tag:theconversation.com,2011:/global/topics/sports-coach-29831/articlessports coach – The Conversation2019-10-31T14:44:32Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1262262019-10-31T14:44:32Z2019-10-31T14:44:32ZRugby World Cup: can England cope with the ‘favourites’ tag?<p>After six weeks of exciting clashes between the best rugby players on the planet, the <a href="https://www.rugbyworldcup.com/?lang=en">2019 World Cup in Japan</a> has come down to one final game on Saturday November 2 between England and South Africa. England go into the match as clear favourites against South Africa. What does this mean for both teams? </p>
<p>Before England’s semi-final defeat of New Zealand on October 26, the team’s head coach Eddie Jones focused on being the underdog, given the All Blacks’ recent dominance of world rugby. But he can’t do that this week.</p>
<p>Jones had a consistent message in the lead up to the semi-final:</p>
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<p>No one thinks we can win. There’s no pressure on us, we’ve just got to have a great week, enjoy it, relax.</p>
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<p>In one <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_1NHF96FHc">press conference</a>, Jones even challenged journalists in the room to “Put up your hand if you think we can win”. No one did, and Jones took this response as confirmation that there were no expectations on England to be successful. The team had no pressure, they had nothing to lose.</p>
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<h2>Underdog spirit</h2>
<p>It’s not surprising Jones took advantage of the “underdog” tag in the lead-up to the semi-final. New Zealand had won the two previous world cups in 2011 and 2015 and have been heralded by many as the <a href="https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/rugby/are-the-all-blacks-the-greatest-international-team-in-the-history-of-sport/news-story/f61ad2d65623a9586929bbfba386b157">greatest sporting team</a> ever. In the mind games before the match, Jones had to find whatever edge he could get.</p>
<p>Being an underdog can be <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0146167207307488">a motivating factor</a>. The thought of exceeding expectations against a superior opponent and proving others wrong will often spurs players on. Meanwhile, the favourites are seen to be under more pressure because of expectations to win.</p>
<p>While saying England were under no pressure, mischievously, Jones took the chance to turn it round on New Zealand, at one point saying: “They’re looking for their third world cup, that does bring pressure.”</p>
<p>Highlighting the underdog status supported the findings of <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1747954117727684">our study</a> which examined leader communication in the <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1526333/">1997 Lions tour</a> of the then world champions South Africa. We found that “embracing and reinforcing the underdog status” had been a key aspect in inspiring players.</p>
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<p>For example, in the famous “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kM0dx0h2xsw">Everest speech</a>” by assistant Lions’ coach Jim Telfer from the 1997 tour, he said people: “Don’t rate us, don’t respect us”. It was before the first match of what was to be a hard series. South Africa were well known for their powerful forward pack, and were strong favourites to beat the Lions. </p>
<p>But people are inspired by these ideas of proving people wrong, and achieving in such situations. The Lions, against the odds, went on to win the first test match and ultimately the series, two matches to one. </p>
<h2>Change of strategy</h2>
<p>With England now favourites against South Africa’s Springboks, the coach has changed his underlying message. In <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9raiUfnkvo">his press conferences</a> since the semi-final, Jones has listened to the questions about being favourites and has performed a little side-step, choosing to talk about “being excited to be here, and the challenge that lies ahead”. He also focused on how the side were <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SgoM8Oc4gQo&feature=youtu.be">ready for the challenge</a> ahead, saying: “There’s a nice relaxed feeling because they know they’ve done the work … we’ve had such good preparation, we can go out and play without fear.”</p>
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<p>The previous week, while claiming there was no pressure against the All BLacks, Jones’ message had been subtly different: “We’re going to have a great week, relax, train hard, enjoy this great opportunity.”</p>
<p>Ahead of the final, while the headline message is different, the underlying philosophy is the same: to take the pressure off the team, and to allow them be relaxed and play to their full potential. Maybe times are changing in the way coaches speak to their players ahead of big matches. If so, Jones’ calm approach certainly marks this change.</p>
<h2>How to inspire players</h2>
<p>The Hollywood-style depictions of inspirational speeches – possibly exemplified by Al Pacino in his <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_b7bgtu2O4E">“Inches” speech</a> in the 1999 American Football film Any Given Sunday (“We can climb out of hell one inch at a time”) or the passionate speeches we saw delivered on the 1997 Lions tour – may be a thing of the past.</p>
