{"id":33535,"date":"2026-02-09T09:37:17","date_gmt":"2026-02-09T09:37:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/?post_type=article&p=33535"},"modified":"2026-04-02T15:58:00","modified_gmt":"2026-04-02T14:58:00","slug":"how-team-gb-sets-the-stage-for-british-olympians-to-write-their-own-stories","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/how-team-gb-sets-the-stage-for-british-olympians-to-write-their-own-stories\/","title":{"rendered":"How Team GB sets the stage for British Olympians to write their Own Stories"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n
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\n 9 Feb 2026 <\/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

How Team GB sets the stage for British Olympians to write their Own Stories<\/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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In the second part of his series, the British Olympic Association\u2019s Paul Ford explains that while Games environments are challenging, Great Britain\u2019s success is testament to stringent planning and preparation \u2013 and that athlete education is at the heart of it.<\/p>\n \n \n \n

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By Paul Ford MBE<\/h6>\n
The Olympic Games environment is the worst possible place for trying to get people to peak and perform to the best of their capabilities.<\/h6>\n

Athletes are compacted into a brand-new village of more than 16,000 people who are all subject to a constrained competition schedule in what amounts to 52 world championships in 17 days, all in the same city.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s almost like they are being set up to fail when they\u2019re expected to deliver the best performance of their lives.<\/p>\n

However, we like to flip this as an opportunity.<\/p>\n

At the British Olympic Association we feel if we educate and mentally prepare the team for what to expect it can bring a performance gain. We unite all the athletes competing as part of Team GB while giving them the platform to perform to the best of their ability.<\/p>\n

It builds on the concept of \u2018One Team GB\u2019 as I wrote here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

A part of something bigger<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2018One Team GB\u2019 is the idea that while Team GB is made up of various national teams and individuals \u2013 and the last thing we want to do is remove that individuality \u2013 we are all there united under the same common goal as Team GB. To perform at our best and inspire our Nation!<\/p>\n

An awesome colleague, Olympian Georgie Harland, conducted a project with the help of Owen Eastwood, during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games cycle. They explored our Olympic heritage dating from the 1896 Athens Games. That process unearthed so many different stories, which say to today\u2019s British Olympians: \u2018you\u2019re not the first to go to the Games, you won\u2019t be the last either, but you are the next and you now have the opportunity to create your own story\u2019.<\/p>\n

More recently, our Athlete Services Manager, Olympic rhythmic gymnast Rachel Smith, evolved this with some exceptional work going into the 2024 Paris Games around generating a true sense of belonging for our future Olympians.<\/p>\n

As a Sport team, we visit all the different sports in advance of the Games (our Games Ready roadshow) and talk about these stories going back 130 years and always bring it back to the idea that you have the opportunity to create your own story, leave your mark as an individual in your sport and inspire the nation and next generation.<\/p>\n

We encourage athletes to think \u2018you matter as an individual\u2019 but also \u2018you\u2019re part of a collective effort, and most importantly, you belong here\u2019. They have their individual focus, and being selfish is fine, but we recognise that we\u2019re here as part of that greater common purpose. Bonded by the collective support of one another. This is hugely important when the pressure is so high. No one is on their own!<\/p>\n

Looking forward, we will engage past Olympians to continue support this process because they can bring their own stories to life. The athletes of 2028 will recognise the stars of 1984 (when the Olympics were last in LA) such as Daley Thompson and Seb Coe. That peer-to-peer connection is so much better than me trying to tell the same stories alone third hand.<\/p>\n

The Opening Ceremony: to go or not to go?<\/strong><\/p>\n

At an Olympic Games, there are certain things you can use as a performance boost. It might be attending the Opening Ceremony: if you walk behind the flag as part of Team GB it can be a massive \u2018switch on\u2019 moment ahead of going into competition. However, if you\u2019re competing the next morning at 8:00am in the pool, attending the opening ceremony is not ideal preparation.<\/p>\n

You must look at the opportunities afforded by the Games and tap into the bits that are going to build you up without compromising your preparation.<\/p>\n

If it\u2019s your first Games, it can be hard to understand just how these different experiences might affect you. You may be on your feet a lot more than normal, meaning your hydration may be lacking, as may your sleep, because you don\u2019t necessarily go back to your room after training and you may stay up later than normal because of the Games \u2018buzz\u2019. You may well be looking at your phone and messaging people more so than normal in competition; all that blue light exposure may ruin your sleep quality.<\/p>\n

