment decisions. HP coaches experienced a range of cognitive demands including managing pressures, building credibility, staff contributions and pedagogical and tactical challenges. In contrast, aspiring coaches underestimated contextual demands, focusing on procedural tasks and personal affinity. Guided cognitive apprenticeships, incorporating modelling, scaffolding, and social capital development, are recommended to support transitioning coaches.

Background: Recently, elite women’s boxing has undergone significant structural and regulatory changes, including the adoption of the 3 × 3-min-bout format and expanded Olympic categories. Despite increased female participation, scientific literature remains predominantly focused on male athletes. This study aimed to identify the technical and tactical actions that distinguish winner from loser boxers in elite amateur women’s boxing by analysing the final matches of the 2023 IBA Women’s World Boxing Championships. Methods: Twelve final bouts (one per weight-category) were analysed using a customised notational framework based on the offensive–defensive interaction cycle. A total of 1323 offensive and 1456 defensive actions were recorded and categorised using Kinovea (0.9.5 release) software and an Excel dashboard. Offensive Effectiveness Ratio (OER) and Defensive Effectiveness Ratio (DER) were calculated, and Chi-square tests with standardised residuals were applied to detect associations between action types and bout outcomes. Results: Winners performed fewer offensive actions (n = 635) than losers (n = 688) but demonstrated significantly higher OER across all rounds (W: 0.39-0.38-0.39; L: 0.26-0.28-0.29). Winners landed more punches to the head and made greater use of rear-hand hooks and uppercuts. Pivoting and shifting back, particularly when followed by counterattacks, were significantly associated with winners (p < 0.001). Conversely, parrying and single counterpunches were linked to losing outcomes. DER values suggested superior defensive efficiency among winners. Conclusions: Winner boxers showed superior technical effectiveness, selective use of single and rear-hand punches and used more dynamic defensive strategies. These findings support using notational analysis in high-performance coaching and emphasise the need for more research on elite female combat athletes.

The coach as an architect of Danish high- performance sport environments.

High-performance (HP) coaching has been described as a potentially unsustainable profession. Limited research has explored the potential benefits of well-being and stress management interventions aimed at the individual coach level, but there is a lack of guidance within the literature on how to support and enhance the sustainability of the HP coaching profession. To address this, we gathered a panel of 14 international experts (i.e., the authors, including Olympic and Paralympic coaches, performance directors, program directors, and scholars with extensive research and practice experience) for a two-day round-table summit to discuss, reflect on, and co-create recommendations on how to develop programs to support high-performance coaches (HPCs) to be more sustainable and successful in terms of performance, well-being, and engagement. Data from the summit included audio recordings and field notes collected from whole- and small-group conversations and presentations, and were analyzed and organized into themes representing recommendations for future program content (understanding the coaching context; self-awareness, self-care, and self-compassion; establishing values and committed actions) and program delivery (logistics and delivery; creative and flexible resources; organizational responsibility; hoping to perform versus prepared to perform). Sport psychology practitioners, program directors, coach educators and developers, and coaches can benefit from considering these recommendations when creating programs aimed at well-being and sustainability in HP coaching.

High-performance coaches, much like the athletes they work with, are performers who face significant stressors that challenge their mental health. This study explores mindfulness and self-compassion as potential resources to support coaches in managing these demands. Using a convergent mixed-methods design, qualitative discussions with six high-performance coaches revealed contextual demands and varied perceptions of these resources. Quantitative analysis of survey responses from 78 high-performance coaches demonstrated that self-compassion uniquely predicted mental ill-health (i.e.,burnout) beyond mindfulness (Δ R2 = .10, p < .001), while mindfulness uniquely predicted mental well-being (i.e.,thriving) beyond self-compassion (Δ R2 = .09, p = .003). These findings suggest that mindfulness and self-compassion may play complementary roles in supporting both positive and negative aspects of mental health. This research highlights the potential value of incorporating these resources into mental health programs for high-performance coaches and encourages further exploration of their application in elite sport settings.

