Content uploaded by Kristen Dieffenbach
Author content
All content in this area was uploaded by Kristen Dieffenbach on Jun 11, 2014
Content may be subject to copyright.
Journal of Excellence – Issue No. 4 Gould, Greenleaf et al. 21
2001 Zone of Excellence - http://www.zoneofexcellence.com
Pursuing Performance Excellence: Lessons Learned
from Olympic Athletes and Coaches
Dan Gould, Christy Greenleaf, Diane Guinan, Kristen
Dieffenbach
and Sean McCann, USA
Dan Gould and Christy Greenleaf are with the Department of Exercise and Sport Science,
University of North Carolina Greensboro, Greensboro NC 27402-6169,
drgould@uncg.edu
Diane Guinan is an exercise physiologist in private practice in Rockford, Illinois. Kristen
Dieffenbach is a doctoral student at the University of North Carolina Greensboro. Sean
McCann is the Director of Sport Psychology at the United States Olympic Committee,
Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Abstract
This manuscript reports lessons regarding performance excellence identified by U.S.
Olympic athletes and coaches who took part in the 1996 Summer and 1998 Winter
Olympic Games. These lessons were derived from in-depth interviews with 8 Atlanta
and 7 Nagano athletes and from focus group interviews with 2 to 4 athletes from 8
Atlanta teams and 10 coaches from these teams. Surveys of 296 Atlanta Games athletes
(46% of all U.S. competitors), 83 Nagano athletes (46%), 46 Atlanta Games coaches
(46%) and 18 Nagano coaches (45%) were also conducted. The open-ended survey
responses were combined with themes derived from transcripts of all interviews and
content analyzed via a three person consensual validation procedure. Results revealed
that 900 Olympic performance-related lessons were reported by Atlanta athletes and 335
lessons by Nagano athletes and were organized into 26 and 24 general categories
respectively. Some of the larger categories included: mental preparation/training;
achieving optimal physical conditioning while not overtraining; distraction preparation
and awareness; plans and adhering to plans; and coaching. Relative to coaching lessons,
285 were identified by Atlanta coaches and 48 by Nagano coaches. Moreover, these
individual lesson themes coalesced into 24 and 8 respective more general topical
categories such as team cohesion/harmony; family/friend involvement; dealing with the
media; and team selection; fun/enjoyment and trials. Results are discussed relative to
peak performance research and an example of how to use these lessons in consulting is
provided.
Pursuing Performance Excellence:
Lessons Learned from Olympic
Athletes and Coaches
When most individuals think of the Olym-
pic Games, visions of the memorable per-
formances of great athletes come to mind.
In the United States, for example, most
Americans remember the unbelievable
consistency of speed skater Bonnie Blair,
the artistry of diver Greg Luganis, the
“miracle on ice” Lake Placid U.S. ice
hockey team, or magnificent golden shoed
sprinter Michael Johnson. It is ironic, then,
that while sport psychology researchers
Journal of Excellence – Issue No. 4 Gould, Greenleaf et al. 22
2001 Zone of Excellence - http://www.zoneofexcellence.com
have extensively studied the psychological
characteristics of successful athletes
(Hardy, Jones, & Gould, 1996; Williams
& Krane, 1998 for reviews), only a few
efforts (e.g. Orlick & Partington, 1988;
Gould, Eklund, and Jackson, 1992a,
1992b) have been made to study Olympic
competitors.
Most notable is the work of Orlick and
Partington (1988) who examined the
mental readiness and skills of 1984 Cana-
dian Olympic athletes. Both interview and
survey methods were used in the study.
Results revealed that mental readiness was
a significant factor influencing final
Olympic ranking. Attentional focus and
the use of performance imagery were
associated with successful performance.
Total commitment to the pursuit of excel-
lence, quality training including goal set-
ting, competition simulation and imagery,
mental preparation for competition in-
cluding a detailed competition plan and a
plan for dealing with distractions were
common factors found with the successful
athletes. Those Olympians that did not
perform up to their potential reported not
being prepared to deal with the distrac-
tions that they faced. Factors that inter-
fered with performance included changing
things that previously worked, late team
selection, and the inability to focus after
distractions. It was concluded that the
mental aspect of performance is essential
for high achievement in important events
such as the Olympic Games.
Following up on the Orlick and Partington
(1988) study, Gould and colleagues
(Gould, Eklund, & Jackson, 1992a; 1992b)
conducted a series of studies examining
the mental factors and preparation tech-
niques associated with Olympic wrestling
excellence. All 20 members of the 1988
U.S. Olympic team were interviewed and
reported that prior to their all-time best
performance they experienced positive ex-
pectancies, optimal arousal states, and
heightened effort and commitment. The
use of systematic mental preparation
strategies, including preparation routines,
tactical strategies focus, and motivational
strategies aided in the achievement of
those optimal thought and emotional pat-
terns. In contrast, the wrestlers described
their all-time worst Olympic performance
as having negative feeling states, negative,
irrelevant, or irregular patterns of thought,
and a nonadherence to preparation rou-
tines. These results are consistent with the
research of Orlick and Partington (1988)
and suggest that mental skills play a cru-
cial role in Olympic athletic performance.
Although examining the psychological
skills and characteristics of Olympians is
important and has added to the sport psy-
chology knowledge base, there may be
utility to looking beyond psychological
characteristics and attributes and focusing
more broadly on recording the lessons
these competitors have learned from their
Olympic experience. In essence, debrief-
ing athletes relative to the lessons they
learned from their Olympic experience.
Experience is defined by Webster (1989)
as “the knowledge or feeling obtained
through direct impressions” or “the skill or
judgement gained by practice.” What
knowledge and mental skill lessons are
gained from preparing for and competing
in the Olympic Games? This is the focus
of the present study. Our purpose was to
record the lessons learned from Olympic
athletes and coaches in their quest for ath-
letic excellence.
Interestingly, the development of a lessons
learned system is not without precedent in
the United States. The armed forces of the
Journal of Excellence – Issue No. 4 Gould, Greenleaf et al. 23
2001 Zone of Excellence - http://www.zoneofexcellence.com
United States have developed lessons
learned systems for its various branches
(McCarthy, 1994; Santala, 1994). These
systems grew out of concern that U.S. ser-
vice men and women would repeatedly
make the same wartime mistakes. Such
mistakes resulted because there was no
system in place to record what went right
and wrong on the battlefield, organize
those lessons, and disseminate them to
other service men and women in the same
positions. A computer-based communica-
tion system was developed where raw ob-
servations are collected and integrated into
meaningful lessons that are communicated
throughout the military system to all those
working at the same rank. Hence, the U.S.
military has developed a system of organ-
izational memory. Sport psychology spe-
cialists may do well to consider such a
"lessons learned" approach to record, or-
ganize and document mental lessons ath-
letes and coaches learn about achieving
performance excellence through their
Olympic experiences. Interestingly, such
an approach is consistent with one of the
major functions of the field outlined by the
father of North American sport psychol-
ogy, Coleman Griffith (1925). Griffith
said sport psychologists should study the
best athletes and coaches in the field, re-
cord the psychological principles they
employ, and disseminate those principles
to less experienced and less successful
athletes and coaches.
