Developing Champions

Related topics: athlete

Partnership

The Department of Sport and Recreation (DSR) in partnership with the Western Australian Institute of Sport (WAIS) have created a life skills program for developing athletes. The Developing Champions program is designed to assist the development of aspiring young athletes to gain personal development skills with the support of the Athlete Career and Education (ACE) program at WAIS.

Athlete Career and Education (ACE)

The primary objective of the WAIS ACE program is to contribute to the personal development and performance of WA’s high performance athletes by assisting them to achieve a balance in sport and life without compromising on excellence. The Developing Champions program has been designed to create a strong link with the ACE program objectives.

Program Information

Champion (noun): a personal example of excellence or achievement

High performance athletes need to consistently strive to be champions in all areas of life, not just their sporting pursuits. A well-rounded, balanced and capable individual makes for a more successful, happy athlete - able to cope with the demanding challenges of life as a high performance sportsperson. The Developing Champions program aims to assist young aspiring athletes to engage in healthy behaviours and make positive decisions which will enable them to successfully enter, and then progress along the high performance pathway.

Program Objective

To achieve positive behaviour change in targeted athletes by developing athletes’

1. Interpersonal and personal life skills
2. Ability to apply these skills within different contexts

Program

The program is delivered to athletes in three stages consisting of development workshops and intensive servicing.

Development Workshops

• Stage1: Foundations for My Success
  Athletes will enter the Developing Champions program at STAGE 1, where they will be provided with the foundations for learning and applying life skills, enabling them to build a strong base as they work towards becoming champions in life and sport.

• Stage 2: Advancing along My Sporting Pathway
  This level of the program is designed for athletes that have completed STAGE 1 of the Developing Champions program.  At stage 2, athletes will be given further opportunities to develop and add to the skills learnt in stage 1, and continue to develop those champion skills – at a more advanced level.

Intensive Servicing

For specially selected Developing Champions athletes only.

• Stage 3: Strengthening My Skills
  This stage of the program is designed for athletes that have completed both STAGE 1 & 2. During this stage, WAIS will provide intensive servicing to selected Developing Champions athletes.  Emphasis in this stage of the program will be on more thoroughly preparing athletes for an upcoming transition to the elite sporting environment. Athletes will have a chance to further strengthen and add to the skills developed in the workshop stages of the program. Participants will be provided withmentoring opportunities, intensive smaller group workshops, useful resources and direct follow up and support.

Program Learning Areas

The program aims to equip all athletes with an understanding of the elite athlete lifestyle, as well as the importance of balancing different life areas and the positive effects that can have on sports performance. In addition to this, the following topics are covered:

Core Learning Areas

Essential for achieving program outcomes

All of these learning areas are compulsory.

• Understanding Me: the effect of mental states on performance - confidence, mood, stress; mental strength; resilience; dealing with expectations; knowing your priorities and motivation
• Managing Me: goal setting across difference performance areas; achieving balance; developing your personal pathway outside of sport; building confidence; time management; planning ahead; stress management
• My Pathway: progressing along the pathway; transitions; decision making; performance planning for balance and success 

Elective Learning Areas

Aim to enhance athlete development in program outcome areas.

Priority learning areas to be chosen by State Sporting Associations (SSAs) depending on their needs.
SSAs can choose between 3–6 learning areas to make up their elective workshop
Elective workshops also include a core workshop review

• A Positive Me: social responsibility; making positive choices; personal brand; social networking; role modeling; presenting oneself professionally; self-promotion
• Communication: communication styles; effective communication; listening; communicating within relationships; dealing with difficult people*
• Me; You; Everyone: creating and maintaining effective relationships; respect; leadership; networking; interactions with coach/parents/peers/teammates*
• Managing My Body: nutrition; injury management & prevention
• Mental Skills for My Performance: types of mental skills & how they affect performance; including mental skills with physical training; some simple strategies and techniques
• Supporting My Athlete: for coaches/parents; how to support your athlete/s; overtraining; sorting out the myths from the facts; getting the right information

*must be taken in conjunction, cannot be done separately 

Where would you like to go next?

• Academy of Sport
• Athlete development
• Australian Olympic Committee website
• Australian Paralympic Committee
• Coach development
• Future Success
• Western Australian Olympic Council website
• Regional Talent Development survey
• High Performance Planning Guide