This book celebrates two important aspects of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. (1) For those involved in any aspect of Olympism, and particularly coaches and athletes, London 2012 was about realising dreams, achieving success and participating in competitive sport at the highest level. This book sets out some of these dreams and the part coaches play in this. (2) The book also looks at the notion of ‘coaching-for-performance’ and does this from an international and multi-sport perspective. From interviews with Olympic coaches, the experiences of those working in the field of high performance and from applied sport researchers, the book uses the metaphor of the ‘coach-as-alchemist’ in order to capture the dynamics of coach-athlete relationships and performance. Sports such as diving, swimming, gymnastics, skiing are included as well as individual and team sports. The book is set within the context of elite sport, high performance and coaching. Its contents illuminate two important kinds of reflective practice: (a) Reflection-ON-action (b) Reflection-FOR-action. The style of presentation includes narratives, reflective conversations, ethnographic work, interview analysis and video-clips available on-line. This book was published as a special issue of Reflective Practice.

This book celebrates two important aspects of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. (1) For those involved in any aspect of Olympism, and particularly coaches and athletes, London 2012 was about realising dreams, achieving success and participating in competitive sport at the highest level. This book sets out some of these dreams and the part coaches play in this. (2) The book also looks at the notion of ‘coaching-for-performance’ and does this from an international and multi-sport perspective. From interviews with Olympic coaches, the experiences of those working in the field of high performance and from applied sport researchers, the book uses the metaphor of the ‘coach-as-alchemist’ in order to capture the dynamics of coach-athlete relationships and performance. Sports such as diving, swimming, gymnastics, skiing are included as well as individual and team sports. The book is set within the context of elite sport, high performance and coaching. Its contents illuminate two important kinds of reflective practice: (a) Reflection-ON-action (b) Reflection-FOR-action. The style of presentation includes narratives, reflective conversations, ethnographic work, interview analysis and video-clips available on-line. This book was published as a special issue of Reflective Practice.

Academic research on the Paralympics and disability sport is growing. University courses, governing bodies, and sporting organisations are also witnessing a rise of interest in disabled sport. This book is therefore timely and of importance. Written by leading scholars, it addresses a variety of topics in relation to the Paralympics and disability sport. These include: the sociology of Paralympic sport; sport coaching at recreational and elite level; sport history and exercise rehabilitation; exercise participation; and future directions for disability sport research. Throughout the book, disability sport is both celebrated and critically examined. Critical questions are raised, and practical suggestions offered, about being a Paralympian, coaching athletes with a disability, and exercise as a form of rehabilitation. Empirical evidence is drawn from different people and various sports. These range from autoethnographic stories from a former Paralympian, to interviews with disability sport administrators, to observations of and interviews with coaches of athletes in the sports of adapted water skiing, para-swimming, and wheelchair basketball, rugby and tennis. The book will be of interest to sociologists of sport, sport coaches, sport and exercise psychologists, disability scholars, qualitative researchers, and disability sporting organisations. This book was published as a special issue of Qualitative Research in Sport, Exercise and Health.

As London sought to use the Olympics to achieve an ambitious programme of urban renewal in the relatively socially deprived East London it attracted global attention and sparked debate. This book provides an in-depth study of the transformation of East London as a result of the 2012 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games. Government and event organisers use legacies of urban renewal to justify hosting the world’s leading sports mega-event, this book examines and evaluates those legacies. The London Olympics and Urban Development: the mega-event city is composed of new research, conducted by academics and policy makers. It combines case study analysis with conceptual insight into the role of a sports mega-events in transforming the city. It critically assesses the narrative of legacy as a framework for legitimizing urban changes and examines the use of this framework as a means of evaluating the outcomes achieved. This book is about that process of renewal, with a focus on the period following the 2012 Games and the diverse social, political and cultural implications of London’s use of the narrative of legacy.

Olympic athletes don't get to the top simply because of athletic genes (nature) or determined parents (nurture). Like all performers in pressure situations, their exceptional drive comes from a third factor: an inner desire to be the best they can be. The Winning Factor reveals how to ignite the passion and the resolve required to succeed. As someone who has trained both Olympic athletes and Fortune 500 executives, Peter Jensen knows how to translate the best practices of world-class coaches into the everyday business realm. Readers will discover: ò Five key practices of medal-winning coaches: managing themselves, building trust, using imagery, overcoming blocks, and embracing adversity ò The secrets behind great communication and truly effective feedback ò Insights on leader ship from six Olympic coachesùwith guidelines for applying these lessons to the workplace Packed with engaging stories and enlightening examples, The Winning Factor teaches managers everywhere how to inspire standout performance from their employees.