<p>It seems as if this deeply emotional appeal to players has been replaced by clear, calm approaches from the coach. When our team researched <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1469029216300115">inspiration in sport</a> in 2016 what we found supports the benefits of such an approach. We found that to inspire players, coaches should show them the way forward and provide clear messages on how they can be successful. They must demonstrate a calm belief in their players to achieve such success.</p>
<p>Jones is likely to be focusing on these key messages, such as working with the England team on strategies to overcome South Africa and reinforcing the players’ belief they have the skills and abilities to put those strategies into practice and emerge victorious.</p>
<p>A more recent research project that I was involved in, which also <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/sms.13513">examined inspirational coach leadership</a> and was published in June 2019, suggested that the players’ trust in their coach is at the heart of the process. Whatever Jones’ message, it appears the England team have full trust in their coach and the systems put in place to be successful. This may be key to why Jones is proving to have such an inspirational impact on the English side.</p>
<p>All England fans will be hoping that England approach the final with the right attitude and without feeling the pressure that might restrict the way they play and the intensity of their performance. They will be hoping that their team come out on Saturday, play with skill, flair and without fear – and justify their favourites tag.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/126226/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Matthew Smith does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>How sports coaches can inspire their team to defy the odds and win.Matthew Smith, Senior Lecturer in Sport and Exercise Psychology, University of WinchesterLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1061182018-11-02T10:52:31Z2018-11-02T10:52:31ZDJ Durkin’s firing won’t solve college football’s deepest problems<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/243554/original/file-20181101-83641-1mrzub3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Former University of Maryland football coach DJ Durkin pictured on the field in an undated photo.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Maryland-Fires-Coach-After-Reinstatement/5967056d8a2b4b13b9628ecad6339ff9/2/0">mpi34/MediaPunch /IPX</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Maryland college football coach DJ Durkin was ultimately fired after the death of a player during practice – and findings that his players were <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2018/10/25/report-maryland-football-culture-cites-problems-stops-short-toxic-label/?utm_term=.099bf6d97fcb">bullied and abused</a> by coaches and staff over the course his three-year tenure. However, his <a href="https://www.chronicle.com/article/As-Another-Head-Rolls-at-U-of/244975?cid=wsinglestory_hp_1">11th hour ouster</a> on Oct. 31 is evidence of how much the culture of college football still needs to change. </p>
<p>This culture encourages players to ignore signs of physical or mental exhaustion and is present across the college football landscape, not just at Maryland. </p>
<p>Durkin may be gone, but only because the public – including current players, students and alumni at the University of Maryland – wanted him gone. It wasn’t because the people in charge of Maryland’s university system suddenly realized how wrong it was for Durkin to run a program in which <a href="https://247sports.com/college/maryland/Article/Jordan-McNairs-Parents-Attorneys-Calls-DJ-Durkin-Maryland-Football-Coach-Decision-Heartbreaking-124024706/">complaining of pain was seen as unmanly</a>. </p>
<p>The board of regents at the University System of Maryland actually wanted to <a href="http://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/25128085/maryland-board-recommends-keeping-dj-durkin-damon-evans">keep</a> Durkin. The board even <a href="https://www.chronicle.com/article/As-Another-Head-Rolls-at-U-of/244975?cid=wsinglestory_hp_1">reportedly pressured</a> University of Maryland President Wallace Loh to keep Durkin or risk losing his own job.</p>
<p>Loh initially responded by announcing his own resignation. But after hearing the <a href="http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/education/higher-ed/bs-md-umd-protest-20181031-story.html">public outcry</a> after the board moved to reinstate Durkin – Loh <a href="https://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/terps/tracking-the-terps/bs-md-durkin-gone-20181031-story.html">fired Durkin instead</a>.</p>
<p>In a <a href="https://president.umd.edu/communications/statements/our-football-program">statement</a>, Loh noted how “the overwhelming majority of stakeholders expressed serious concerns about Coach DJ Durkin returning to the campus.”</p>
<p>“This is a difficult decision, but it is the right one for our entire University,” Loh stated. He also vowed to devote the remaining months of his presidency to “advancing the needed reforms in our Athletic Department that prioritize the safety and well-being of our student-athletes.”</p>
<p>A student-led protest was <a href="http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/education/higher-ed/bs-md-umd-protest-20181031-story.html">reportedly</a> being planned before the firing took place.</p>
<p>In our view as <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?view_op=list_works&hl=en&user=btoK1KsAAAAJ">researchers</a> who focus on the <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=YQkG8wIAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">intersection of race and college sports</a>, none of these events will rid big-time college sports of its deepest problems. Those problems include the placing of winning games and generating revenue ahead of the best interests of the student-athletes.</p>