This article presents lessons learned from
U.S. Olympic athletes and coaches. These
lessons were assessed in two U.S. Olym-
pic Committee sponsored studies designed
to identify and examine factors that posi-
tively and/or negatively affected the prepa-
ration and performance of U.S. Olympic
athletes and coaches prior to and during
the 1996 Atlanta Summer and the 1998
Nagano Winter Olympic Games.
Method
Both studies used a two-phase question-
naire and interview data collection proce-
dure and these are summarized below.
Atlanta Study
In the questionnaire phase, surveys were
developed and administered to all U.S.
athletes (N = 643) and coaches (N = 100)
with known addresses who participated at
the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games. The
survey items were based on: (1) interviews
conducted with nine USOC staff members
who had attended numerous previous
Games (e.g., sport psychologists, an ath-
letic trainer, games preparation adminis-
trators, etc.), (2) National Sport Governing
Body high performance plan evaluations,
and (3) USOC Atlanta Games coaches
summit debriefing notes. Topical areas
included in the survey were: participant
background; Olympic expectations and
readiness; the importance of mental skills
in Olympic performance; factors influ-
encing performance in the year leading up
to the Games and at the Games (e.g., ath-
lete preparation, media, team influences,
coaching, family, sponsors, staffing, and
environmental). Two hundred ninety-six
athletes (46%) and 46 coach (46%) sur-
veys were completed and returned.
In addition to the surveys, the interview
phase of the project involved interviews
with individual athletes, coaches, and
teams. Specifically, in-person focus group
interviews (involving 2 to 4 athletes) were
conducted with 4 highly successful teams
that equaled or exceeded NGB perform-
ance expectations at the Games and 4
teams that performed below NGB expec-
tations. The 10 coaches of these teams
were also interviewed individually. Phone
interviews with 8 athletes (4 that met or
exceeded expectations and 4 that did not
meet expectations) were also conducted.
Journal of Excellence – Issue No. 4 Gould, Greenleaf et al. 24
2001 Zone of Excellence - http://www.zoneofexcellence.com
Participants for all interviews, whether
teams or individual athletes were selected
based on two criteria. First, based on pre-
vious performances at World champion-
ships they were projected to be potential
medal contenders at the Games. Second,
USOC staff felt these individuals would be
good sources of information for the study.
The interviews lasted between 30 and 90
minutes and focused on the same types of
questions asked in the surveys. The goal
of the interviews, however, was to try to
obtain a feel for each team or athlete’s in-
dividual Olympic experience and detailed
explanations of the factors that affected
performance.
Nagano Study
The Nagano study was a follow-up to the
Atlanta investigation and with a few minor
exceptions (e.g., examined factors such as
jet lag, snow/ice conditions not applicable
to the summer Games) used identical
measures and procedures. Specifically, all
1998 U.S. Nagano Olympians (N = 180)
and coaches (N = 42) with known ad-
dresses were mailed surveys in the year
after the Nagano Games. Eighty-three
athletes (46%) and 19 coaches (45%) re-
turned completed questionnaires. Individ-
ual phone interviews were also conducted
with 7 athletes (4 that met or exceeded
expectations and 3 that did not meet ex-
pectations), and focused on the same types
of questions asked in the surveys. Unlike
the Atlanta study, no team focus-group
interviews were conducted.
Data Analysis
In both the survey and interview portions
of the studies the athletes and coaches
were asked what advice they would give to
future Olympic coaches and athletes to
enhance their chances of peak perform-
ance during Olympic competition. Within
each area (advice for athletes and advice
for coaches), written open-ended re-
sponses from the surveys and themes
identified from the transcripts of all inter-
views were combined and content ana-
lyzed. Procedures recommended by Miles
and Huberman (1994), and used in previ-
ous qualitative studies (e.g., Gould, Ek-
lund, and Jackson, 1993) were followed
for the data analysis. Specifically, each of
three investigators studied written tran-
scripts and organized “like” responses into
more general categories. The three inves-
tigators then met as a group and consensus
was reached on each category and a sum-
mary label for the category was deter-
mined. The responses regarding lessons
learned are the focus of this manuscript.
Results
Lessons learned reported by the Atlanta
and Nagano participants focused on sug-
gestions for future Olympians and sugges-
tions for future Olympic coaches. First,
lessons suggested by Olympic athletes are
presented. Second, lessons learned from
Olympic coaches are forwarded.
Athlete Lessons
Based on the athlete surveys, focus group
team interviews, and individual athlete in-
terviews, Atlanta participants reported 900
Olympic performance-related lessons and
Nagano participants reported 335 lessons.
The content analysis of these 900 individ-
ual lessons from Atlanta participants re-
sulted in 26 more general categories. The
content analysis of responses from Nagano
participants resulted in 22 categories of
lessons. Both Atlanta and Nagano partici-
pants reported many of the same catego-
ries of lessons learned (see Table 1).
While space limitations prevent a detailed
description of all categories, some of the
more frequently reported and psychologi-
cally significant lessons will be discussed
in more detail below.
Journal of Excellence – Issue No. 4 Gould, Greenleaf et al. 25
2001 Zone of Excellence - http://www.zoneofexcellence.com
Most Frequently Reported Lessons
Mental preparation and training. One
of the categories of advice most frequently
cited by both Atlanta and Nagano partici-
pants was “mental preparation/training.”
Atlanta participants provided 173 specific
lessons (19.2% of total lessons) and Na-
gano participants provided 73 specific
lessons (21.8% of total lessons) related to
mental preparation and training. Specific
lessons contained in this category ranged
from numerous suggestions to work with
sport psychology consultants to the im-
portance of engaging in long-term psy-
chological preparation to the need to be
mentally ready, confident, and focused. In
addition, other more specific suggestions
were offered. These included such things
as balancing the need to focus on one’s
performance with enjoying the Olympic
experience (suggesting that focusing only
on performance or being so caught up in
the Olympic excitement that one’s focus
waned was destructive); talking to others
and learning what to expect at the Games;
concentrating on oneself and finding time
to focus; staying confident and positive;
having and implementing mental plans;
using stress management strategies; re-
laxing; and not putting extra pressure on
oneself. Several quotes from the athletes
reflect the importance of these lessons.
