Sports Training Principles : An Introduction to Sports Science

Year 0–1 fortnightly team and preparation news update News flashes/breaking news as appropriate • Staff briefings – following team management group meetings (all staff) • Preparation report – produced at commencement of annual preparation cycle • TC team meeting – purpose and frequency and protocols • TC staff briefings/debriefings – daily pre breakfast • In competition – staff mobile/radio contact • Trouble shooting strategy – regarding appeals, injuries, accidents, anti- doping, discipline issues, etc. • Daily team programme – produced and distributed each night • Team policy reference: i. communication conduits – e-form, printed form, phone ii. social media policy, e.g. team confidentialities and at TC • Strategy regarding athlete entourage • Press and media briefings – routine, pre TC and during TC • Post competition – immediate athlete/team debrief; post TC observations, analysis, recommendations 11. Local pests/hazards. All possible issues regarding health and wellbeing and other performance threats must be understood, analysed and prepared for. • Medical – thorough intelligence regarding exposure to health risks and protection • Physiological – adaptation/acclimatisation requirements • Physical – general safety and security • Daily health/wellbeing check to ensure no secrets nor surprises 12. Camps and courses. Preparation for the team is a continuous process of learning fast from experience and realigning or revising. So in any year there are camps, courses, clinics, etc. To ensure timely briefing and debriefings, each camp etc. must have an agreed purpose within the process. In the final year each is focussed on fine tuning preparation for the TC wherever possible, procedures protocols, etc. should be rehearsal for how things will be at the TC. This ‘familiarisation’ reduces probability of distraction when all energies must be channelled on performance. • Specific focus in camps, courses, clinics: i. athlete/team preparation/orientation ii. team management training/orientation iii. coach CPD/orientation iv. SSMP CPD/orientation v. regeneration and recovery

vi. adaptation and acclimatisation (where relevant) • Potential holding camp (where applicable) i. location (distance from competition venue) ii. relevant 1–11 (above) iii. economics iv. transfer from holding camp to venue and timing 13. Competitions. Each competition in the athlete/team calendar is on the one hand an end in itself in terms of agreed specific objectives, but on the other a stepping stone of learning experience in preparation for the TC. So the competition opportunity must be there, ordered within a season, then season on season to accommodate each level of athlete/team development needs. There must be a sense of relating each competition to the rhythm and cycle which will prepare the athlete/team to deliver ‘on the day’ – whatever that day brings in the shape of conditions and circumstances. 14. Selection policy. The purpose of selection policy is to ensure that the athletes/team most competent to effectively address the challenge of the TC or other international competition on behalf of the nation, are/is selected. Ideally, selection commences with a selection matrix, based on performance structure, for a progressive squad system. • No compromise – this principle must not be compromised by inflexible rules. There must be margin for discretion and professional judgement. • Focus i. Athlete/team challenging for gold ii. Athlete/team challenging for silver iii. Athlete/team challenging for bronze iv. Athlete/team challenging for top eight v. Athlete/team competing with distinction in delivering season’s or lifetime best on the day whether i–iv or missing out on final eight vi. Young potential high achiever athlete who will learn from the experience • Squads matrix – different matrices for regional – national – TC i. Build in reflection of performance structure ii. Apply judgement to high potential performers outside matrices • Team staff i. all team staff are appointed by team management group ii. team managers and administrators are trained for these roles iii. team SSMP are trained for these roles