Five coaches working at the highest level of their respective sport in Denmark participated in a five-session compassion-based intervention. The intervention aimed to enhance the high-performance coaches (HPCs) understanding of compassion principles, develop their ability to act compassionately, and strengthen their role as compassionate role models. Utilizing a single-case mixed methods design with a dominant qualitative analysis, we explored the HPCs experiences with the intervention and its perceived effects. Semi-structured interviews were conducted pre- and post-intervention, and quantitative measures of compassion were used to examine potential changes in compassion levels. Thematic analysis of interview data generated two higher-order themes. The first focused on the HPCs experiences with the intervention’s format, content, and delivery. The second addressed perceived outcomes, including changes in how they understand, relate to, and apply the three flows of compassion. Findings suggest that a compassion-based intervention, when embedded within HPCs elite sport environment and facilitated by a sport psychology professional is both feasable and impactful. The coaches’ responses indicate that compassion training may contribute to improved coaching practices, personal well-being, and long-term professional sustainability in high-performance sport settings.

ABSTRACT Research into the coaching experiences of women in gender-segregated sports has identified structural gender hierarchies as the basis of inequality. The purpose of this research was to explore whether gendered expectations, stereotypes and discrimination exist for coaches in the unique environment of the gender-integrated sport of equestrianism. While equestrianism provides a unique insight as a sport where men and women compete as equals, there is limited research exploring coaching environments in this field, especially for women in coaching positions. Semi-structured interviews were used to examine the experiences of six high-performing women equestrian coaches. Results indicated that participants have not only been stereotyped but have experienced gender discrimination both in recruitment and in the course of their everyday work. We also show that women coaches are successfully navigating the dominant gender order by drawing upon a variety of strategies. This has allowed some women coaches to progress to high-performance positions; however, hierarchical structures remain and therefore legitimise the dominant gender order in sport. We therefore recommend that coach education discusses gendered practices and that the governing bodies associated with the sport support women through formalised and sustained frameworks.

High-performance coaches face complex challenges within their profession, which affect both their performance and their well-being. Through a qualitative study design, we aimed to understand how serial-winning high-performance coaches perceive self-compassion practice. Nine Scandinavian participants from various sports (female = 1, male = 8) explored self-compassion through psychoeducation and 1 week of practice followed by interviews. The data were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis. The three themes are represented via a creative nonfiction story: “We have no fear of self-compassion”; “Realizing why I should be a more compassionate friend to myself, it gives me a performance edge”; and “You have to take the armor off, and that is sometimes hard.” This study offers novel insights from serial-winning high-performance coaches—a typically hard-to-reach sample. The findings show how self-compassion was perceived as beneficial based on participants’ prolonged experience navigating challenges, and how self-compassion may contribute to psychologically safe high-performance environments.

Objectives: The purpose of the study was to explore, in depth, well-being within the unique context of high-performance sports coaching. The aim was to capture the process of well-being while considering the contextual nuances and influences of high-performance coaching environments in a mid-range theory of coaches’ well-being. Design: Constructivist grounded theory served as a guiding approach for data collection and analysis. Method: Individual interviews (n = 20) were conducted with methodological rigour enhanced by originality, usefulness, resonance, and credibility. Aligned with the methodology, we utilised theoretical sampling to aid the development of individual categories. Results: Findings suggest that well-being is an integrating process between coaches’ personal values (identity) and culturally prescribed values (identity), with a degree of harmony as the overall goal. Conclusion: The mid-range theory presents a contextually bound process of coaches’ well-being. It provides a more practical insight into the area and highlights the importance of cultural considerations and competencies.

