Achieving Excellence in High Performance Sport

Provides unique insights into the values, attitudes and beliefs required to achieve excellence in sports science and coaching within the Olympic and Paralympic system.Illustrates routes to elite heights within sports science disciplines through inspiring case studies, including Sir Chris Hoy's S&C coach and Jessica Ennis' physiotherapist.Offers students a practical analysis of the personal strengths, determination and interpersonal skills to reach the top.Delivers a broader, more encompassing perspective: athlete + coach + support staff, rather than just athlete.Tim Kyndt is a business psychologist who works with the EIS, UK Sport, Paralympics GB, Scottish Institute of Sport and Sport Northern Ireland in the design, development and delivery of management, mentoring and coaching development programmes. Tim is a member of the UK Sport Elite Coaching Apprenticeship Programme (ECAP) delivery team and has also worked with GB rowing and UK Sport Athlete Champions. Dr Sarah Rowell is a former Olympic marathon runner and British record holder. She is currently Director of High Performance for World Class Lifting, the performance arm of British Lifting, Fellow of the British Association of Sport and Exercise Sciences (BASES) and is also Chair of Selectors for UK Athletics mountain running teams. She was previously shadow Technical Director and then Technical consultant to the EIS.What does it take for a person starting out in their career to succeed in a highly challenging environment? Apart from the technical skills, what are the key values, attitudes and behaviours that deliver outstanding performance in a constantly changing, unpredictable and demanding world? Achieving Excellence in High Performance Sport examines these questions within the exacting world of elite sport: a global stage that places the severest pressures not only on the dedicated athletes, but also on the vital talent of coaches, sport scientists and sport medicine practitioners. Achieving Excellence in High Performance Sport is the handbook for non-technical skill acquisition for anyone interested in high performance in any arena.A unique learning resource that looks at the demanding world of elite sport, for students wanting a career within high performance sports science, medicine and coaching.Through a series of case studies, [this book] highlight the values, attitudes, skills and behaviours that underpin excellence in this field and in doing so, provide a very valuable insight and resource for those training for careers in high performance sport.Perhaps one of the most underrated principles of how great sporting teams work is the value of the Sports Practitioner and their contribution not only in their technical area but also in their contribution and understanding of team dynamics. This book is a must read for all those aspiring practitioners out there who are looking to enhance their "value added" and who are looking to progress and reach the top in their professionThis book explores the ways in which a range of experts strive to support top sportsmen and women, drawing on real life examples of what works - and doesn't work. It is a "must read" for anyone who works with, or who aspires to work with, individual or team sports, since the examples of work and success with elite performers can also be applied to sport at any level.The book is easy to read, interesting, and enjoyable... Whether you are just starting out in a career in high-performance sport or seeking to continue to develop your skills within this environment, the stories of these twelve individuals will both inspire and challenge.Using the run-up to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games as the background, the authors explore in detail the winning personal values, attitudes, skills and behaviours that define successful coaches, sports science and sports medicine (CSSSM) practitioners in one of the most pressurised organisations environments known.