iv. team coaching staff are selected by HC on basis of delivering the performance end game and competence to draw intelligence from experience for benefit of review and planning for next TC. 15. Team kit and personal equipment. The importance of kit, from competition clothing and footwear to weatherproof clothing, cannot be overstated. Consultation with athletes and thorough researching of manufacturers against the specific environmental demands is part of the preparation programme. This also applies to technical equipment for the discipline. It is management’s responsibility to arrange safe and timely passage of technical equipment from home to venue and return. EVALUATION OF THE COMPETITION The TC in a given year must be viewed as representing for athletes and team the highest priority competition – the primary focus of all preparation and competition. As such the TC will represent high pressure, yet the quality of preparation for the team should have each athlete comfortably seeing it as ‘just another competition’. There is a balancing act here between harnessing the excitement of the occasion and remaining focused. A SIMPLE CHECKLIST: • Dates • Venue • Time frame • Timetable – including technical meeting • Official TC qualifying standards • Prognosis of performances for gold, silver, bronze, final 8 (if quantifiable) • Principle opposition intelligence • Warm-up arrangements • Reporting arrangements • Technical equipment (where relevant) • Language critical terms used • Course maps (where relevant) • TC – specific rules The preparation report: The preparation report is produced annually for the TCs of a given season. It is the final outcome of a four year process. Its content sets out essential preparation input for the athlete/team and their coaches and

posts intent on preparation for the team. It should also invite input from athletes and coaches to enrich the preparation process. The contents will include: 1. Introduction and 4-year rolling calendar 2. Fixture/competition list for forthcoming season and selection dates 3. General and TC selection dates 4. TC1 detail – this is the top priority championships for the national federation 5. TC2 detail (there may be more than one major target competition) – this is the next level of priority. If other TCs, they are dealt with in turn and in detail. 6. Junior and/or other TC championship detail for national federation or professional club operating at this level. If no championships, then the key international or national event. Note: each TC detail will include: • Competition title • Venue • Dates • Travel • Accommodation • Timetable • Qualifying standards • Time change • Temperature/humidity • Altitude (if applicable) • Competition specifics (if applicable) • Previous national performance • Performance prognosis • Accreditation (extra) 1. General information regarding season 2. Contact persons and details. RECOMMENDATIONS AND ACTION Once all relevant intelligence is gathered and evaluation is in place the HC and the HPD or relevant SSMP should work together (where applicable) to draw up recommendations for action. All recommendations are based on the idea that we

should endeavour to have the athletes enjoy a final run-in to competition in an environment, which is as close to ‘normal’ as possible. This has given birth to the idea of a ‘holding camp’. This means that while helping aid recovery, for example, after a very long and tiring air journey; recovery through jet lag; adaptation to time change; and topping up on previous acclimatisation to high temperature and high humidity, the athlete is spared the ‘hype’ of the village until he is ready for it. On the one hand the recommendations are aimed at performance related matters, and on the other at organisational and administration matters. Once decisions are made by the team management group, relevant action is taken. All performance related matters are followed through by the HC. The preparation report is prepared, published and circulated as early as possible so that coaches and athletes can have guidance in that preparation. PRE-COMPETITION The holding camp situation permits personal coaches to join team coaches in affording a coaching service through to entry into the village. This helps ensure a stable preparation environment as late as possible. In team sport situations holding camps should only involve team staff. Delegation of discipline or technical-specific duties ensures that each athlete’s final days are overseen. Team coaches share responsibility with management in keeping as close a personal contact with athletes as the situation requires. In team situations this is fundamental; in non-team situations it requires sensitive handling to fit individual needs. The need to ‘escape from’ or to ‘join with’ the main group should be spotted through such contact. Essential team communication must be maintained. Recreation support and technical feedback can both be via video/TV. PCs, videos, DVDs etc. should be brought in, with TV or PC providing transmitted material for coaches and athletes to examine when occasion permits. Each athlete will be requested on selection to arrange with their personal coach to bring a personal training programme to the holding camp. This should apply, even if the coach is accompanying the athlete. This will on the one hand help in meeting athletes’ training requirements, and on the other afford valuable insight into each coach’s concept of the ‘end game’ of preparation. Movement from holding camp to the TC athletes village must be decided on the basis of personal preference timetable and transport logistics. In those locations which are within 2–3 hours travel from home, the concept

