Outside of my role at Sport Structures, you can find me on a hot poolside coaching artistic swimming four times a week. I have been coaching for nearly twenty years which, other than trying to figure out where all that time has gone, has allowed me plenty of opportunity to develop my coaching skills. There is one thing though that has never changed in all those years, the priority of my focus as a coach. That has always been centred around my athletes and their needs. I am completely baffled why anyone would want to coach any other way?
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One of the main rewards I get from coaching is to see my athletes happy, making friends, developing life skills and making progress as they learn and develop new sport-specific skills. Artistic swimming is a highly technical sport which requires a wide range of skills so progress is hard-earned! This, I think, is what has shaped my approach to coaching, as keeping athletes motivated when they are learning difficult skills is crucial. It has always been important to me to get to know my athletes as individuals and make them feel welcome and included. This is as simple as saying hello to every single one of them when they walk onto the poolside or giving them a wave if I’m already talking to someone. I’ll ask them how their day has been, how is school, how is their pet, and whatever gets them talking to me so I can get to know them better. It is then very obvious to me when one of my athletes is not their normal selves and I will then spend more time with them to make sure they are ok before they start the session. |
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On one occasion, I didn’t start properly coaching until twenty minutes into an hour-long session because three of my swimmers were stressed and upset due to various events in their lives. It was so important to me that I address that on a human level and helped them offload so they could then try and focus on their training.
As I get to know my athletes more, I can start to tailor my coaching points and sessions not only to suit different age groups but also different personalities, needs and personal goals. This is crucial when supporting athletes with special educational needs, where spending a bit more time to build those relationships really pays off and helps them achieve their potential.
One of the most important things about getting to know your athletes is that you can then involve them more and increase engagement and enjoyment during training. This is as simple as using their imaginations to make something that could be quite repetitive and boring a bit more fun. Yes, fun! We are allowed to let our athletes have fun at training! And we as coaches can also have some fun too! My athletes are used to my ‘experiments’ where I will have an idea of how to do something different but no idea if it will work, so I tell them that and we have a bit of fun giving it a go. If athletes are having fun, they are more relaxed and perform better. If they have used their imaginations or something has made them laugh, they will remember it better and learn quicker.
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I always look for opportunities to take the pressure off and make my athletes smile or laugh. If they make a mistake, we have a laugh about it and they try again, it’s not a big deal. I’ll then have my arms aloft and a big smile on my face to celebrate when they’ve got something right after trying countless times to ensure they know that effort has been recognised. Creating a safe space for them to make mistakes is essential in such a difficult sport and it enables them to not be apprehensive when it comes to trying new things. They all know that I don’t care if they can’t do something, I just want them to try. |
This is also why I don’t put any pressure on my athletes when it comes to competitions and grading days. They all want to do well and are already putting enough pressure on themselves. How is I setting targets for marks and results going to help decrease pressure and nerves? We’ll have some coaching points and a few loose objectives but that’s it. All I ask of them is that they give 100% on the day as that’s all they can do. And it’s important to remember and remind the athletes, that 100% can look different on different days. This approach takes some pressure off and allows athletes to focus on the process more than the result.
The majority of the athletes I work with are aged 7 to 18, but I also coach a few adults. At present, one-third of my club members are aged 15-18, which I am very proud of as there is a well-known drop-off in participation at that age, particularly in girls. This is because I have put their needs first by acknowledging other factors in their life where they have concerns or stress, particularly encouraging open discussions about periods and being conscious of exams. I understand the fact that they are likely to miss a few sessions during exam season but still encourage them to attend training to help them de-stress and take a break from studying. This enables them to stay involved and most of them are competing during exam season as I have made accommodations to allow that to still be achievable. In addition, I also support other ways for them to get involved such as helping me on the poolside to gain the volunteering element of their Duke of Edinburgh Award which sometimes then progresses to them completing an assistant coach course.
So, what are the benefits of putting your athletes first? Everything improves. It creates a safe, welcoming space with happier and more relaxed athletes. This enables them to learn and progress quicker, their attendance is good, and they stay involved into their teenage years and hopefully beyond! I can’t imagine coaching any other way and it’s a privilege to get to know my athletes as individuals and be a part of their lives as they go through childhood into adulthood or being able to provide an opportunity for adults to learn new skills and stay active.
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