<p>In recent years, legal <a href="http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1012690217718170">activists</a> like former athletes Ed O'Bannon, Cain Colter and <a href="https://www.law360.com/cases/53a1a2681101ea59be000001/articles">Martin Jenkins</a> have sought to change this <a href="http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1012690217718170">state of affairs</a>.</p>
<h2>Risking their lives</h2>
<p>It would be naive not to view big-time college sports through the lens of race. A recent report that shows black males make up only 2.4 percent of the general student body at Power 5 Bowl Championship Series schools, but <a href="https://race.usc.edu/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/2018_Sports_Report.pdf">55 percent and 56 percent</a>, respectively, of football and men’s basketball teams.</p>
<p>Further, black male college athletes graduate at the <a href="https://race.usc.edu/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/2018_Sports_Report.pdf">lowest rates</a> among all college athletes and in the NCAA and Division I Power 5 member institutions, which <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/kristidosh/2018/01/01/how-have-college-football-playoff-payouts-compared-to-bcs-a-conference-by-conference-breakdown/#10b7ebc82938">generate</a> <a href="https://www.chronicle.com/article/NCAA-Signs-108-Billion-Deal/65219">billions of dollars</a> primarily off the broadcasting and sponsorship rights for football and men’s basketball.</p>
<p>These trends underscore how black males are primarily valued at these institutions as athletic gladiators, but not as students deserving of quality educational opportunities and support for their <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10665684.2016.1194097">overall well-being</a>.</p>
<h2>Failed to render medical aid</h2>
<p>Had Durkin been allowed to continue to coach despite the toxic culture uncovered at Maryland following the May 2018 death of 19-year-old offensive lineman Jordan McNair, many would have considered it a gross <a href="https://www.si.com/college-football/2018/10/30/jordan-mcnair-parents-dj-durkin-return-maryland">miscarriage of justice</a>.</p>
<p>McNair died of heatstroke during practice earlier this year. A cold-water immersion would have <a href="https://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/terps/bs-sp-jordan-mcnair-heatstroke-treatment-20180717-story.html">likely saved his life</a> but team staff and coaches <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/terrapins-insider/wp/2018/08/14/university-of-maryland-apologizes-to-jordan-mcnair-family-for-mistakes-that-our-training-staff-made/?utm_term=.e66e152d1efb">failed</a> to promptly seek medical assistance.</p>
<p>While player deaths during practice may be rare, indifference toward black athletes, especially their <a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/college/ct-spt-ncaa-brain-injuries-lawsuits-20180703-story.html">physical</a> and <a href="https://theundefeated.com/features/black-student-athlete-summit-raises-awareness-about-mental-health/">mental health</a>, is widespread in college sports.</p>
<p>The prevalence of college athletes’ unmet mental and physical health needs is <a href="https://www.si.com/edge/2017/10/31/former-college-athletes-chronic-injuries-health-issues">well-documented</a>. The NCAA’s Sport Science Institute, through its own research, has acknowledged that college athletes’ <a href="http://www.ncaa.org/sport-science-institute/mind-body-and-sport-depression-and-anxiety-prevalence-student-athletes">health issues</a> remain a major problem.</p>
<h2>Disparities in discipline?</h2>
<p>Yet, as the story of Durkin demonstrates, both the NCAA – and the University of Maryland as one of its member institutions – have failed to create and enforce policies that hold coaches responsible for creating conditions that are injurious to college athletes’ overall well-being.</p>
<p>The system seems more bent on policing and punishing black student-athletes than it does on holding accountable those who are responsible for their care.</p>
<p>For instance, several players on the University of North Carolina football team were <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/acc/2018/08/06/north-carolina-unc-suspensions-team-issued-shoes/917234002/">suspended for four games</a> for selling their team-issued shoes in violation of NCAA rules. Another black player, a University of Central Florida kicker, was <a href="https://www.orlandosentinel.com/sports/ucf-knights/knights-notepad/os-sp-ucf-kicker-ineligible-20170731-story.html">ruled ineligible</a> after receiving money through a YouTube channel he created. </p>
<p>These student-athletes who engaged in victimless acts and tried to make a few dollars in a system that <a href="http://assets.usw.org/ncpa/pdfs/6-Billion-Heist-Study_Full.pdf">makes billions of dollars</a> from their labor are made to sit out games or get kicked off the team entirely. Yet, as demonstrated by the initial decision to keep Durkin, neglecting the health needs of a player in medical distress is excusable.</p>
<h2>Balancing academics and sports</h2>
<p>Being a college athlete is inherently tough work. One of us is <a href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdSzb2A2auz4zMVysCKSjTlx8HA_pZdaoNPZ0nh5FsuI8JsFw/viewform">conducting research</a> into black Division I football and men’s basketball players. Thus far, the research shows 64 percent of respondents find it difficult or very difficult to balance their student and athlete identities while they’re in season, compared to only 34 percent when out of season. </p>