of a ‘holding camp’ does not have a strong argument. The ‘normal’ or ‘home’ environment is real when at home! On the other hand, if there is immense media and other pressure, it may be sensible to have a remote base should athletes require it. It is strongly recommended that even in this very commercial age, athletes/team should have no promotional obligations in the six week run in to the TC. The only focus should be on preparation for, and delivery of, performance. ON THE DAY This is ‘countdown time’ from the organisation point of view and ‘being available time’ from the coaching point of view. Countdown • Breakfast/lunch details • Check onto bus/accompany • Check into warm-up • Check out of warm-up • Report/accompany • Competition time • Meet post competition to support and constructively debrief Be available: • At breakfast/lunch • Warm-up • Coach/advise • Rest/quiet place • Shade • Information • Back-up • Inter-round • After competition – whatever the result But most important – it is ‘be positive time’. ‘This is your day’ – right through to positive evaluation when it’s over. Review and evaluation is not about

judgement, it is about learning. Review must take place as soon as possible after the competition for athlete and team. Overall review of the athlete and team preparation from the perspective of the athlete, coach, national performance team coach and plan should be completed within six weeks of TC conclusion. This whole business of preparation for the team is about giving each athlete the best chance to give his or her best possible shot. It is about snakes (getting rid of the things that prevent best performance on the day) and ladders (ensuring that those things which make the best shot happen are provided). THE LAST STEP INTO THE ARENA OF THIS CHAMPIONSHIP IS THE FIRST TOWARDS THE NEXT The consequence of delivering the four-year strategy in preparation of and for the athlete and team for a major target competition campaign is measured in performance and results in the arena. Just as there is learning through review built into the cyclic process of Dream – Plan – Do – Review for athlete and team (see here and figure 10.3) and strategy in general in pursuit of agreed objectives – OPERA (here), so also for the four-year strategy. Role and responsibilities of all who have been involved in its design and/or delivery must be evaluated in the review and debrief programme. The seven review headings are: • Results – intended and actual • Performance under pressure of athletes and teams • Professional competence of all staff – coaching, management, administration and performance support • Effectiveness of athlete and team staff in preparation planning • Effectiveness of overall campaign strategy/current year plan/applied game plan • Leverage of high performance intelligence and resources, e.g. systems and technology • Quality of chief coach decision making and judgement calls In addressing these headings, six fundamental points in preparation for the next four-year strategy are: 1. Extrapolated numbers for winning results, performance and components of future performance

2. Perceived successful technical training and tactical trends 3. Effectiveness in preparation and in the arena 4. Strengths and vulnerabilities 5. What could be done differently and what different things can be done to perform better and gain competitive advantage next time 6. Identify the people who will grow a winning dynasty. In terms of timescale – a full report with action recommendations based on debrief analysis should be completed within six weeks of the major target competition and the next four-year strategy be in place after a further six weeks. SUMMARY Sports Training Principles hopefully helps shape quality decision making in a process which takes an athlete from beginner to high performance in major championships. The performance quality of the athletes in a TC, then in future TCs will be governed by how well they have been prepared to express their talents on the day; and how totally their preparation and competition environment in these competition venues permits such expression. Appendix D will help in this. Preparation for the team aims to establish, through strong partnerships, the right environment in TCs and informed counsel leading through to selection and final approach. Appendix E will help in this. Preparation of the athlete aims to create the right climate of motivation and a custom-built preparation programme through to the final test in the TC arena. Appendix F will help in this. Everyone involved has a role to play within the preparation team – not only for the immediate TCs but for all those to follow. That role means a responsibility! One that can only be accepted by those who believe in themselves and in what can be achieved by our athletes when they are afforded the support they deserve. I know we each have a positive self-belief and that we believe in the character and talents of our athletes. The responsibility, then, is ours to accept by living the principle that we are each accountable for what we do and how we do it. REFLECTIVE QUESTIONS 1. Design a strategy for creating the intelligence you need to prepare the best supportive environment for athletes and staff in your team for the World Junior Championships (U/20) in your chosen sport (or in a sport which has World or Area Junior Championships). Assume that venue and date are known four years in advance. 2. The debrief following an Olympic Games or World Championships comes at the end of a four to six year campaign. So there are many people, positions and parts of the sport and its partners who have been involved. Design a strategy that will deliver the depth and detail of review and debrief necessary to prepare for the next campaign.

