How?
THINK
How will you
measure whether
your child has been
successful in their
race performance
today?
- Outcome
- Process
An outcome goal isn’t
under the swimmers’
control
It’s the big picture.
Examples:
-Winning the gold medal
-Beating a particular swimmer
-Qualifying for Counties, Regionals,
Nationals
-Swimming a specific time or PB
- This swimmer focuses only on the imagined
result
- Think about the potential outcomes:
- What might go wrong
- What people will think of them
- How they’ll feel if they don’t swim to expectations
Prepare to fail?
- Process goals are under swimmers’
control
- Small steps taken to help achieve
outcome goals
- Technical, tactical skills practiced in each
training session and ultimately
reproduced in competition
Process Goals Examples
Technical:
-Streamlining
-Number of Kicks/ distance off walls
-Backstroke stroke count from flags
-Stroke count per length
-Breath Control
Race Strategy
-Controlled opening
-Which part of the race needs to increase effort on
(front, middle back end of event)
-Tactics
- Focus on what they are doing in the moment
- Lose themselves in the steps instead of being
overwhelmed at what is at the top
- Zero in on the things that are:
-
in front of them
things they are doing
things they have control over
-
Time (PB)
Position - Medals
Podium
Beating opponents
COSC COACHES EVALUATE RACES
BASED ON PROCESS GOALS
Looking at swimmers’ ability to transfer
skills from training into racing
Outcome is already rewarded
DO YOU REWARD OUTCOME?
- Intrinsic love of the sport
- Add external (extrinsic) reward to the
love of the sport (intrinsic)
- Intrinsic motivation can be destroyed by
extrinsic motivation
Questions to ask after a race or training…
•Did you work hard?
•Did you enjoy that?
•Did you achieve what you set out to achieve?
•Was the coach happy with your skills?
Reward these positives – do not reward PBs or
medals
TEAM WORK
SOCIAL/ COMMUNICATION SKILLS
FRIENDS
ENJOYMENT
HEALTH
ORGANISATIONAL SKILLS
LIFE BALANCE
Essential ingredients for success in sport:
- Confidence
- Resilience
- Self reliance
- Independence
Confidence comes from knowing: i.e.
knowing you can do it.
-
Packing/unpacking own swimming bag
Carrying own swim gear/ bag
Setting own alarm for morning training
Making their own breakfast
Communicate with coach about meet entries
Fill own water bottles
Etc…
Coaches are the experts in these areas:
-Technique/Skill Development (Turn, Start, Finishing,
Stroke)
-Tactical Race skills
-Race Strategies
-Pre & Post race advice
-Evaluation of performance
-Planning
- Training balance, (weekly, cycles )
- Competition Calendar
- Team selection,
- Squad allocation
Parents’ Role
- Help your children learn & develop
values and virtues
- Help develop positive character traits
- Welfare & well-being
- Provide support & love
- Not forgetting Money & Transport!
Pre- Race
Coaches & Parents get nervous
Try not to show it
Swimmers pick up on our anxiety
PRE RACE
Don’t add to swimmers anxiety by :
Going on about their age group
Who their opponents are
What their PBT’s are
What their opponents PB’s are
Whether they win or lose
Whether they get PBT’s or not
There are always things to learn about
performance
Post Race
Recovery -Swim Down (if available)
Let the Coach give feedback first
- How fast a child swims has no bearing
on how they are treated or spoken to
- When it comes to loving and supporting
your child – winning and losing make
no difference
- Don’t let your child think that you are
disappointed in their performance
- What changes?
- Taken away the younger age
groups/additional older ages/youth
swimmers
- Promotion of long term development
- Put in a competition qualifying window
- Competition structure aimed at
developing different ages and levels
within the club
- Training cycles are targeted to specific
competitions
- Chasing qualifying times is detrimental
to performance
- Listening to other parents talk about technique
- Talking swimming all the time to your child (car/
home)
- Expecting PBTs every time your child swims
- Putting pressure on the coaches to push your
child ahead to the next level of development
before they’re ready
- Giving race instructions or feedback to your child
- Trying to talk to the coach on deck during
sessions
RE-THINK
What did you list as the ways
you measure success earlier?
Did you measure your child
successful based on outcome
goals?