Challenging situations and interactions are necessary and unavoidable in sport. From deselection to injury, burnout, and mental health issues, coaches and athletes will face challenging situations throughout their sporting career. The aims of this research study were to (a) introduce a conceptual model of challenging situations and subsequently to (b) explore a range of challenging situations that occur in high-performance sport, and (c) discover how such challenging situations are managed and perceived by high-performance coaches. In this study, challenging situations in coach–athlete dyads are defined as organisational, performance, interpersonal, and personal stressors that can push or pull one or both the coach and athlete, and subsequently their relationship into a state of indeterminacy (i.e., the Grey Zone) that may cause stress, strain, conflict, or resolution and understanding depending on how the challenging situations are managed. A total of 11 current high-performance and World Class Performance coaches (M = 41.64 years old, SD = 10.69 years; female = 4, male = 7), took part in a semistructured interview aided by vignettes to explore and discover the process by which coaches deal with challenging situations. Using a pragmatism approach, a content analysis guided by the conceptual Grey Zone Model was utilised to analyse the obtained qualitative data. Results indicated that coaches regularly experience challenging situations and use a variety of techniques to manage them. The Grey Zone Model is proposed as a practical tool to help coaches, athletes, and other practitioners, such as sport psychology consultants and coach developers to analyse the various phases of challenging situations.

ABSTRACT The purpose of this interpretative phenomenological analysis was to describe and interpret coaches’ experiences working with athletes who experience a menstrual cycle (MC). Participants included 15 high-performance coaches (11 women, 4 men) involved at the national or international level in a variety of winter and summer sports. Coaches participated in online, semi-structured one-on-one interviews. Data were analysed using an interpretative phenomenological analysis approach, and coaches’ experiences are represented by four main themes: (a) ‘Make them feel safe’ – facilitating a culture of trust, empathy, and support; (b) ‘It will be different’ – recognising athletes’ unique and personal experiences; (c) ‘Find strategies that allow them to participate’ – managing training and performance; and (d) ‘Make it more normalised’ – reducing stigma, barriers, and awkwardness. Our study advances MC-research in sport by highlighting the need to take athlete-centred approaches to understand athletes’ unique MC experiences, as well as coaching-education and practices for progressing and supporting women athletes. In addition, we provide recommendations for future research and evidence-informed practices that can support athletes who experience a MC.

The Malaysian Sports School (MSS) was founded to unite promising student-athletes from various regions of the country, aiming to cultivate and enhance their athletic abilities with aspirations of reaching the international stage. The Ministry of Education Malaysia (KPM) selects coaches with expertise in sports to offer structured guidance and training to chosen MSS student-athletes in order to achieve this goal. To guarantee that the performance of MSS student-athletes stays at its best, the dedication and efforts of KPM and MSS coaches in athlete development are consistently prioritized. Additionally, the enhancement of their professionalism and competence as high-performance coaches is highly demanded by KPM. Therefore, this study aims to explore the aspects and needs of elite MSS coaches in developing student-athletes to reach the highest levels in their respective sports. A qualitative method was used in this study through the Evolved Grounded Theory approach by Strauss and Corbin (1990, 1998, 2008) and The Coaching Model (Côté et al., 1995). The study involves ten selected elite coaches from five MSS. Data was collected through in-depth, semi-structured interviews with open-ended questions, observations, and document analysis. The study identifies two main themes discussing the aspects and needs of coaches in developing student-athletes at MSS, namely knowledge and management. The final findings of this study aim to offer valuable insights to the ministry, school administrators, and coaches, enhancing the development of coaches and student-athletes at MSS and enriching the existing literature in the domain of sports coaching.

Limited research has examined continued skill development in adult high-performance sport. In addition, while game-based approaches emphasise the concurrent development of technical excellence and tactical nous, there is a lack of clarity in relation to how coaches develop skill within a games-based approach. As such, this paper explored coaches’ understanding of skill and their approaches to the development of skill within high-performance cohorts through a game-based approach. Individual, semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight coaches with experience coaching at the highest level of Gaelic football; these coaches self-identified as adhering to a game-based approach, albeit not to a particular framework. Reflexive thematic analysis was applied to the resulting transcripts. The analysis identified two key challenges coaches faced in relation to skill development through a game-based approach: competing priorities for coaches in relation to team preparation within training sessions, compounded by competing priorities for players in terms of athletic development outside of training sessions. Despite these competing priorities, the coaches endorsed skill development as an important function of the high-performance coach and reported a sophisticated definition of skill. The coaches described a variety of activities which were used to support players’ development of skill, consistent with their espoused games-based approach to coaching. However, more sophisticated game design, better integration of unopposed activities and games, developing player self-regulatory skills and enhanced coherence between coaches appear to be ways in which skill development could be enhanced to address the challenges coaches identified and maximise the benefits of employing a game-based approach.