3. List the people and positions who will have possible input to the content of appendices D, E and F per item. 4. Following consultation with SSMPs, suggest an appendix G. 5. Prepare recommendation for a social media agreement for all members – athletes and staff at a major championship. What are the advantages and disadvantages of proposing such an agreement throughout the year?

SUMMARY OF PART 5 When planning the athlete’s annual training programme, the coach must have access to a considerable volume of information and also have the ability to interpret this in the light of current training theory. The structure of this programme begins to take its final shape during the transition macrocycle at the conclusion of the previous competition season. However, this is not to say that the programme is inflexible. The coach must appreciate the dynamic nature of his work and be prepared, where appropriate, to make any necessary adjustment within the structure. Information required by the coach is as follows: 1. He should know the programme of competition available to the athlete or team and the precise nature of each competition. 2. He should know how to plan the year to accommodate the best competition programme for the athlete’s development and/or the team’s. 3. He should know the theoretical distribution of general, related and specific training in each mesocycle of the year. 4. He should know the number of training units and the training environment available to the athlete or team. 5. He should know the relevant training practices, structures of loading and training ratios for development of specific fitness each athlete requires to meet his training objectives. 6. He should know the principles of unit, microcycle, mesocycle and macrocycle construction, and their variations according to its position in the annual cycle. 7. He should apply the 11-step approach here. The final product should reflect the coach’s interpretation of training theory and application of experience in a programme designed to meet the unique needs of an athlete to persistently perform better than before. The athlete’s fundamental objective in sport is pursuit of competitive advantage. It represents a serious commitment of time and effort, but is nevertheless undertaken for the pleasure which that commitment brings. To be invited to direct the athlete’s growth and development in sport is a great honour; to accept that invitation is to acknowledge an immense responsibility. The coach must know that his work with the athlete will provide a systematic progression towards his fundamental objective, while contributing to his total wellbeing. Such knowledge is born of an understanding of those areas of study which feed into the science of sport as outlined in parts 1, 2 and 3, and of an appreciation of how these relate to the athlete via training theory, as presented in parts 4 and 5. It is my belief that when the coach thoughtfully weaves this knowledge into the fabric of practical experience, the athlete must certainly achieve his fundamental objective. The athlete’s life in sport will, then, be a purposeful and enjoyable experience which will add a lasting richness to his life outside sport. Moreover, the visionary coach will not only contribute to the athlete’s or team’s lifetime achievements, but will learn through the experience to contribute to establishing a dynasty of excellence. REFERENCES FOR PART 5

Carl, G. Gewichtheben. Berlin: Sportverlag. (1967) Endemann, F. ‘Throws conditioning’. 4th Coaches’ Convention Report. (1973) Gundlach, H. ‘Zur Trainierbarkeit der Kraft und Schnelligkeitsfahigkeiten Im Prozess der Korperlichen Vervollkommnung’. Theorie Und Praxis Der Korperkultur 17. (1968) Harre, D. Trainingslehre. Berlin: Sportverlag. (1973) Hettinger, T. Isometric Muskelkrafttraining. Stuttgart: Thieme. (1968) Hollmann, N. and Venrath, H. ‘Experimentelle Untersuchungen zur Bedeutung Eines Trainings Unterhalb Und Oberhalb Der Dauerbelastunsgrenze’. In W.u.a., ‘Carl Diem Festschrift’. Frankfurt. (1962) Israel, S. ‘Das Akute Entlastungssyndrom’. Theorie Und Praxis Der Korperkultur 12. (1963) Matveyev, L. P. Die Periodisierung, Des Sportlicher Trainings. Moscow: Fiskultura i Sport. (1965) Noakes T. D. ‘Fatigue is a brain-derived emotion that regulates the exercise behavior to ensure the protection of the whole body homeostasis’. Frontiers in Physiology 3: 82. (2012) Osolin, N. G. and Markov, D. P. Distribution of Training (part translation from Russian). Moscow: Lehka Atletika. (1972) Puni, A. Z. Abriss Der Sportspsychologie. Berlin: Sportverlag. (1961) Schultz, H. H. Das Autogene Training. Stuttgart: Konzentrative Selbstentspannung. (1956) Ter-Ovanesyan, I. ‘Ter-Ovanesyan on the long jump’. Modern Athlete and Coach 4(4). (1965) Thiess, G. ‘Wettkampfhaufigkeit Im Nachwuchstraining’. Theorie Und Praxis Der Korperkultur 16. (1967) Yakovlev, M. M., Sport Biomechanic, Leipzig: J. A. Barth (1977), in vol 14 of Sportmedizinische Schriftenreihe BIBLIOGRAPHY Bauersfeld, M. and Voss, G. ‘Neue wege im schnelligkeitsteaincing’. Trainer Bibliotek 28. (1992) Bellotti, P. ‘A few aspects of the theory and practice of speed development’. New Studies in Athletics 6(1). (1991) Bonov, P. 2nd International Scientific Congress Report: Sport, Stress, Adaptation. Sofia: National Sports Academy. (2001) Bosco, C. ‘Eine neue methodic zur eimschatzung und programmierung des trainings’. Leistungssport 22(5): 21–8. (1992)