We find that several first-time athletes will struggle to stick to their plan because they might see their role models or idols in other sports who are hugely successful doing something in the gym and they think to themselves \u2018oh, maybe I should give that a go\u2019. That\u2019s a potential recipe for injury disaster.<\/p>\n

We must prepare that message in advance and tell athletes that when the Games arrive, they must stick to their process because the performances will be there and the results will take care of themselves if they do so. Don\u2019t deviate from the norm at the crucial moment!<\/p>\n

When to land these discussions is the next question. Some sports, such as sailing and canoeing, will know their Olympians as early as September 2027; others, such as track and field, won\u2019t select until May 2028. So the education journey we go on with the sailors and canoeists is long; we can plan out and get that right and drip feed it at the right times. Whereas the track and field athletes don\u2019t want to hear anything about the Games because they\u2019re not necessarily going. We must be smart in making the education bespoke and fit for purpose for each sport. Equally, some will want us to sit down and talk it through while others just want those short videos and podcasts. It\u2019s finding out how the different cohort of athletes\u2019 best digest information.<\/p>\n

Athletes will already have their own coping strategies and, as with anything else that goes into the preparations, it\u2019s about not trying new things at a Games. Their coping strategies shouldn\u2019t be any different to what they normally are \u2013 it\u2019s just that the amplitude of the noise is going to be greater than anything you\u2019ve experienced before.<\/p>\n

Our former Team GB psychology lead, Dr Kate Hays, in the build-up to Tokyo 2020, talked through \u2018stress buckets\u2019 and the \u2018taps\u2019 you place on that bucket are your coping strategies. Our thoughts remain the same: everyone\u2019s release mechanisms will be different, but you need to know when to turn on those taps.<\/p>\n

We encourage athletes, coaches and support staff to openly discuss their taps ahead of time so that they are both known and understood, and crucially, supported by their peers.<\/p>\n

Blue days, white days<\/strong><\/p>\n

At the Games, we also arrange \u2018blue days\u2019 and \u2018white days\u2019 where athletes and staff wear Team GB attire of the corresponding colour.<\/p>\n

It may sound autocratic, but it is deliberate \u2013 even if it\u2019s harder at Winter Games because you\u2019re in so many layers \u2013 and there is a rationale. If you walk into an unfamiliar space where you are unknown, it can be uncomfortable, particularly if you\u2019re not from a team sport where the squads tend to move on mass. If you\u2019re an individual fencer, archer or table tennis player, you might be there by yourself and it can be a lonely environment as mentioned \u2013 and the last place you want to be lonely is at an Olympic Games, stuck in your own head, when the pressure is mounting.<\/p>\n

If you go into the dining hall on a \u2018white day\u2019, you\u2019ll see the British athletes stand out against all the other national colours. It\u2019s a safe and comfortable place for you to be part of; it says, \u2018we\u2019re all over here\u2019. We tend to say where we\u2019re going to sit each day but the blue and white does make it easier; and it\u2019s not just in the dining hall but also when moving around the village. It\u2019s a conversation-starter and you\u2019ve broken down the barrier because you\u2019re bonded by the kit.<\/p>\n

In Paris, we also had our own barista in our Team GB Olympic block so that we could create this common space for people who are all there for the same reason together. You\u2019re not forcing them out of their room but you\u2019re offering it as an incentive.<\/p>\n

Our role in performance preparation<\/strong><\/p>\n

We leave the technical work to the coaches, but we need to look at the whole performance picture: what does it take to maximise this and what facets can affect that? What can we tweak within the environment to facilitate comfort, safety, and ultimately enable people to be brave and thrive?<\/p>\n

A fundamental part of how you prepare people to perform is as much about getting them mentally and emotionally ready of what to expect. Whilst the swimming pool at a Games is still 50m, and the athletics track is 400m long; it\u2019s the bells and whistles around them that change. We help to prepare athletes and staff for what to expect of the \u2018circus\u2019 around them. Their belonging and sense of value to the team, and how by going into this together we can thrive when it matters most.<\/p>\n

Paul Ford is the Head of Sport at the British Olympic Association. If you would like to speak to Paul, please contact a member of the Leaders Performance Institute team.<\/em><\/p>\n

What to read next<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Team GB always Strive to Create an Olympic Home from Home for Athletes and Staff \u2013 and the Performance Benefit Is Clear<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n