The purpose of this research was to explore coaches’ perceptions of athletes’ social media use. There has not been a thorough examination of social media’s effects on coaches or the consequences of social media for meaningful relations between coach and athlete. This is an important area to investigate because previous literature suggests that social media has psychological ramifications that influence athletes’ behavior; that athletes may not be aware of, or understand, the implications that social media may have; and that athletes do not realize that social media platforms have an effect on their mental game in sport performance. Given that the coach–athlete relationship is important to sport-performance success, it is important to examine coaches’ perspectives on social media’s influence on athletes. Accordingly, a phenomenological approach was utilized to understand this experience. Semistructured interviews were conducted with six high-performance coaches of a variety of individual sports. The interviews underwent a phenomenological-analysis sequence to coconstruct meaning from the data and explore the topic. Although there is limited research on the topic of social media’s impact on coaches, research has recognized that athletes’ preoccupation with social media is a perceived challenge for coaches. The findings from the present study illustrate how coaches observe social media influencing their athletes’ behaviors, the persuasive qualities of social media, and how young athletes navigate their image on social media.

Most research on coaching adopts a Western, predominantly Anglo-Saxon, vantage point. This study sought to fill the gap in the literature by providing an Eastern European perspective on transition to high-performance coaching. Ten Polish Olympic coaches were interviewed to glean insights into their career pathways, cumulatively spanning the last three decades. First, using abductive analysis, three patterns of nonlinear career pathways were identified: teacher-track, club-coach track and athlete fast-track. Next, contextual and reflective thematic analyses were employed to examine the environmental constraints affecting role transitions. Consequently, drawing on Bronfenbrenner’s bioecological model, the Ecological Model for Coach Development was proposed to offer an alternative perspective on career transitions. The findings provide evidence for the situated and relational nature of career transitions as processes occurring in nested environmental contexts. We claim that advancing knowledge on transitions requires not only zooming into coaches’ lived experiences of transitioning in/out of coaching roles, but also zooming out on macrolevel societal transformation processes, historically rooted values and belief systems, as well as mesolevel institutional constraints that steer career pathways and shape experiences. The study’s ecological orientation has the potential to enhance coaching education and practice by accounting for contextual complexity and temporality.

ABSTRACT It has been found that the way high-performance coaches lead influences both athletes’ performance and mental health. However, limited research exists on the Social Identity Approach to leadership in elite sports, despite growing interest in coaching science regarding interpersonal behaviours and leadership. This study investigates the empirical links between coaches’ leadership, sport performance and mental health from a social identity approach. One hundred and forty-five elite athletes (M age = 20.6 years; SD = 4.1; 62% women, 38% men) answered questionnaires measuring coaches’ social identity leadership, sport performance satisfaction and mental health. The overall structural equation model (SEM) accounted for 36% and 19% of the variances in athletes’ mental health and mental illness dimensions, respectively. There was a positive association between perceived coaches’ social identity leadership and sport performance satisfaction, explaining 10% of its variance. Coaches’ social identity leadership predicted athletes’ mental health but not mental illness. Sport performance satisfaction positively influenced mental health and negatively impacted mental illness. Fostering a sense of “we” and “us” within elite sport training groups is instrumental in promoting sport performance satisfaction and, consequently, enhancing the mental health of athletes. Coaching educational courses may benefit from social identity leadership in interpersonal behaviours.