<p>These numbers illustrate the imbalance in what college athletes are expected to do versus how much time they have for school. If it’s already difficult for players to manage the demands of college and the obligations to their team, how much more difficult was it for Maryland football players, who faced a <a href="https://www.theringer.com/2018/10/30/18045516/maryland-terrapins-dj-durkin-toxic-culture-college-football">football culture</a> that normalized physical and mental abuse under Durkin. It was noted in a report that before McNair passed away, one of the staff <a href="https://247sports.com/college/maryland/Article/Jordan-McNairs-Parents-Attorneys-Calls-DJ-Durkin-Maryland-Football-Coach-Decision-Heartbreaking-124024706/">called him a vulgar name</a> for a female private part. </p>
<p>College football players are <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/18/sports/ncaafootball/nlrb-says-northwestern-football-players-cannot-unionize.html">not allowed to form a union</a>. In our view, this curtails their ability to seek recourse if their rights are being violated.</p>
<p>Before Durkin was fired, <a href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2790984-maryland-strength-coach-rick-court-resigns-in-wake-of-jordan-mcnairs-death">blame</a> initially fell on strength and conditioning coach Rick Court, who resigned after McNair’s death. Court was, in some ways, cast as a bad apple and the tragedy allowed to be seen as an isolated case of inattentiveness to one player’s medical needs by a few replaceable athletic staff.</p>
<h2>The wrong kind of firing</h2>
<p>It’s important to note that in being “fired,” Durkin is still reportedly being <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2018/10/31/maryland-parts-ways-with-head-football-coach-dj-durkin/?utm_term=.253bea052d07">bought out</a> for the remainder of his five-year contract, valued at more than $5 million.</p>
<p>If the University of Maryland had taken <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/2016/10/26/college-football-coach-salary-database-buyouts-kirk-ferentz-iowa-charlie-strong-texas/92417648/">the more difficult route</a> of firing Durkin for just cause and taking away his payout, that would have sent a powerful message that players’ lives matter.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/106118/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Even though Maryland college football coach DJ Durkin has been fired, his 11th hour ouster will not rid college football of some of its deepest problems, argue two scholars on race and college sports.Joseph Cooper, Assistant Professor of Educational Leadership, University of ConnecticutJasmine Harris, Assistant Professor of Sociology, Ursinus CollegeLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/932022018-03-12T10:42:06Z2018-03-12T10:42:06ZWhat is March Madness – and the nonprofit that manages the mayhem?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/209842/original/file-20180312-30972-1kawzis.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The former president, seen here with the highest paid basketball coach in the NCAA, was known for getting into March Madness. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/Alex Brandon</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The annual college basketball spectacle known as March Madness has arrived. </p>
<p><a href="http://www.ncaa.com/news/basketball-men/article/2017-03-27/2017-ncaa-tournament-scores-increases-television-viewership">Millions of people</a> will tune in to the three-week tournament to see who’s the best team in the U.S. And millions more <a href="https://www.printyourbrackets.com/howtomarchmadness.html">will wager a few bucks</a> to take part in an office pool in which they try to pick the winner. Even presidents <a href="http://ftw.usatoday.com/2017/03/former-president-barack-obama-picks-his-march-madness-brackets">have been known</a> to take part in the madness. </p>
<p>But behind the hype is a lot of cash. Just as journalists are trained to <a href="http://www.niemanlab.org/2017/02/follow-the-money-is-both-good-advice-for-journalists-and-an-investigative-site-aiming-for-20000-paying-members/">follow the money</a>, so are economists like me. So let’s take a closer look.</p>
<h2>From final draw to Final Four</h2>
<p>March Madness is a <a href="https://www.ncaa.com/news/basketball-men/bracketiq/2018-03-05/what-march-madness-ncaa-tournament-explained">single-elimination tournament</a> in which athletes from 68 Division I teams compete in seven rounds. The tournament begins with a bracket draw, held on March 11, and then <a href="https://i.turner.ncaa.com/sites/default/files/images/2018/03/02/mm-2018-printable-bracket.png">dwindles</a> down to the Sweet Sixteen, the Elite Eight, the Final Four and the championship game in San Antonio on April 2. </p>
<p>The nonprofit National Collegiate Athletic Association, or NCAA, formed the tournament in 1939, when just eight teams competed. </p>
<p>While the phrase “March Madness” <a href="http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/college/ct-flashback-march-madness-spt-0315-20150314-story.html">was first coined</a> in Illinois in 1939 to describe its state high school basketball tournament, it wasn’t used for the collegiate gathering until 1982. </p>
<h2>Follow the money</h2>
<p>Perhaps more interesting than the tournament itself is the organization that runs it. </p>
<p>The NCAA generates a huge amount of money, <a href="http://www.ncaa.org/about/where-does-money-go">taking in almost US$1 billion</a> a year. The vast majority comes from March Madness and the <a href="http://www.ncaa.com/news/basketball-men/article/2016-04-12/turner-cbs-and-ncaa-reach-long-term-multimedia-rights">television and marketing revenue</a> it generates. </p>
