The Coachs Role in Maximizing Athlete Potential

Table of Contents

Introduction
Main body
Conclusion
References

Introduction

A coach is an essential person for every athlete, playing a key role in the development of an athlete. The relationship between a trainer and a sportsman involves not only training but also building a friendly, understanding, sincere, and honest communication model. The coach can both fully reveal and develop the potential of an athlete and level it. The effectiveness and quality of the relationship between handler and player are the crucial factors influencing the sportsmans performance. The task of the coach is not only to the correct distribution of the load and training but also to understand each athlete and ones characteristics. Therefore, it is necessary to analyze the methods coaches can use to create a team culture and factors influencing the effectiveness of the relationship between trainer and athlete on the example of the 5 Cs.

Main body

A crucial aspect of coaching practice is that usually, the coach is a former athlete, thus, for some reason, one stopped achieving ones goals. The cause may be formulated by trauma, personal life, family aspects, fatigue, or the need to express oneself through coaching. In any case, future coaches face a difficult choice, namely one should decide to achieve goals by applying the athletes characteristics. Moreover, an important factor is that usually, all attention is paid to the athlete, and the coach should accept that one will fall into the shadows. Thereby, the aforementioned factors can negatively affect coaching practice, as well as worsen the coach/athlete relationship.

Besides, the coach plays a key role in creating a team culture and leadership in the athlete. The words and actions of the trainer have a direct impact on the performance, mood, motivation, and desire of the player. A specific example may be the situation described in the book High Ten, namely, when the coachs phrase about being proud of an athlete caused significant emotions (Rooney, 2021). Thus, one caused a surge of motivation, pride, joy, and an incentive for the athlete to train hard and achieve new results. It is articulated by the fact that the coach is an authority for the athlete and therefore, hearing such words is vital.

Building an effective athlete/coach relationship is critical to unlocking potential. It can be considered from the perspective of the 5 Cs, which include competence, confidence, connection, caring, and creativity (Mugford & Cremades, 2018). The fulfillment of these points formulates the ideal model of the relationship between the coach and the athlete. Competence formulates sufficient skills and coaching experience necessary to demonstrate adequate practices. Confidence articulates the ability to be an authority for a player since the trainer should be psychologically strong. Connection and care are essential in establishing a friendly and sincere relationship between coach and athlete/team. Finally, creativity implies a varied approach to the choice of methods and practices on the part of the trainer.

Conclusion

To conclude, the activity of a coach implies not only the selection of suitable practices and methods but also the establishment of a model of relations with the athlete. The trainer should be an authority for the sportsman but at the same time demonstrate understanding, kindness, and care. In some cases, the coachs words can be key to unlocking potential, such as an expression of pride. It is worth noting that former athletes often become coaches. In addition, the trainer faces the difficult decision that all attention will be transferred to the athlete, and one will achieve goals with the help of the sportsman. Sometimes, it can negatively affect relationships, especially if the decision to end a sports career was made in connection with an injury.