A Message From Peter
Greetings,
Well, the Vancouver Games are finally here! In the spirit of "Olympic fever", this edition of Ignite is focused largely on things Olympic. Below you'll find an article on the so-called home-court advantage, an Ask the Expert column on Olympic preparation for athletes and a podcast on what to expect from the Games.
Why such excitement around these Games? Because as a country we have said we'd like to win them - and we have the numbers to show that it is possible. Across the bottom is a timeline from the start to the finish of the Games with lines charting the projected medal count for Vancouver 2010 based on world championship results from the past year.
If medal wins occur as projected above, and last year's results from World Championships get replicated, it will follow a progression that will get an interesting reaction from the press. To start off, Canada would win only four medals in the first five days - placing us seventh in medal count. At this point the press would be questioning our commitment, critiquing preparation, selection, etc. - and just generally panicking! But lo and behold, by the end of the Games Canadian athletes would have won 29 medals and will be ranked first in the final medal count.
Just a pipe dream? Well it does take many things going right, but the point is it's possible! So put on something red and join with friends and neighbours and enjoy the Games. We'll get back to a more corporate/work orientation when we come to you again in the spring.
Best Wishes,
Peter's Podcast
Peter reports in from the pre-Olympic one-week training camp in Jasper, Alberta, where the women's hockey team is putting the finishing touches on their preparation for the upcoming Games. He gives some insight into the increased awareness of the role of psychology in sport, and in these Games in particular.
To listen to the Podcast in .mp3 format, simply click the 'Listen Now' link below. If you wish to save the Podcast to listen to later (or even transfer to your iPod), 'right-click' the link and choose 'Save Target As...' to save it to your computer.
Vancouver 2010: Home court advantage or disadvantage?
In this issue's feature story, Peter examines the extra preparation required for an Olympic Games on home soil.
In the coming weeks there will be much debate around the so-called home court advantage in hosting the 2010 Olympic Games. With the Olympics fast approaching we will soon see the impact home-soil expectations are going to have on Canadian performances. Let's speculate a bit here and look at the issue from all sides -- psychologically speaking.
There are many things that lead to the perception of pressure and many skills athletes and coaches can use to harness that pressure. This is the constant balance. There is the level of stress or anxiety inherent in the situation, including number of people focused on the result/outcome, the media coverage, recent performance history, the magnitude of the competition and other competitors. This is often called state anxiety. Combine that with any specific individual's pre-Olympic level of innate stress -- their current perception of reality, which varies tremendously from athlete to athlete, and often called trait anxiety -- and you get the picture. A great many variables come into play in determining who will perform well under the spotlight and who will not.
There are, of course, other factors as well: injury that affects last-minute preparation, team sport versus individual sport and much more. It's a very long list of variables that leads to one clear conclusion: mental preparation for Olympic success is essential and needs to be tailored to the athlete, their situation and history, and particular set of circumstances.
It Begins With Awareness
It all starts with awareness in the performer of the need for developing their mental fitness. That most often arises when they have experienced failure and disappointment and come to the realization that sport, and especially competing, has much more to do with their mindset than they first realized. Once an athlete realizes that their inner world is a major factor in their ability to compete -- and this can take many years -- and they learn that they can direct and alter their inner state, mental preparation moves from theory to reality. I use an instrument called the TAIS to fast track this process with the athletes I work with. We at PCI have used this instrument, developed by my colleague Dr. Robert Neideffer, with our corporate clients for years through our S.W.O.T. Programs. In preparation for 2010 we are using it with over 50 Olympic performers and their coaches and support staff.
Long-term Strategy
You can't wait until two months before the Games to get physically fit. The same holds true for mental fitness. It is a constant loop of learning, testing the skills under pressure, adjusting, adapting, customizing, then testing again. Every athlete I work with has something they are working on before, during and after every game or event.
If there aren't enough competitions to pressure test the skills then we simulate -- that is, create adversity to challenge the skills and make sure they hold up under pressure much like a flight simulator is used to prepare astronauts for space travel. We can never really simulate the Olympics, however. It's always bigger, tougher, and more intense than anything we can create. Unexpected things happen. Therefore, we also train mentally to handle uncertainty by instituting everything from last-minute schedule changes and boot-camp surprises to sitting an athlete out of a game or travelling "fifth" class.