<p>Current <a href="http://www.ncaa.org/about/who-we-are/office-president/ncaa-president-mark-emmert">NCAA President</a> Mark Emmert earns <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/college/2017/05/18/ncaa-mark-emmert-oliver-luck-salaries/101829110/">over $1.9 million</a> a year, more than every <a href="https://www.chronicle.com/interactives/executive-compensation#id=table_public_2016">public college president</a> and all but <a href="https://www.chronicle.com/interactives/executive-compensation#id=table_private_2015">11 private school leaders</a>. </p>
<p>His salary, however, is <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2016/03/the-madness-of-college-basketball-coaches-salaries/475146/">easily eclipsed by college coaches</a>. Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski earns $8.98 million a year, and <a href="http://sports.usatoday.com/ncaa/salaries/mens-basketball/coach/">at least 49 others</a> make more than Emmert. </p>
<p>By comparison, the <a href="https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2018/02/21/new-data-show-wage-gap-between-professors-and-other-advanced-degree-holders">university</a> <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/on-leadership/wp/2014/04/07/heres-what-the-average-full-time-professor-made-last-year">professors</a> who educate these student-athletes – the purpose of college after all – earn a fraction of the salaries of the coaches and Emmert. A full professor at a public doctoral institution earned an average of <a href="https://www.aaup.org/sites/default/files/SurveyReportTablesMA16.pdf">$126,000</a> in 2016.</p>
<h2>So what else does the NCAA do?</h2>
<p>The NCAA <a href="https://www.guidestar.org/profile/44-0567264">states</a> that it helps more than 480,000 student-athletes “succeed on the playing field, in the classroom and throughout life.” As such, it touches the lives of more students than even the biggest university in the country, the University of Phoenix, which <a href="https://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=74">educates 195,000</a>. </p>
<p>As part of its mission, the association <a href="http://www.ncaa.org/about/resources/research/graduation-rates">claims 87 percent</a> of its student-athletes earn degrees within six years, up from 74 percent in 2002 and far better than the <a href="https://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=40">60 percent</a> rate among comparable full-time undergraduate students.</p>
<p>For basketball players competing in March Madness, however, the percentage is quite a bit lower, with just 76 percent of the male athletes graduating in six years. The rate is <a href="http://nebula.wsimg.com/63037e2d226dc6cdac787a498f2ddaf6?AccessKeyId=DAC3A56D8FB782449D2A&disposition=0&alloworigin=1">higher for women basketball players</a>, at 90 percent. </p>
<p>One of the reasons for this is that student-athletes must be fairly bright to begin with, with a <a href="http://www.ncaa.org/student-athletes/future/eligibility-center">high school GPA of at least 2.3</a>. And in college, they get an <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/04/sports/ncaafootball/04ncaa.html">incredible amount of support, guidance and supervision</a> that ensures they keep up with their courses and take exams while competing.</p>
<h2>The real madness</h2>
<p>While the NCAA declares it “financially assists student-athletes in need of educational materials, clothing and emergency travel expenses,” its <a href="https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/440567264">2014 tax form</a> shows it provided only $21,049 total in “grants and other assistance to domestic individuals” and nothing in <a href="https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/440567264">2015</a>.</p>
<p>While the NCAA <a href="https://theconversation.com/march-madness-means-money-its-time-to-talk-about-whos-getting-paid-56194">says virtually all the money it collects</a> it sends back to schools and athletics conferences, including about $80 million it says goes directly to students through its <a href="http://www.ncaa.org/sites/default/files/2018DIFin_NCAA_DivisionI_RevenueDistributionPlan_20180214.pdf">Student Assistance Fund</a>, it still keeps quite a bit in most years as profit, <a href="https://www.guidestar.org/profile/44-0567264">usually around $35 million</a>. As a result, the NCAA has slightly more than <a href="https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/440567264">$300 million</a> in the bank. </p>
<p>For comparison, this is larger than <a href="https://www.nacubo.org/-/media/Nacubo/Documents/EndowmentFiles/2016-NCSE-Public-Tables_Number-of-NCSE-Participants.ashx?la=en&hash=7DB80993F580B778AE0B62BC67C80041566C8D26">half of all university endowments</a> in the U.S.</p>
<p>Honestly, I’m not sure why an organization devoted to setting rules and hosting championship tournaments needs so much income.</p>
<p>The NCAA used to claim <a href="https://web3.ncaa.org/lsdbi/search/bylawView?id=1">its primary purpose</a> was to “maintain intercollegiate athletics as an integral part of the educational program.” Today, in my view, the NCAA seems more focused on selling <a href="http://www.shopncaasports.com/">official gear in its championship store</a>, offering <a href="http://www.ncaa.com/march-madness">live apps</a> for continuous connectivity and prompting <a href="http://www.ncaa.com/news/basketball-men/bracket-beat/march-madness-printable-ncaa-tournament-bracket">bracket mania</a> for <a href="https://www.americangaming.org/newsroom/press-releasess/march-madness-betting-top-10-billion">gamblers</a>.</p>
<p>While I no longer fill in a bracket, I will be plopping down on my couch like millions of other Americans to follow the tournament – and in my case root on the student-athletes playing for the Ohio State Buckeyes. </p>