For example, one Atlanta athlete said,
“just as physical training is a process, so
is mental training, and you can’t expect to
have an expert come in and do a quick
fix.” Another athlete suggested, “work on
mental and psychological skills so that
they don’t get caught up in the hype.”
Optimal physical training while
avoiding overtraining. The second most
frequently cited category of lessons
learned across both Atlanta and Nagano
participants was “optimal physical training
while avoiding overtraining.” Atlanta par-
ticipants reported 165 individual lessons
(18.3% of total) and Nagano participants
reported 37 specific suggestions (11.0% of
total). In essence, this category reflected
the need to train hard and be very well
prepared for the Olympics while not over-
training. As one participant indicated:
“Sometimes you go a little overboard on
[training]…I think the last weeks that we
did. What I needed was a mental break.”
Furthermore, another athlete advised: “Be
careful in trying to ‘get the edge’ that you
don’t overdo it and ‘lose the edge’.” Thus,
such specific advice as training smart,
taking breaks, resting as the competition
approaches, individualizing training and
recognizing overtraining signs were often
mentioned.
The story of one unsuccessful team re-
flects this category of lessons well. Fa-
vored for a medal going into the Games
(as a result of their World champion
status), the team focused so much on
training hard and gaining an edge over
their opponents, that they physically over-
trained. This also resulted from the inabil-
ity of the athletes and coaches to recognize
signs of overtraining, and their failure to
communicate. The result was a mediocre
Olympic campaign and the failure to earn
any medal.
Coaching. As one might expect, an im-
portant category of lessons focused on
“coaching” issues. Atlanta participants
cited 84 specific lessons (9.3% of total)
and Nagano participants cited 37 specific
lessons (11.0% of total) related to coach-
ing issues. A variety of specific issues fell
within this category, including such things
as coaching credibility and trust, sugges-
tions for athletes to deal with their coach
(e.g., don’t be pressured), and the impor-
tance of achieving good communication
by avoiding sarcasm, emphasizing honesty
Journal of Excellence – Issue No. 4 Gould, Greenleaf et al. 26
2001 Zone of Excellence - http://www.zoneofexcellence.com
and being very clear in one’s remarks to
athletes. Especially salient lessons fo-
cused on the need to incorporate personal
coaches by getting them access to venues
and coordinating their presence and inter-
actions with official team coaches. Lastly,
it was also suggested that coaches not be-
come distracted by the hoopla of the
Games.
Distraction preparation and awareness.
“Distraction preparation and awareness”
was an important category of lessons re-
ported by the Atlanta participants (44 les-
sons, 4.9% of total) and Nagano partici-
pants (20 lessons, 6.0% of total). As one
athlete indicated: “So I think all of us
didn’t really realize the extent of those
outside distractions and the pressure that
continued to mount.” This category of
lessons included such specific advice as
being ready to deal with all the distractions
and hoopla that come from the Olympics,
an event the athletes repeatedly reported as
very different from other major competi-
tions. It was also emphasized that athletes
need to minimize nonessential meetings
and simplify their lives, learn to say no
and be selfish, not focus on small nones-
sential things, focus on what they can per-
sonally control, and be ready to balance
the Olympic “hoopla” with one’s perform-
ance mission and focus.
Several interesting ways athletes and
teams dealt with distractions were given as
examples of implementing this category of
advice. One gold medal winning team, for
instance, reported having a psychological
“in” and “out” box in the month leading
up to their performance. The entire team
agreed that issues that directly effected
performance went into the “in” box and
were immediately addressed, while non-
performance issues (e.g., shoe contracts)
went into the out box, and were not ad-
dressed until after the Games. In contrast,
a team with high performance expectations
going into Atlanta reported that they did
not meet their expectations because many
of their athletes and coaches got so caught
up in the Olympic village atmosphere that
they failed to achieve the focus needed for
optimal performance. For example, one
athlete from a less successful team said,
“they’re (other athletes) playing laser tag
two hours before the game, they have no
clue who we’ll play, what the line-up is or
what’s going on.”
Other Lessons of Interest
Olympic village. A number of lessons
were identified relative to the “Olympic
village” and related matters. Atlanta par-
ticipants reported 43 specific lessons
(4.8% of total) related to the Olympic vil-
lage. For example, athletes and coaches
both made comments related to the deci-
sion to stay in or out of the village and the
advantages of each approach (i.e., draw
energy from the village excitement versus
losing focus due to all the Village distrac-
tions). One athlete expressed that she
wished she had stayed outside of the vil-
lage, “You do all these things that you
work so hard at and then you get into a
situation where there’s just too many peo-
ple around all the time.” Spending too
much time in the village, taking advantage
of the many village amenities and diffi-
culty finding privacy were also discussed
in numerous comments.
Team cohesion and harmony. “Team
cohesion and harmony” was an important
category of responses compiled from
athletes and coaches comments espousing
the need of team support, unity, and
bonding. Atlanta participants reported 33
specific lessons (3.7% of total). As one
athlete said, “We had respect for one
another and we made each other live up to
a higher standard.” Similarly one
Journal of Excellence – Issue No. 4 Gould, Greenleaf et al. 27
2001 Zone of Excellence - http://www.zoneofexcellence.com
individual sport athlete indicated that:
“It
was a team that came together like I’ve
never seen before and we just all bonded
and it didn’t seem like anyone had…but
this team did it and I mean the best feeling
that I had was when I was up on the blocks
or I was on the award podium and I saw
my teammates there that are just going
crazy. I mean that was definitely, that
definitely helped… just to know that I
wasn’t out there by myself. I had them and
they were there with me too.”
Interestingly, a number of participants also
suggested that teams engage in numerous
team building exercises. Finally, increased
team cohesion and harmony advice was
gleaned from both coaches and athletes of
team, as well as individual sports.
International competition. Atlanta par-
ticipants cited 32 specific lessons (3.6% of
total) related to international competition.
Specific lessons ranged from numerous
suggestions to gain as much international
experience as possible prior to the Games
to suggestions to limit international com-
petition the year prior to the Olympics.
One athlete summed up the advice, saying
“international tournaments are great and
it’s great practice, but don’t overdo it.”
Family and friend involvement. Atlanta
participants cited 31 lessons (3.4% of to-
tal) and Nagano participants reported 9
lessons (2.7% of total) related to family
and friend involvement. Lessons in the
‘family and friend’ category varied and
included suggests such as setting up a
system for getting family and friends tick-
ets, having a plan to deal with family and
friend communication during the Games,
and educating family and friends about the
demands on athletes in preparation for and
during the Olympics. Other advice in-
cluded not having family or friends at the
Games and limiting contact with them
during the Games.
