{"id":29314,"date":"2025-01-29T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-01-29T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/?post_type=article&p=29314"},"modified":"2026-05-07T15:15:38","modified_gmt":"2026-05-07T14:15:38","slug":"what-do-athletes-want-four-trends-in-the-athlete-coach-team-dynamic","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/what-do-athletes-want-four-trends-in-the-athlete-coach-team-dynamic\/","title":{"rendered":"What Do Athletes Want? Four Trends in the Athlete-Coach-Team Dynamic"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n
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\n 29 Jan 2025 <\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>Articles<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

What Do Athletes Want? Four Trends in the Athlete-Coach-Team Dynamic<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n \n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/what-do-athletes-want-four-trends-in-the-athlete-coach-team-dynamic\/<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/section>\n\n\n\n\n
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A recent Leaders Virtual Roundtable touched on the themes of connection, individual development, and the athlete\u2019s role in decision-making.<\/p>\n \n \n \n

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By John Portch<\/h6>\n
Some say young athletes are not as single-minded and dedicated to their craft as earlier generations.<\/h6>\n

That is not necessarily true, but young athletes today do tend to have more autonomy and wider horizons.<\/p>\n

If they decide they do not want to be on this pathway or that programme, others will welcome them with open arms. Even if an athlete does commit to your programme: are you providing the wellbeing, learning and social support they increasingly demand?<\/p>\n

This generational shift \u2013 and the challenges it poses coaches and staff \u2013 set the terms for a virtual roundtable titled \u2018What Are our Athletes Telling us?\u2019 where we invited members of the Leaders Performance Institute from across the globe to answer four questions:<\/p>\n

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  • What are we learning from conversations with athletes?<\/li>\n
  • Are there trends in the type of support they need?<\/li>\n
  • What topics interest young athletes?<\/li>\n
  • How are we adapting our environments to meet their needs?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    Their responses pointed to four trends in the athlete-coach-team dynamic.<\/p>\n

    1. Athletes are increasingly expressing their desire for belonging and connection<\/strong><\/p>\n

    Teams should consider the psychosocial elements of an athlete\u2019s development. Emerging athletes wish for meaningful experiences and want a sense of belonging and connection. \u201cIt\u2019s about where are they enjoying themselves the most and where they see the opportunities,\u201d said one participant, who spoke of Australia\u2019s women\u2019s rugby sevens.<\/p>\n

    The programme takes teams of emerging athletes on tour to far flung places. Therein lies the opportunity for community-based activities where players will meet locals, in circumstances often far removed from their own and, in contributing to social and environmental causes, continue to develop a more rounded perspective of their own lives and development.<\/p>\n

    This builds on the fine work being done in Australia to develop the \u201cwhole athlete\u201d, as one participant with knowledge of the environment explained. The Australian system, they said, has prioritised mental health support for Olympic and Paralympic athletes at the behest of the athletes themselves.<\/p>\n

    2. Athletes crave individual \u2013 and team \u2013 development<\/strong><\/p>\n

    The desire of younger athletes for belonging and connection comes with a paradoxical demand for more personalised training and attention. This has implications for the time coaches spend on team dynamics in an era where the power has shifted to the athlete. \u201cStaff and coaches are more vulnerable,\u201d said one participant, who pondered where the balance needs to sit. \u201cGive the athletes a voice and a choice, give them ownership, have the consultation, but there is a line too.\u201d<\/p>\n

    Another participant with experience of coaching in European football, highlighted that individual work will mean different things to different people and can be dependent on team selection. They argued that there is room for better management of expectations and, more broadly, a consensus for coaches and athletes alike on what constitutes \u2018individual\u2019 training.<\/p>\n

    3. Athletes want a formal voice in decision-making<\/strong><\/p>\n

    Athletes want to have a say in decisions that affect them. A participant working at the Premier League spoke of their members\u2019 club captains being increasingly forthright in their views on league-sponsored initiatives.<\/p>\n

    They said there need to be clear systems and processes for engaging athletes and ensuring their feedback is considered, with the caveat that any outcomes may be unclear or unformed, depending on the complexity of the issue.<\/p>\n

    To this latter point, another participant spoke of the athlete advisory committee with whom they work. \u201cWe\u2019re trying to provide agency and elevate that athlete voice, which in a lot of ways is really valuable and adds a lot of benefit,\u201d they said. \u201cBut there\u2019s risk associated with that. You are letting the \u2018good\u2019 in with the \u2018bad\u2019 to an extent depending on what topic it relates to, particularly in terms of managing expectations.\u201d<\/p>\n

    4. Athletes want to explore opportunities beyond the sporting arena<\/strong><\/p>\n

    One participant noted that athlete care roles have developed from being \u201cconcierge-style to far more hands-on\u201d. That might include helping young overseas athletes settle in a new country with their close family or it might mean supporting leadership development, media skills training, or helping athletes to explore other professional opportunities beyond their sporting careers.<\/p>\n

    The Australian sports system, for example, is getting better at providing educational and career opportunities of the kind that enable athletes to be more \u201cjob-ready\u201d.<\/p>\n

    However, it is not just those athletes in (typically) lower-income Olympic and Paralympic sports seeking wider professional development: LinkedIn has seen an exponential increase in major league athletes using its platform. As one participant noted, this interest in business and entrepreneurship is not a surprise given the levels of disposable income available to some athletes. It invites the question: how might teams and leagues support players in these endeavours?<\/p>\n<\/p>\n <\/div>\n \n \n \n <\/div>\n

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