Craig, T. ‘Analysis of female athletic injury frequency’. 4th Coaches’ Convention Report. (1973) Dick, F. W. ‘Foundation of jumps development and initial conditioning’. Proceedings of EACA Congress, Berlin. (1993) Donati, A. ‘The development of stride length frequency in sprinting’. New Studies in Athletics 10(1). (1995) Gladwell, M. Blink. London: Penguin. (2006) Hettinger, T. and Müller, E. A. ‘Muskelleistung und Muskeltraining’. Arbeitsphysiologie 15: 111–26. (1953) Karvonen, M. J., Kentala, E. and Mustala, O. ‘The effects of training on heart rate’. Annales Medicinae experimentalis et Biologae Fenniag 35. (1957) Kruger, A. ‘Periodisation or peaking at the right time’. Track Technique December. (1973) Machak, M. ‘Relaxacne–Aktivacni, Autoregulacni Zasah, Metoda Nacviku a Psychologicka Charackteristika’. Czechoslovakian Psychology 3. (1964) Mah, C. D., Mah, K. E., Kezirian, E. J. and Dement, W. C. ‘The effects of sleep extension on the athletic performance of collegiate basketball players’. Sleep 34(7): 943–50. (2011) Matveyev, L. P. ‘Die Dynamic Der Belastungun Im Sportlichen Training’. Theorie Und Praxis Der Korperkultur 11. (1962) Prindle, D. ‘5 easy ways to track your sleep habits with technology’. Available at www.digitaltrends.com/home/5-different-ways-track-sleep-get-better-rest (accessed 16 January 2014). (2014) Reilly, T. and Edwards, B. ‘Altered sleep–wake cycles and physical performance in athletes’. Physiological Behaviour 90(2–3): 274–84. (2007) Samuels, C. ‘Sleep, recovery and performance: The new frontier in high- performance athletics’. Neurologic Clinics 26(1): 169–80. (2008) Samuels, C. ‘Sleep, recovery and human performance: Developing a comprehensive psychometric sleep screening program for Canadian athletes’. SIRCuit 2(1). (2011) Schiffer, J. ‘Overtraining’. New Studies in Athletics 9(3). (1994) Schmolinksy, G. Leichtathletic. 7th edn. Berlin: Sportverlag. (1974) Sinkkonen, K. ‘The programming of distance running’. Paper presented to ELLV Congress, Budapest. (1975) Vanek, M. and Cratty, B. J. Psychology and the Superior Athlete. Toronto: Macmillan. (1970) Walton, G. M. Beyond Winning. Champaign, IL: Leisure Press. (1992) Zhelyazkon, T. and Dasheva, D. Training and Adaption in Sport. Sofia: Digital. (2001)

APPENDIX A Please visit bloomsbury.com/9781472905277 and follow the link under online resources to download and print these forms.





APPENDIX B





APPENDIX C













APPENDIX D



APPENDIX E







APPENDIX F





ENDNOTE 1. Portions of this section on effective communication were originally published in http://www.coach.ca/women/e/journal/jan2001