A Positive Perspective
The content of any good mental prep plan will involve skills related to perspective, imagery, energy management and focus. Perspective is critical and is particularly open to distortion given the fact that we in Canada are hosting the Games. The crowd support can be seen as pressure ("I will let a lot of people down if I don't do well"), creating fear, or supportive energy ("I'm pumped. Let me at 'em") and any number of other interpretations. They are as varied as the athletes. Choosing a perspective that is supportive and energizing is of prime importance. Our bodies react to the stories we tell ourselves, producing what we call "feelings." Holding a perspective that creates emotions such as confidence, excitement and aggressiveness is the first step. Sport psych skills are geared to assisting an athlete in directing and managing reactions, emotions and beliefs during tough practice sessions, major disappointments and huge successes. It is impossible to describe adequately in a newsletter, however, the many skills that can be used to be mentally prepared in a competition such as the Olympics. I have recounted all of them with many examples in my book The Inside Edge.
Go, Canada, Go!
So how will Canadian athletes fare in Vancouver and Whistler? I believe they will perform very well. A great deal of time and effort has gone into developing the mental skills of Canadian athletes over the past eight years. We saw the first returns in Torino with a record medal haul. Will we win overall? There are many great athletes coming to the Games who also work on their mental edge from countries much bigger than Canada. We aren't going to suddenly sneak up on anyone. They have seen what we can do. And these Games will be tougher than Torino. I do believe we will be close to the Torino numbers, however, which were exceptional. We will also win medals of every colour, especially gold, on Canadian soil this time. And that will be a first worthy of celebration!
Gold-Medal Days: Peter (far right) with the women's team after their victory at Torino
Ask the Expert
Peter, What are the top three things you are doing to help athletes prepare for the Olympic Games in Vancouver?
My short answer to the question would be that it totally depends on the athlete, the position they are in, (in terms of expectation and world ranking) and their history with large international competitions. In working with figure skaters at past Olympic Games there was great variance in what the athletes needed given what they were facing. The pressure on Brian Orser in Calgary was oppressive and pervasive and so I worked very differently with him than I did, say, with Elizabeth Manley, who was under a less intense and public spotlight leading up to the Games.
At these Olympics I am working with women's hockey -- a team of 21 players and a staff of 12. In one sense it's very different to work with a team than with individuals. The needs of the team come first. A team is made up of individuals, however, so what I do depends on the needs of this particular team and what each individual is going to have to manage if she is to be most useful to the team. One of the most critical factors in being optimally useful is the perspective each individual brings to the team.
Controlling PerspectiveFeelings and thoughts precede all action. Therefore, how each individual performs on competition day, how she treats others on the team and how she reacts under pressure are all modulated by what she is thinking and feeling. Our perspective comes from the stories we tell ourselves and the images we run in our heads. And these stories and images do not just happen in the mind; they translate to the body and create sensations and physiological changes. You need only think of a pressure situation that you have been in to become aware that your internal dialogue and images create a physiology that may be inaccurate or distorted but nevertheless very real and influential on how you behave.
Imagine, for example, your young child is very late coming home from school. He hasn't called and you can't reach him. As you start to think about why he could be late, unpleasant scenarios enter your mind. As this happens your emotions and physiology will shift into a different state such as fear and/or anxiety. There may be no truth to what you are thinking. That is irrelevant. Your perspective determines how you will react. It is this internal reactivity that can distract, distort and modify the action we take and how well we perform. When pressure is applied, when the stakes are high, we can imagine all kinds of things -- good or bad -- about ourselves, our situation, the outcome. I teach the athletes to notice when they are not feeling "right" and to name what the source of their internal discomfort is. Once we can see it we can deal with it. I teach a powerful little skill called reframing that helps the performer shift focus back to thoughts and feelings that will help rather than hinder. And one of the first things an athlete has to determine is what is within their control and what isn't. Because if they get that wrong . . .
Energy Management
The second area that we spend a fair amount of time working on is energy management. Learning to monitor and raise and lower your arousal level is critical to performing at high levels, not only in competition but also in practice. When arousal level gets too high our attentional focus starts to narrow. We have no control over this. Too narrow a focus can lead to mistakes -- what, in sport, is commonly called choking. Most of the time, especially at the Olympics, athletes need to be able to recognize when they are too high and lower their arousal level quickly and efficiently and get back on their game. One of the skills I have taught almost every athlete I've ever worked with is a breathing technique called centering.
Confidence Building
The third area, which is very much connected to the first two, is confidence, self-esteem, belief in one's self. In the end no team or individual will go far without confidence. Learning to be supportive of yourself and others on a team, while holding each other accountable and pushing each other to be better, is of paramount importance to be successful. The closer to the day of the event the more important confidence becomes. In fact, it becomes one of the single most important factors right before the event. The very best coaches understand this and build confidence in their performers well before a major competition. Let's hope we have all done a good job of this for all Canadian athletes who will be in the 2010 Games!
A lifetime at the Olympics: Peter's accreditation badges from Albertville, Sydney, Athens, and Torino