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Talking to Your Athlete At A Swim Meet
By John Leonard, ASCA,
April 20, 2011
Our purpose today…
• What is the difference between the coach in practice and the coach in a swim meet?
• What are the key skills in each case?
• How much overlap?
• What differences?
• How can the Coach best help the athlete at a swim meet? (key question of the day.)
Does One Style Fit All?
Clearly you need to work within your own personality.
• It won’t help anyone to have a “new Coach” at the meet.
• You need to be consistent.
• AND, you need to recognize that your athletes are all different people and…
• NEED DIFFERENT THINGS AT A MEET TO SUCCEED!
Start with Basics..do you know what you look like at a swim meet?
George Haines Richard Quick
If You Don’t…
• VIDEO.
• Yourself.
• In repose.
• In action.
• In conversation.
• Not many of us will be happy when we review this. Do you want to see what others see, or…?
How You Communicate with athletes is …
Verbal
• The words we SAY
• The WAY we say them.
• How athletes HEAR them. (or here them)
• Can your athletes focus in the “here and now”. ?
• Mark Schubert in conversation with an athlete. Don GambrilIn conversation with an athlete. Others.
Non-verbal
• Facial expression.
• Body language.
• Movement language.
• Who’s watching?
• Other athletes.
• The Child’s Parent
Conversation.
Where do you stand?
• Side by side – implications.
• Face to Face – Implications.
• Mixture – how to use.
The Challenge..what else are you doing?
• Watching others race.
• Taking splits.
• Cheering?
• Telling others on the way to the block what to remember.
• You’re busier than a one arm paper hanger.
The “Package”
• Information you deliver: “standard”
• BEFORE THE RACE….
• What to do.
• How to do it.
• Express confidence, give permission to go fast.
• Tell or Ask.
• Age/
Age Groupers – 8 to 13/14
• I tell, I don’t ask.
• Set up by several weeks of discussion.
• REMINDERS, not new information.
• Focus on one key word/thought.
• Define the one rabbit you are chasing and have them repeat it back to you.
Older athletes 13/14 through Masters…
• Collaborative effort.
• Ask questions and “suggest”.
• Many times, primary purpose is to remind of reasons to be confident/aggressive.
• You MUST know your athlete.
• Music is a key.
Extremes…
In the pool communication Comfortable chat….
The Post-Race Talk
Younger
• Sandwich
• What did you do well?
• What were you trying to do? (test case.)
• What you can do better.
• How to get faster.
• What did you LEARN from this swim?
• WHAT NEXT?
Older Athletes…
• What went well?
• What needs improvement?
• Did you catch your one rabbit?
• How to get faster.
• More questions to elicit an intellectual response.
• WHAT NEXT?
Listening Skills..
• Try to listen with heart as well as ears.
• ASK QUESTIONS…Probe, go deeper…
• And? And? And? And?
• “what else did you think about during the swim?” (thinking…during the swim?)
• What did you learn about yourself in that?
• Listen to HOW they describe the race…”I think, I saw, I felt, etc. tells you…?
POST MEET CONVERSATIONS!
• Review to get closure.
• Review to get technical info to “stick”.
• Review for emotional reasons…
• WELL WORTH THE TIME IT TAKES.
• Key Questions
• What was your BEST Race? Why?
• What was your worst race,? Why?
• What was your most memorable moment of the meet? Why?
Contrasts
James “Doc” Counsilman Jack Nelson, Jon Urbanchek
Other Conversational Considerations.
• 1. Emotion - who needs to pump up, who needs to calm down?
• Intellect – the role of analysis versus role of emotion and “cheerleading”.
• Attention Seeking Behavior.
• Philosophical interface with “talk”
• Checking for retention…all ages.
Conversational Considerations..con’t
• 2. age groupers.
• What you say versus what they hear.
• Prep WELL before meet. Then right before meet. Then right after meet…it’s endless!
• Communicate with parents as well as children….John’s standard speech to parents.
• “so you know what we are doing…”
Considerations…
• 3. Words mean something.
• Careful what words you use.
• Danger of extravagant praise.
• End with giving hope and high expectations.
• Get good at “reframing” situations.
• Get good at “refocusing” distracted children for good or bad reasons…..
• It’s all about “the future” and GIVING HOPE.
The Greatest..when it comes to talking with Athletes….
And a very close second…
Hope you Enjoyed It!
• All the Best,
• John Leonard
• 800-356-2722.
• Questions anytime…I’m here to help. JL