Plans and adhering to plans. Related to
the category of distraction preparation and
awareness was “plans and adhering to
plans.” Atlanta participants reported 29
specific lessons (3.0% of total) and Na-
gano participants reported 9 lessons (2.7%
of total) related to plans and adhering to
plans. Interviews emphasized that athletes
and coaches should have psychological
and physical preparation and competition
routines developed (based on past success-
ful performances). In addition, participants
noted that coaches and athletes must ad-
here to those routines and avoid making
last minute changes—no easy task in the
unique Olympic environment that offers a
host of distractions and changes from
one’s normal practice and competitive
schedules. Illustrating this point, one
athlete said, “more than anything athletes
need to have already a routine established
and they need to stick with that routine
and take refuge in that routine because at
the Games, everything changes.”
Support personnel. Relative to “support
personnel” (24 lessons, 2.7%; 16 lessons,
4.8%), it was recommended that athletes
get support personnel (e.g., hairstylist for
skaters, cook if living out of the village,
sport psychology consultant) organized for
the Games. It was also emphasized that
athletes surround themselves with support
people they know and trust. One gold
medallist said “you need to make sure you
surround yourself with people you trust,
people that are really good at what they
do and what you need them to do …so on
your end you can be kind of carefree and
relax.”
Team selection and trials. The “team se-
lection and trials” category focused on the
Journal of Excellence – Issue No. 4 Gould, Greenleaf et al. 28
2001 Zone of Excellence - http://www.zoneofexcellence.com
timing of the trials with most respondents
recommending that they be held earlier.
Atlanta participants cited 18 specific
lessons (2.0% of total) and Nagano par-
ticipants reported 11 lessons (3.3% of
total) related to team selection and trials.
One athlete from a less successful team
expressed that her team’s trials were too
close to the Olympics and said, “we never
had a chance to celebrate…we had one
night…and then it was back to Atlanta and
we were in the grind.” Other recommen-
dations focused on how teams were se-
lected and included such suggestions as
utilizing more athlete input and not basing
selections on one single performance.
Dealing with media. Nagano participants
recommended 14 specific lessons (4.2% of
total) related to media. Specifically, teams
and athletes should have a media plan in
place prior to the Games and a competent
media liaison in place. It was also empha-
sized that to ensure good performance ath-
letes must not schedule too many media
obligations, as one athlete said, “you know
sometimes you need to be selfish and say I
can’t do something because it’s not gonna
be the best preparation for me.”
Travel. One condition that differed be-
tween the Atlanta and Nagano participants
was travel. Nagano participants reported
10 specific lessons (3.0% of total) related
to travel. Advice relating to traveling to
Japan included such issues as making sure
transportation issues were addressed be-
fore practice and competition begins. A
number of lessons also focused on the
optimal arrival time and the importance of
not arriving too early or too late at the
Olympic venue and host country.
Opening ceremonies. A less frequently
cited category of advice was related to
Opening Ceremonies. Atlanta participants
reported 11 suggestions (1.2% of total)
and Nagano participants reported 3
suggestions (0.9% of total) related to this
category. Advice in this category was
varied. On one hand, it was recommended
that athletes and coaches attend Opening
Ceremonies because of the personal
satisfaction evoked, the feelings of U.S.
team unity (beyond one’s sport) derived,
and their emotional/uplifting nature. In
contrast, other recommendations focused
on the physically and psychologically
draining nature of the experience (e.g.,
being on one’s feet for so long, lack of
sleep from late completion – 3:00 am
return to housing at Atlanta Games).
These varied responses might best be
explained by a lesson conveyed by the
following coach. “It was wonderfully
exhilarating for the athletes, and I think it
really brought home the Olympic
experience and kind of launched them a
bit. But, when we went to our third
game…and had to travel again, then I saw
some of the fatigue from that travel from
the Opening Ceremonies kind of set in.”
Another coach had very specific
recommendations for future coaches: (a)
do not go if Opening Ceremonies are one
day away from your performance; (b) go
to Opening Ceremonies if your
competition is three days away; and (c) if
your competition is two days away from
Opening Ceremonies – you have a tough
decision and will need to gain as much
information as possible about the pros and
cons of attending and make a decision
early.
Coaching Lessons
Based on the findings of the individual
coach surveys and the coach interviews as-
sociated with the focus groups, Atlanta
participants cited 285 specific coaching
lessons and Nagano participants cited 48
lessons. The coaching lessons from the
Journal of Excellence – Issue No. 4 Gould, Greenleaf et al. 29
2001 Zone of Excellence - http://www.zoneofexcellence.com
Atlanta participants coalesced into 24
more general categories and the Nagano
coaching lessons grouped into 8 general
categories. Table 2 contains the frequen-
cies and percentages of lesson categories
for both Atlanta and Nagano participants.
Most Frequently Reported Lessons
Coaching. The “coaching” category con-
sisted of 41 specific lessons (14.4% of
total) from Atlanta participants and one
lesson (2.1% of total) from a Nagano par-
ticipant. This category focused on such
recommendations as the importance of
clarifying one’s coaching role with the
National Sport Governing Body (NGB)
and being as committed as one’s athletes,
being sure to make fair coaching deci-
sions, not over-coaching, and being aware
that like their athletes, coaches are suscep-
tible to fatigue. Reflecting the importance
of commitment, one coach said, “believe
in what you are doing, you have to spend
the hours training, studying, and compet-
ing – know you can and believe in your-
self, team, and staff.”
General preparation. The “general
preparation” category consisted of 33
specific suggestions (11.6% of total) from
Atlanta participants and 6 lessons (12.5%)
from Nagano participants. Lessons in this
category emphasized the importance of
long-term planning, having a clear vision
for one’s athletes, and being realistic in
one’s plans. Relative to the need for, and
difficulty of, planning, one coach said “To
organize this amount of effort in one year,
taking into consideration the availability
of the athletes of their time in the context
of their social integration, school, job,
family, etc., it’s a challenge.” The impor-
tance of anticipating potential distractions,
and taking them into consideration when
forming a plan was also recommended.
Lastly, respondents repeatedly emphasized
the importance of “detailed” planning as
reflected in the following coach comment.
“Planning is vital! You must plan the en-
tire approach. Consider: athlete selection,
a long-term performance prognosis, pro-
gram objectives, a systematic, controlled
training environment, anticipate changes
in food, housing, social factors, know
competition, travel/jet lag, daily plans
(especially recovery), at-games factors
(climate, weather, transportation, media,
pressure), number of competitions, and
how you will filter
communication from
home via team leader.”