<p>All the same, I believe March Madness has nothing to do with education and a great deal to do with marketing. And that’s fine, it’s just like the NFL playoffs or the MLB’s World Series. Except perversely, the organization that runs March Madness gets tax-exempt status.</p>
<p><em>This article was updated to clarify ways in which the NCAA gives money to student-athletes.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/93202/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jay L. Zagorsky does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Every March, millions of Americans watch the NCAA’s annual college basketball tournament, while millions more fill in brackets to win their office pool.Jay L. Zagorsky, Economist and Research Scientist, The Ohio State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/910282018-02-26T10:25:31Z2018-02-26T10:25:31ZWhy so many children’s sports coaches are unqualified and underpaid<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/207317/original/file-20180221-132657-5kn1d3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Coaching kids isn't always a straightforward job.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Millions of men, women and children take part in sport and physical activity every day. And across Europe, around 9m sport coaches support them to fulfil their <a href="http://www.coachlearn.eu/_assets/files/coachlearn-qualification-frameworks-in-europe-web.pdf">personal and collective goals</a>. This compares to around <a href="http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/documents/2995521/7672738/3-04102016-BP-EN.pdf/9f0d2d04-211a-487d-87c3-0a5f7d6b22ce">6m teachers</a>. </p>
<p>It is estimated that around 80% of these <a href="https://issuu.com/scukres/docs/081217_workforce_document_367">coaches work with children</a>. <a href="http://www.icoachkids.eu/_assets/files/ick-coaching-children-workforce-report-web-version.pdf">But research</a> shows the majority of these coaches are not qualified, or hold very low level generic coaching qualifications. The research also shows that very few children’s coaches hold a qualification that specifically prepares them to coach this age group. </p>
<p>So while children’s sport coaches might be one of the <a href="http://www.ukcoaching.org/resource/coaching-workforce-2009-16-0">biggest workforces in Europe</a>, as a group, they are one of the least qualified, least recognised and least remunerated. </p>
<p>Part of the problem, is that <a href="http://www.icoachkids.eu/_assets/files/ick-coaching-children-workforce-report-web-version.pdf">children’s coaches</a> are not as highly regarded or valued compared to those coaching high performance athletes. In part, this is due to the low social status and public value attributed to coaches who are not coaching at the higher, more visible, echelons of elite sport. There is also limited investment specifically aimed at children’s coaching. This is despite the fact that coaches play a crucial role in developing children as people, as well as athletes. </p>
<h2>Underpaid and unappreciated</h2>
<p>The good news is that things are starting to change. The development of a suitably educated coaching workforce and the need to review and develop the ways that sport coaches are trained <a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=LEGISSUM:ef0025">has been recognised</a> as a priority area at the <a href="https://publications.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/db29f162-d754-49bc-b07c-786ded813f71/language-en">highest levels of European policy</a>.</p>
<p>But the bad news is that customised learning and development opportunities focused on children and youth sport for coaches are virtually nonexistent in the EU. Typically, children’s coaches tend to be beginners and are often inexperienced coaches. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/207093/original/file-20180220-116355-12v5x1b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/207093/original/file-20180220-116355-12v5x1b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/207093/original/file-20180220-116355-12v5x1b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/207093/original/file-20180220-116355-12v5x1b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/207093/original/file-20180220-116355-12v5x1b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/207093/original/file-20180220-116355-12v5x1b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/207093/original/file-20180220-116355-12v5x1b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Many sports coaches often do their role voluntarily.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/download/success?src=JdNQHxwo9AubWDQ8L2smGg-1-23">Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>So while in <a href="http://www.icoachkids.eu/_assets/files/ick-coaching-children-workforce-report-web-version.pdf">Hungary and Lithuania</a> all coaches are required to have a state-recognised diploma or certificate or license to coach, typically, there are no enforced minimum employment requirements specific to children’s coaches across Europe. </p>
<p>Nor are there any specific qualifications or mandatory training needed to coach children at a national level. So while some governing bodies or federations have developed their own licensing and regulation systems, as yet, there are no mandatory national requirements for children’s coaches.</p>
<h2>Coaches of the future</h2>
<p>This is why we are developing <a href="http://www.icoachkids.eu/about-us.html">iCoachKids</a>, a project that supports the development of specialist children and youth coaches across the EU. The aim is to make sure all children have a positive experience led by suitably trained coaches – which helps to lead to lifelong participation, as well as increased performance. </p>