Congratulations! You are about to separate yourself as an athlete! I absolutely LOVE helping athletes just like you in preparing both physically and mentally so that you can set yourself up to achieve great success in sport and life. I realized through my own life and in coaching athletes for over 12 years that most athletes have big dreams, goals, and ambitions and are just one step away from making those dreams, goals, and ambitions a reality. Having a dream is usually not the problem; the problem is having the RIGHT game plan and executing the essential action steps to make those dreams a reality. "If You Want Something You've Never Had, You've Got To Do Something You've Never Done ..and Do It Every Day!" Success or failure is not just some big event that happens one day. Michael Jordan did not just wake up one day as the greatest basketball player ever. Dylan Bundy did not just become the top pitching prospect in MLB right out of high school by chance. Alex Rodriguez was not projected as the greatest baseball player ever to now being labeled as a player who chokes in the postseason. Tiger Woods did not go from being projected as the greatest golfer ever to become a fallen star by accident. The Secret to real aTHLETE SuCcess 6 Success and failure are about the things or lack of things that YOU DECIDE to do or not do day-in and day-out. SUCCESS in athle tics or in Life is Simple... It takes ONLY two things! 1. You MUST Create the Winning Mindset so that you can unlock your full potential as an athlete and become dominate in your sport and in life! 2. You MUST have the RIGHT game plan and you MUST execute the RIGHT daily action steps of that game plan every single day. This book will provide you with the RIGHT 27-day game plan so that you can achieve greatness in your athletic career and in life. I will coach you on how to unlock the power of your mind so that you can WIN each and every day and get what you desire as an athlete. You can now play at the next level, start dominating, and become a successful athlete. You can now stop wishing and hoping but rather have a certainty that you WILL succeed. How do I know? Because I did exactly that! Utilizing the same 27-day game plan that you have right here, I was able to pull myself out of a deep personal tragedy and create lasting success in my life. With this same game plan, I was able to land my first job as the Director of Strength & Conditioning at the NCAA Division I level before I even graduated from college. With this same game plan, I was able to open my dream sports performance facility, Dynamic Sports Development, and over the last 12 years have been fortunate and blessed to train some of the top athletes in the entire world. By implementing this same game plan at the age of 29, I was named Tulsa's Young Entrepreneur of the Year, was selected as one of Oklahoma's 30 under 30 Entrepreneurs, and was also selected as one of Oklahoma's 40 under 40 Entrepreneurs. Inspiration 7 With this same game plan, I have been able to assist athletes of all levels achieve greatness in their respective sports and in life. Is this luck? Heck no! I tell you this because if I - an Italian kid from the Jersey shore with no success background -can do it, then you can too! If this same game plan has helped thousands of athletes achieve greatness in their sports and in their lives, then it will work for you as well! This book is short, simple, and everything you need to know to be successful as an athlete and in life. The Secret to REAL Athlete Success will not work for you unless you work it. This one book has the potential to absolutely Take Your Game to the Next Level and set you up to WIN. Are You Ready? If so, then I have just one more question for you... If you want something you've never had, you've got to....

Over the last twenty years or so there has been a sharp increase in interest from national sports federations and governments in the development of effective elite sport systems, particularly focused on achieving success in the summer and winter Olympic Games. Many countries now have publicly funded elite sports strategies which provide specialist facilities and support staff and often provide direct financial support for athletes. These developments have stimulated academic interest in describing the elite sport systems, analysing the processes by which policy is established and evaluating the impact of these policies on elite athlete success. Far less attention has been placed on the operation of the elite sports systems and on how the system interfaces with the athlete. The aim of this book is to refocus attention on the management and operation of systems designed to deliver elite success. The book draws on the theoretical literature in implementation, organisation theory, leadership and complexity. This provides an initial context for analysis and a stimulus for theory development around key questions such as: How do coaches manage their relationship with athletes? How does talent identification operate in practice? Do coaches fulfil the role of gatekeeper between the athlete and other elements of the sports system e.g. sports science support? How do managers, support staff and athletes interpret the expectations placed on them? The first part of the book focuses on aspects of the effectiveness of elite sports systems and the second explores aspects of systems operation focused on the interface between the athlete and the sport development system, and cross-cutting themes within the book include the management of talent identification and coach development. This is illuminating reading for any student, researcher or practitioner working in sport development, sport management or sports coaching.