Optimal physical training and avoiding
over training. Relative to the “optimal
physical preparation/avoid over training”
lessons category, Atlanta participants re-
ported 31 lessons (10.9% of total) and Na-
gano participants cited 3 lessons (6.3% of
total). The importance of coaches having
athletes and teams well prepared, both
physically and psychologically, was em-
phasized. It was further recommended that
while coaches must help teams to be in top
physical condition it is vital that they pre-
vent over training by using appropriate ta-
pering strategies and taking breaks. An es-
pecially interesting lesson featured with
the “fragility” of athletes when they were
in top physical condition and the impor-
tance of coaches being alter to signs of this
to prevent over training and illness.
Mental preparation. Atlanta participants
cited 28 specific lessons (9.8% of total)
and Nagano participants reported 7 lessons
(14.6% of total) related to “mental prepa-
ration/training.” This category included
suggestions to prepare athletes and teams
for the physical and psychological stress
encountered at an Olympic Games, and
implementation of a mental training pro-
gram. Numerous recommendations urged
the utilization of sport psychology/mental
Journal of Excellence – Issue No. 4 Gould, Greenleaf et al. 30
2001 Zone of Excellence - http://www.zoneofexcellence.com
training consultants. As one coach of a
team that under-performed said, “we need
a strong base of sport psychology for our
elite athletes, to help them perform and
deal with coping issues.”
Other Lessons of Interest
Support personnel. Atlanta participants
reported 12 lessons (4.2% of total) and
Nagano participants reported 2 lessons
(4.2% of total) that were related to support
personnel. The “support personnel” cate-
gory emphasized the need to create a
support staff and include various special-
ists (e.g., sport psychology specialist,
skilled team manager). One coach aptly
reflected this need when he said: “Pre-
paring for the Olympics is not just a re-
sponsibility of the athlete and his coach.
… I believe we need to enrich this with a
team of specialists who are preparing our
athletes for the Olympics. … We need a
team. And that team is extending more
and more from the coaching, medical per-
sons, scientists, athletes, family, commu-
nity support, sponsors, NGB membership.
They all have a contribution in that ath-
lete’s preparation.” Securing highly quali-
fied support staff was recommended, as
well as holding them accountable by re-
leasing them when they do not perform.
Dealing with media. Atlanta participants
reported 10 specific lessons (3.5% of total)
related to dealing with the media. In terms
of the “dealing with the media” category it
was suggested that coaches set specific
rules related to working with the media, to
be ready to respond to both positive and
negative events that could occur, and
realize that television (up close and per-
sonal type human interest type coverage)
often takes longer than usually planned
for. Relative to the lesson pertaining to
being ready to respond to both positive
and negative events one coach said: “It
was negative and we could never get out
of that negative spin with the media, so
consequently it was just always going
downhill… most of what I was reading in
the media was very negative … that could
have all been avoided or at least a good
portion of it, or diffused. And the fact that
it wasn’t diffused, it affected our perform-
ance… you’ve got to be prepared for the
media and not just, for the media to be
good. You’ve got to be prepared for when
it’s not
good.” Participants also empha-
sized the importance of having a media or
sports information person to act as a buffer
between the coach/team and media.
International competitions. Concerning
“international competitions,” Atlanta par-
ticipants provided 9 specific lessons (3.2%
of total) that fit into two dominant themes.
First, it was suggested that coaches should
schedule high levels of international com-
petition the year before the Games. Sec-
ond, it was recommended that these com-
petitions occur frequently. One coach
said, “it is very important for the coach
and the athlete to experience high level
(international) competition before the
Games – the level of expectation will be
more realistic.”
Team cohesion and harmony. Atlanta
participants cited 9 specific lessons (3.2%
of total) and Nagano participants reported
1 lesson (2.1% of total) related to team
cohesion and harmony. The “team har-
mony/cohesion” category emphasized the
importance of coaches recognizing the im-
portance of team dynamics. Establishing
trust between staff and players was seen as
essential in this regard, as was the utiliza-
tion of team building exercises. As one
coach said, “develop a high level of trust
and respect with your athletes. This
should go both ways. Team is inclusive of
Journal of Excellence – Issue No. 4 Gould, Greenleaf et al. 31
2001 Zone of Excellence - http://www.zoneofexcellence.com
all staff and athletes. Team unity is num-
ber one.”
Family and friend involvement. Eight
specific lessons (2.8% of total) related to
family and friend involvement were re-
ported by Atlanta participants. The “fam-
ily/friend involvement” category empha-
sized the importance of having a plan for
interacting with athlete and staff families
and friends at the Games. Critical to this
objective was the need to educate family
and friends regarding the demands of an
Olympic Games environment. As one
coach indicated: “... Family and friends
need to be very well educated because we
had a couple of instances where families
wanted, obviously wanted to be with their
athletes and we would have a schedule
change and things that we had no control
over ...disappointments on the part of the
athletes, disappointments on the part of
the families, and I think we need to do a
real good job of educating the families
about just why the athletes are there and
how they as families can give support.”
Additionally, assigning someone on the
staff to serve as a staff liaison for fam-
ily/friend interactions was suggested sev-
eral times.
An excellent example of an effective fam-
ily and friend education program was the
one implemented by a gold medal winning
team. Specifically, the coach met with the
families and explained how they could be
great resources for the athletes. For ex-
ample, the coaches explained that there
would be times at the Games when their
athlete will need “space” and will not be
able to be with loved ones, and that nega-
tive comments from significant others can
influence player confidence. A system
was also initiated in an effort to keep
families informed at the Games, and to
address any concerns they may have.
Specifically, the first layer of the system
involved the selection of two mothers that
acted as communication liaisons in case of
problems or questions. That is, only these
mothers would bring concerns to the
coaching staff. The second layer involved
two NGB administrators who knew the
families and would answer their questions
without involving the coaches or would
pass important issues on to the coaches
themselves. This system helped athletes
enjoy being with their families without
having to worry about meeting their needs
(i.e., getting them tickets, answering ques-
tions). It also allowed the families to pro-
vide optimal support to their athletes.
Distraction preparation. Atlanta partici-
pants provided 8 lessons (2.8% of total)
and Nagano participants reported 3 lessons
(6.3% of total) related to distraction prepa-
ration. Specific lessons included not al-
lowing athletes to have beepers, being
prepared for the enormous amount of pa-
per work required of coaches, and being
ready to deal with unexpected events.
Plans and adherence to plans. Nagano
participants reported 8 specific lessons
(16.7% of total) related to plans and adher-
ence to plans. Lessons in this category fo-
cused on developing a coaching plan for
achieving success and then sticking with
the plan. One coach said “make a plan
and follow it.”
Closure. Although not frequently re-
ported (2 lessons from Atlanta partici-
pants, 0.7% of total), the importance of
closure was suggested by several coaches.