<p>As part of the project, iCoachKids has produced the <a href="http://www.icoachkids.eu/european-coaching-children-curriculum.html">European Coaching Children Curriculum</a> to provide a reference point for all those involved in children’s coaches’ education and development. The project will also develop <a href="http://www.icoachkids.eu/free-moocs-for-coaches-of-children.html">three online courses</a> for coaches working with children anywhere in the world. This is at no cost to the coach, their clubs or national governing bodies. The first course will be available in the summer of 2018.</p>
<p>This is important because what is clear, is that the profile of children’s coaches must be raised. Coaches must be better supported, educated and developed. This is essential to maximise the potential of youth sport in society and guarantee positive sport experiences for children wherever they happen to live.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/91028/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>AJ Rankin-Wright is a team member of the Leeds Beckett-led iCoachKids project, co-funded by the Erasmus+ programme of the European Union. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sergio Lara-Bercial is Principal Investigator of the Leeds Beckett-led iCoachKids project, co-funded by the Erasmus+ programme of the European Union. He is also Manager for Strategy and Development for the International Council for Coaching Excellence, a not-for-profit organisation leading and supporting the development of coaching globally.</span></em></p>Children’s sports coaches are underpaid, under qualified and often unappreciated.AJ Rankin-Wright, Research Officer in Sport Coaching, Leeds Beckett UniversitySergio Lara-Bercial, Senior Research Fellow, Leeds Beckett UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/815222017-07-27T09:49:15Z2017-07-27T09:49:15ZFive ways to deal with burnout using lessons from elite sport<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/179613/original/file-20170725-24759-o311d3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Job burnout: how to spot it and take action.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>It is estimated that burnout costs the global economy <a href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/10/workplace-burnout-can-you-do-anything-about-it">£255 billion a year</a>. Burnout tends to happen as a result of long-term stress in a situation or job that, for whatever reason, you’re highly committed to. So the more you care about your work, the more likely you are to experience burnout.</p>
<p>Burnout has three major characteristics: emotional and physical exhaustion, a cynical attitude towards people and relationships at work, and a feeling that you are no longer accomplishing anything worthwhile. </p>
<p>While these feelings might be all too familiar to some readers, there are things you can do to deal more effectively with stress, pressure, and burnout. And in fact, a lot of valuable lessons can be learnt from the world of elite sport – where athletes are expected to perform to the best of their ability under immense pressure. But it’s not just elite athletes that can teach us a thing or two about how to manage stressful situations. </p>
<p>Those behind the scenes in the sporting world – the coaches – often have to <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/257840865_Stress_and_Coping_A_Study_of_World_Class_Coaches">deal with their own stress</a>, while managing the pressures facing the athletes they work with. This can make their jobs doubly stressful as they are effectively managing and thinking about two jobs at a time.</p>
<p><a href="http://journals.humankinetics.com/doi/abs/10.1123/tsp.2016-0010">My research</a> focuses on the experiences of elite sports coaches who burned out to the point of wanting to quit their jobs. Here’s what I discovered:</p>
<h2>1. Know thyself</h2>
<p>To stop burnout from happening in the first place, it’s really important to understand how you normally respond to stress. Write down the things that cause negative feelings in your life, along with how you normally react to those things, and what you do to cope. If you start to notice a change in the way you’re reacting to or dealing with stress – at work or at home – this might be an early warning sign of burnout. </p>
<p>The coaches in <a href="http://journals.humankinetics.com/doi/abs/10.1123/tsp.2016-0010">our study</a> explained that it was only after they had burned out completely that they could look back and see that it wasn’t the amount of stress that had changed, it was how they were dealing with it that led to burnout.</p>
<h2>2. Don’t be a hero</h2>
<p>Our research shows that developing a “superman complex” – also known as trying to do it all – can be a major contributing factor to burnout. This can often see people trying to take on multiple roles, under great pressure, and then not asking for help. </p>
<p>But our research also revealed that daring to let someone in and talk about how you feel can often be the first step to recovery. Asking for help and showing a little vulnerability can be difficult, but it is actually a sign of immense strength, rather than weakness.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/179615/original/file-20170725-26586-58kfma.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/179615/original/file-20170725-26586-58kfma.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/179615/original/file-20170725-26586-58kfma.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/179615/original/file-20170725-26586-58kfma.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/179615/original/file-20170725-26586-58kfma.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/179615/original/file-20170725-26586-58kfma.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/179615/original/file-20170725-26586-58kfma.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Don’t feel like you have to do it all.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>3. Watch your expectations</h2>
