Rules of engagement

The Tyranny of Safeguarding in Sport

The Tyranny of Safeguarding in Sport

A provocative title, so allow me to specify at the outset what exactly I am highlighting and the limits of the argument. Firstly and most importantly, let me make it clear that I am excluding from the discussion the necessary and vitally important domain of child-protection and the protection of vulnerable adults under law. What I am specifically referring to is the concept creep that has seen the safeguarding approach extended to sportsmen and women at senior level, who are otherwise (in the eyes of the law) deemed responsible adults capable of providing informed consent, making decisions and advocating on their own behalf. I am also excluding clear cases of misconduct that unamibiguously violate professional ethics and the boundaries of the athlete-coach relationship - for instance, sexually inappropriate behaviour or physical abuse. What I am also highlighting is the mission creep of those charged with investigating such claims and the present danger of over-reach. Why I feel these trends need to be challenged is that the safeguarding system if left unchecked threatens to penalise coaches simply for carrying out their proper duties.

Where Do We Draw the Line in Elite Sport?

Where Do We Draw the Line in Elite Sport?

Recent scandals, including multiple allegations and criminal cases of serious abuse, have rocked sport around the world. Arguably the most egregious example is the case of USA gymnastics, which should serve as a cautionary tale for everybody involved in sport at all levels. Against this backdrop, there has been something of an avalanche of allegations of bullying and improper conduct that are presently playing out in the public sphere. In turn, this has prompted calls for national sporting bodies to be less obsessively driven by winning medals. The perils of the ‘winning at all costs’ mentality have been cited as the reason behind the toxic environments and climate of fear that has been alleged in multiple sports, notably in the investigations that are presently ongoing within the UK. But of course winning on the world stage does come at a cost, both financial and personal. So where should we draw the line?

Rehabilitation and Return to Performance Following Injury

Rehabilitation and Return to Performance Following Injury

In elite and professional sports there is obvious incentive to ensure athletes make a prompt and successful return to action following injury. There is a clear impetus to push the envelope in an attempt to accelerate the recovery process and minimise the time spent on the sidelines. The impressive recovery times reported with common injuries in professional sports are testimony to the success of the progressive and innovative approaches presently employed. In a ‘high performance’ setting athletes benefit from having a staff of professionals at their disposal on a daily basis to support the endeavour. Given such dedicated support it is perhaps unsurprising that athletes at the top level also show a far higher likelihood of making a successful return to their preinjury level following severe injuries such as ACL rupture, compared to what is reported with performers at lower levels of competition. The stakes involved might differ below the elite level but there are nevertheless lessons to be learned from their approach to performance rehabilitation and return to competition. In this latest offering we explore the advances in how we deal with sports injuries and consider what lessons we might adopt to improve outcomes for performers at all levels.

Achieving an ‘Integrated Support Team’

Achieving an ‘Integrated Support Team’

Multi-disciplinary support teams have become ubiquitous in Olympic sports and institutes of sport, and professional sports teams in Europe and elsewhere have since used their impressive budgets to assemble ever-growing support casts who increasingly outnumber the performers on the field. More recently the major professional sports in North America have followed this trend, with more and more teams in the league transitioning to a high performance model for their staffing and provision of athlete support. Whilst it is relatively straightforward to replicate an organisational structure, the central challenge that everybody continues to grapple with is how to make this work in practice. Coordinating a disparate group of individuals to provide seamless support to performers is no small task. Integration is what everybody still seems to be searching for; true collaboration is the holy grail that we all aspire to, but that is several steps further down the path. With this latest offering we explore these questions and consider lessons from other realms such as the special operations forces that might help us to achieve these elusive outcomes.