As one coach indicated “I think one of the
problems at the end is for individuals and
teams who succeed or exceed the elation,
it must be unbelievable. And they just
want to go let it all out. Where the teams
that may not achieve, the disappointment
Journal of Excellence – Issue No. 4 Gould, Greenleaf et al. 32
2001 Zone of Excellence - http://www.zoneofexcellence.com
is so huge because everyone sees you, that
I’m not sure athletes or coaches are really
prepared to close the situation in an ap-
propriate fashion so that you can always
deal with the disappointment of defeat.
But the disappointment of defeat at the
Olympics I think is such a different ani-
mal. And how do you deal with it? I mean
I’m not prepared.” Hence, providing sup-
port for coaches and athletes after the
Olympics, conducting debriefing sessions,
and having some form of closure experi-
ence were recommended.
Coach mental preparation. A much less
frequently cited category (6 lessons from
Atlanta participants, 2.1% of total) was
“coach mental preparation’ which empha-
sized the importance of, for example, the
coach staying relaxed while coaching at
the Games. Keeping the Olympic experi-
ence in perspective and believing in one-
self as a coach were also urged. As one
athlete said, “the coaches could do with
some psychological counseling as
well…the coaches need to take advantage
of the sport psychologist and the resources
that we have available themselves to deal
with the stress, because there’s a lot of
stress placed on them…their jobs are on
the line…the coaches need to learn to deal
with those added pressures of the Games
and they need to keep things in perspective
as well.”
Discussion and Conclusions
The large number of diverse categories of
Olympic lessons identified in this article
reflects the complexity of preparation and
performance considerations. Similar
factors were found to be important in the
larger studies from which the results were
taken (See Gould, Guinan, Greenleaf,
Medbery, Strickland, Lauer, Chung, &
Peterson, K., 1998; Gould, Greenleaf,
Dieffenbach, Chung, & Peterson, 1999).
That is, based on the multiple sources of
information collected, it is evident that
successful Olympic performances in At-
lanta and Nagano were complex, multifac-
eted, delicate, and long-term processes that
required extensive planning and painstak-
ing implementation of plans. Success sel-
dom happened by chance and was easily
disrupted by numerous distractions. While
close attention to details and plans is criti-
cal, flexibility to adjust to the many unex-
pected events is also important. Hence, the
specific lessons identified in this manu-
script, while important, only form part of a
complex matrix of factors that influence
peak performance. The whole, then, may
be more than the sum of its parts and sim-
ple solutions for achieving peak perform-
ance were not derived.
The lessons identified are also consistent
with much of the sport psychology litera-
ture. For example, numerous lessons were
identified about the importance of mental
training, achieving optimal physical condi-
tioning while not overtraining, enhancing
team cohesion, and adhering to perform-
ance plans and routines. Sport psycholo-
gists have also advocated importance of
these topics: mental training (Orlick &
Partington, 1988); prevention of over-
training (Murphy, Fleck, Dudley & Clais-
ter, 1990); team cohesion (Carron, Spink,
& Prapavessis, 1997); and performance
routines (Boutcher, 1990; Gould, Eklund
and Jackson, 1992a; Orlick & Partington,
1988).
Although not designed to test it, the find-
ings also lend support to Orlick’s (1992)
wheel model of human excellence. In
particular, based on his extensive research
and consulting experience, Orlick has
found that performance excellence results
from seven basic elements. These ele-
ments include commitment, belief, full
Journal of Excellence – Issue No. 4 Gould, Greenleaf et al. 33
2001 Zone of Excellence - http://www.zoneofexcellence.com
focus, positive images, mental readiness,
distraction control, and constructive
evaluation. Lessons in this investigation
addressed these critical elements.
Lastly, the lessons reflect several perform-
ance considerations that have not received
much attention in the sport psychology lit-
erature (e.g., elite athlete family support
versus distractions, support personnel
integration into a high performance team).
Greater efforts ought to be made to under-
stand these issues.
The ultimate value in the lessons gleamed
here from previous Olympians and Olym-
pic coaches is to disseminate the informa-
tion to future Olympic athletes and
coaches. An illustration of how this may
be achieved was a presentation by Gould
(1998) who summarized many of the
lessons and presented them to U.S. free-
style mogul skiing hopefuls 160 days prior
to the Nagano Games. Selected lessons
were presented to the skiers in a presenta-
tion and accompanying handout. In a 90
minute session the lessons were over-
viewed and the athletes and coaches dis-
cussed their relevance (a discussion which
was enhanced by having two previous
Olympic medallists present and a two time
Olympic coach). In addition, to gain a
better appreciation of the demands of the
Olympic Games, individual athletes then
considered those lessons most appropriate
to their personal situation and developed
strategies accordingly. For instance, one
high profile team member developed a
plan for effectively dealing with family
and friend expectations in the Olympic
season, while another religiously practiced
thought stopping/restructuring to maintain
focus in the face of potential Olympic dis-
tractions. By being aware of the lessons of
previous Olympians these Olympians were
better prepared in their own pursuit of
Olympic excellence.
Recognizing the value of disseminating
lessons learned from previous Olympians
to future Olympic athletes and coaches,
the USOC has produced a videotape titled
“Achieving the dream: Performing your
best at the Olympic Games.” This 35
minute video is hosted by legendary
Olympic medal winning speed skater
Bonnie Blair and swimmer Jon Naber. In
it, Olympic athletes discuss the results of
this investigation with special emphasis
placed on conveying the lessons learned.
The videotape is also supplemented by an
Olympic performance preparation check-
list that can be completed by athletes and
coaches. Lastly, an administrators check-
list for planning Olympic success, a family
and friend support brochure (that identifies
ways family and friends can support but
not distract athletes), and a brochure that
explains how volunteers can assist but not
interfere with athletes have been pub-
lished.
In conclusion, it is important to recognize
that, as someone once said, “Great corpo-
rations don’t do one thing right, they do
1000 little things right every day.” This
quote reflects what was learned from the
athletes and coaches in this study. Suc-
cessful Olympic performance does not
require that an athlete, coach or team do a
single thing right. The key is to do many
things right, on a consistent basis, and in
an integrated fashion. Hence, a central
recommendation based on these results is
to develop a plan that integrates and incor-
porates these lessons into an effective pro-
gram, that when implemented does not
necessarily guarantee Olympic success,
but provides the greatest probability of
Olympic success.
Journal of Excellence – Issue No. 4 Gould, Greenleaf et al. 34
2001 Zone of Excellence - http://www.zoneofexcellence.com
References
Boutcher, S. H. (1990). The role of preperformance routines in sport. In J.G. Jones & L.
Hardy (Eds.). Stress and performance in sports. (pp. 231-245) Chichester, UK: Wiley.
Carron, A.V., Spink, K.S., & Prapavessis, H. (1997). Team building and cohesiveness in the
sport and exercise setting: Use of indirect interventions. Journal of Applied Sport
Psychology, 9, 61-72.
Gould, D. (1998, July 28). Sport psychology and the Nagano Olympic Games: The case of
the U.S. Freestyle ski team. Invited keynote presentation made at the International Meeting
of Psychology Applied to Sport and Exercise, Braga, Portugal.
Gould, D., Eklund, R.C., & Jackson, S.A. (1992a). 1988 U.S. Olympic wrestling
excellence: I. Mental preparation, precompetitive cognition, and affect. The Sport
Psychologist, 6, 358-382.
Gould, D., Eklund, R.C., & Jackson, S.A. (1992b). 1988 U.S. Olympic wrestling
excellence: I I. Thoughts and affect occurring during competition. The Sport Psychologist,
6, 383-402.
Gould, D., Eklund, R.C., & Jackson, S.A. (1993). 1988 U.S. Coping strategies used by U.S.
Olympic wrestlers. Research Quarterly for Exercise & Sport, 64,
83-93.
Gould, D., Greenleaf, C., Dieffenbach, K., Chung, Y., & Peterson, K. (1999). Positive and
negative factors influencing U.S. Olympic athlete and coaches: Nagano Games assessment.
US Olympic Committee Sport Science and Technology Final Grant Report. Colorado
Springs, Colorado
Gould, D., Guinan, D., Greenleaf, C., Medbery, R., Strickland, M., Lauer, L., Chung, Y., &
Peterson, K. (1998). Positive and negative factors influencing U.S. Olympic athlete and
coaches: Atlanta Games assessment. US Olympic Committee Sport Science and Technology
Final Grant Report. Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Griffith, C. R. (1925). Psychology and its relation to athletic competition. American
Physical Education Review, 30, 193-199.
Hardy, L., Jones, G., & Gould, D. (1996). Understanding psychological preparation for
sport: Theory and practice of elite performers
. Chichester, UK: Wiley.
McCarthy, G.J. (1994). The Marine Corp lessons learned system: An assessment
. Naval
Postgraduate School, Monterey, CA.: U.S. Department of Commerce National Technical
Information Service ADA-283560.
Journal of Excellence – Issue No. 4 Gould, Greenleaf et al. 35
2001 Zone of Excellence - http://www.zoneofexcellence.com
Miles, M.B., & Huberman, A.M. (1994). Qualitative data analysis (2
nd
ed.). Newbury Park,
Ca. Sage.
Murphy, S.M., Fleck, S.J., Dudley, G., & Calister, R. (1990). Psychological and
performance concomitants of increase volume training in elite athletes. Journal of Applied
Sport Psychology, 2, 34-50.
Orlick, T. (1992). The psychology of personal performance excellence. Contemporary
Thought on Performance Enhancement, 1(1), 109-122.
Orlick, T., & Partington, J. (1988). Mental links to excellence. The Sport Psychologist, 2,
105-130.
Santala, R.D. (1994). Fads and hobbies of the U.S. Army wartime lessons learned program
.
Fort Leavenworth, Kansas: School of Advanced Military Studies.
Webster (1989). The new Lexicon Webster’s dictionary of the English language
. New York:
Lexicon Publications, Inc.
Williams, J. M., & Krane, V. (1998). Psychological characteristics of peak performance. In
J.M. Williams (Ed.), Applied Sport Psychology: Personal Growth to Peak Performance, (3
rd
ed.), pp. 158-170. Mountain View, CA: Mayfield.
Journal of Excellence – Issue No. 4 Gould, Greenleaf et al. 36
2001 Zone of Excellence - http://www.zoneofexcellence.com
Table 1
Olympic Lessons: Categories of Advice from Olympic Athletes
Category Example Lessons Atlanta
frequency
(%)
Nagano
frequency
(%)
Mental
preparation/training*
• Be mentally prepared and
confidence
• Have a sole performance focus
• Start mental preparation early
173
(19.2%)
73
(21.8%)
Optimal physical
training/avoid
overtraining*
• Don’t overtrain
• Train smart
• Work on technical skills
165
(18.3%)
37
(11.0%)
Coaching*
• Be honest and straightforward
with coach
• Have contact with your personal
coach during Games
• Develop coach-athlete
communication
84
(9.3%)
37
(11.0%)
Distraction/Preparation
awareness*
• Try to block out meaningless
distractions
• Don’t stress if things are not perfect
• Focus on what you can control
44
(4.9%)
20
(6.0%)
Olympic village*
• Stay outside the village
• Move out of village a few days
before competition
• Don’t try to do/see everything in
village
43
(4.8%)
5
(1.5%)
Team cohesion/harmony*
• Work on maintaining team
cohesiveness
• Do team building exercises
• Deal with team issues before Games
start
33
(3.7%)
4
(1.2%)
Journal of Excellence – Issue No. 4 Gould, Greenleaf et al. 37
2001 Zone of Excellence - http://www.zoneofexcellence.com
Table 1 cont.
Category Example Lessons Atlanta
frequency
(%)
Nagano
frequency
(%)
International
competition*
• International tournaments are
great and it’s great practice,
but don’t over do it
• Get as much international
experience as possible
• Do more international competitions
in the two years prior to the Games
32
(3.6%)
6
(1.8%)
Family/friend
involvement*
• Hold an athlete-family
meeting prior to Games
• Have family plans taken care of
ahead of time
• Take time for family
31
(3.4%)
9
(2.7%)
Plans/adherence to plans*
• Have a plan and stick to it
• Stick with what has worked in the
past
• Insist on staying with the normal
pre-tournament routine
29
(3.0%)
9
(2.7%)
Support personnel*
• Explain support staff roles to
team
• Support staff needs to be familiar
with athletes
• Assemble your own personal
‘support crew’
24
(2.7%)
16
(4.8%)
Team selection and
trials*
• Have trials earlier
• Use Olympic trials as setting stone
to real thing
• Have a less stressful trials and
have sufficient time off before
Olympics
8
(2.0%)
11
(3.3%)
Journal of Excellence – Issue No. 4 Gould, Greenleaf et al. 38
2001 Zone of Excellence - http://www.zoneofexcellence.com
Table 1 cont.
Category Example Lessons Atlanta
frequency
(%)
Nagano
frequency
(%)
Dealing with media*
• Hold media training earlier
• Block out the media
• Have someone take care of media
responsibilities for you
14
(1.6%)
14
(4.2%)
Travel*
• Have better transportation to
and from venues
• Have personal transportation
• Don’t travel too much prior to
Games
13
(1.4%)
10
(3.0%)
Opening Ceremonies
• Expect chaos
• Go to Opening Ceremonies
• Don’t go to Opening Ceremonies
11
(1.2%)
3
(0.9%)
General Preparation
• Do your homework
• Attention to preparation is critical
• Be prepared and ready
27
(3.0%)
20
(6.0%)
USOC/NGB Relations
• Don’t blindly let NGB take
control
• NGB needs to take care of details so
athletes can focus
• Have a level playing field – enforce
drug testing
23
(2.6%)
7
(2.1%)
Funding/sponsorship
• Try to get more funding so that
you can train more
• Don’t worry too much about work
and paying bills
• Don’t rely on USOC or NGB for
financial support
18
(2.0%)
3
(0.9%)
Journal of Excellence – Issue No. 4 Gould, Greenleaf et al. 39
2001 Zone of Excellence - http://www.zoneofexcellence.com
Table 1 cont.
Category Example Lessons Atlanta
frequency
(%)
Nagano
frequency
(%)
Fun/Enjoyment
• Enjoy the experience
• Relax, enjoy the people and the
events
• Set some time aside for fun
17
(1.9%)
5
(1.5%)
Food/nutrition
• Eat more healthy food
• Properly time your pre-competition
meal
• Take control over food intake
16
(1.8%)
6
(1.5%)
Equipment
• Make a commitment to
equipment early and don’t
change
• Wear the shoes you want to, not
what your NGB wants
• Have ski and wax testing at site
prior to competition
6
(0.7%)
9
(2.7%)
Simulation
• Practice performing under
pressure
• Practice in Olympic uniform
5
(0.6%)
--
Visit/practice at
Olympic venue
• Practice at venue ahead of
time
• Visit venue prior to Olympics
5
(0.6%)
--
Leadership
• Take on leadership
• Have a positive team leader
• Strong team leadership is important
4
(0.4%)
2
(0.6%)
Closure
• Have team closure
• Debrief athletes and coaches
4
(0.4%)
--
Team training/Residency
programs
• Live together as a team the
last few months before
competition
2
(0.2%)
--
Miscellaneous
59
(6.5%)
29
(8.6%)
Total 900 335
* Discussed in text. 1
Journal of Excellence – Issue No. 4 Gould, Greenleaf et al. 40
2001 Zone of Excellence - http://www.zoneofexcellence.com
Table 2
Olympic Lessons: Categories of Advice from Olympic Coaches
Category Example Lessons Atlanta
frequency
(%)
Nagano
frequency
(%)
Coaching*
• Don’t over coach, keep it
simple
• Take advantage of all the high
performance summits and
opportunities to meet and talk with
other coaches
41
(14.4%)
1
(2.1%)
General preparation*
• Don’t dream – prepare
• Preparation is truly the best way to
be successful
33
(11.6%)
6
(12.5%)
Optimal physical
training/avoid
overtraining*
• Give athletes more time off
closer to Games
• Athletes are fragile when in top
shape
31
(10.9%)
3
(6.3%)
Mental
preparation/training*
• Mental training needs to be
consistent
• It is important to have a sport
psychology consultant
28
(9.8%)
7
(14.6%)
Support Personnel*
• Get rid of unproductive staff
• Need a team of sport scientists
12
(4.2%)
2
(4.2%)
Dealing with the media*
• Need a good media person
• Set rules about media interviews
and coordinate through one person
10
(3.5%)
--
International
competition*
• Important for coach and
athlete to experience high
level international competition
before the Games
• Put athletes in ‘pressure’
international settings
9
(3.2%)
--
Journal of Excellence – Issue No. 4 Gould, Greenleaf et al. 41
2001 Zone of Excellence - http://www.zoneofexcellence.com
Table 2 cont.
Category Example Lessons Atlanta
frequency (%)
Nagano
frequency
(%)
Team
cohesion/harmony*
• Get team on the same page
• Team building is important
9
(3.2%)
1
(2.1%)
Family/friend
involvement*
• Assign someone to deal with
family and friend ticket issues
• Educate family and friends
8
(2.8%)
--
Distraction preparation*
• Develop a plan of action to
deal with spouses and
personal coaches who get on
an ego trip
• Be prepared for the long paper trail
and the media circus
8
(2.8%)
3
(6.3%)
Plans and adherence to
plans*
• Stick with what has worked
for you
• Stick with the plan
3
(1.0%)
8
(16.7%)
Coach mental
preparation*
• Stay relaxed, don’t stress (at
least not in front of your
athletes)
• Believe in what you are doing
6
(2.1%)
--
Closure*
• Provide closure
• Athletes close to retirement may
need help
2
(0.7%)
--
USOC/NGB relations
• Education NGB on athlete and
coach needs
• Take advantage of high performance
facilities
13
(4.6%)
--
Journal of Excellence – Issue No. 4 Gould, Greenleaf et al. 42
2001 Zone of Excellence - http://www.zoneofexcellence.com
Table 2 cont.
Category Example Lessons Atlanta
frequency
(%)
Nagano
frequency
(%)
Funding/sponsors
• Increase athlete support
• Don’t discuss money with athletes
10
(3.5%)
--
Team selection and trials
• Make final cuts early
• Have a system where best athletes can
still make team even if they falter
during trials
9
(3.2%)
--
Olympic village
• Get away from village to focus
• Stay out of village night before
competition
6
(2.1%)
--
Simulation
• Hold mock trials
• Use simulation trips to actual venue,
housing, etc.
4
(1.4%)
--
Leadership
• Develop a team leader
• Make sure you choose a strong team
leader
4
(1.4%)
--
Team training /
Residency Programs
• Go into residency program 4 to
5 months in advance
• Schedule to get together at least 2
years prior to Games
4
(1.4%)
--
Fun/enjoyment
• Have fun – enjoy the Olympics
as a coach
• Enjoy the total Olympic experience as
long as it doesn’t interfere with your
team’s preparation
4
(1.4%)
3
(6.3%)
Journal of Excellence – Issue No. 4 Gould, Greenleaf et al. 43
2001 Zone of Excellence - http://www.zoneofexcellence.com
Table 2 cont.
Category Example Lessons Atlanta
frequency
(%)
Nagano
frequency
(%)
Communication
• Be honest and open with
athletes
• Develop a good communication
system
3
(1.0%)
1
(2.1%)
Opening ceremonies
• Be prepared for Opening
ceremonies to be a zoo
•
• Opening ceremonies worth it if
competed more than 2 days later
3
(1.0%)
--
Visit / Practice at venue
• Practice at venue
• Scout competition site before Games
3
(1.0%)
--
Rules / Decisions
• Make rules very specific
• Confront issues directly
2
(0.7%)
--
Miscellaneous
• Make rules very specific
• Make rules very specific
20
(7.0%)
13
(20.1%)
Total 285 48
* Discussed in text.