<p>Think carefully about what you expect from yourself in all areas of your life, and make sure those expectations are realistic. The coaches in our study described having unrealistic expectations of what they should be able to handle – clearly linked to the need to be superman all the time. </p>
<p>Previous research also shows that a discrepancy between your “actual self” and your “ideal self” can have a <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/19545638_Self-Discrepancy_A_Theory_Relating_Self_and_Affect">negative impact on self-esteem</a>. </p>
<h2>4. Take a little control</h2>
<p>There are things in life, in work and at home, that we can control. There are also things we can’t control. If you were to write lists for both, I’d bet that most of the stress and worry in your life comes from the list of things you can’t control. So why not take a little of that energy and put it into taking back a little control? </p>
<p>Pick something small (drink more water, eat more fruit, walk more) and make a concerted effort to take control of that aspect of your life. Even after reaching the point of quitting, our coaches explained that taking a little control over how they left the job was a huge step in their recovery from burnout. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/179616/original/file-20170725-24856-qimxkf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/179616/original/file-20170725-24856-qimxkf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/179616/original/file-20170725-24856-qimxkf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/179616/original/file-20170725-24856-qimxkf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/179616/original/file-20170725-24856-qimxkf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/179616/original/file-20170725-24856-qimxkf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/179616/original/file-20170725-24856-qimxkf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Work out your priorities and stick to them.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>5. Take breaks and be present</h2>
<p>Booking a two week holiday in the Bahamas every time we feel stressed would certainly be nice, but it’s not realistic. But we can take “breaks” simply by taking the decision to be fully immersed in our lives away from work. Admittedly, it’s easier said than done, but take time at home to be fully present. </p>
<p>Eat dinner with your family and make a conscious decision to be fully engaged in that activity – even if you have to check your emails afterwards. According to our research, building and maintaining a supportive network, and connecting with family and friends is vital to avoid burnout – so those small breaks can make a huge difference.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/81522/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Peter Olusoga does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The telltale signs of burnout … and what to do about them.Peter Olusoga, Senior Lecturer in Sport & Exercise Psychology, Sheffield Hallam UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/716252017-02-08T02:48:58Z2017-02-08T02:48:58ZPlaying is not coaching: why so many sporting greats struggle as coaches<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/154892/original/image-20170131-13235-1wr3i9s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Tennis player Andy Murray employs former great Ivan Lendl as his coach.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Reuters/Thomas Peter</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>In top-level sport, success is the overwhelming criterion for judging coaches. In professional sport, team owners, directors and fans clearly value the product (winning) greater than the process (performance). </p>
<p>Former elite players who become coaches are able immediately to garner respect and offer the seductive promise of having <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/11/sports/tennis/top-tennis-players-join-forces-with-former-champions.html?_r=0">“been there and done it”</a>, according to former tennis player Boris Becker. They understand the sport, the club, the fans – and, most importantly, how to win. </p>
<p>A quick look at tennis emphasises the calibre of former players dominating the coaching ranks, like Ivan Lendl (coach of Andy Murray), Michael Chang (Kei Nishikori), Goran Ivanisevic (Tomas Berdych) and Carlos Moya (Rafael Nadal). And much of the talk about Nick Kyrgios revolves around whether former Australian great <a href="http://www.espn.com.au/tennis/story/_/id/18507289/who-brave-enough-coach-nick-kyrgios-australian-open-exit">Lleyton Hewitt</a> should take on the challenge of coaching him. </p>
<p>The practice of hiring former greats as coaches is not unique to tennis. The majority of football codes subscribe heavily to it. In its upcoming Twenty20 international cricket series against Sri Lanka, Australia has assembled a veritable <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-01-01/ricky-ponting-named-assistant-twenty20-coach-australia/8156744">former player supergroup</a>: Justin Langer, Ricky Ponting and Jason Gillespie are taking the coaching reins. </p>
<p>Playing is not coaching, much as studying is not teaching. Yet there remains a somewhat arbitrary assumption, legitimated within sporting cultures, that a professional playing background is the sole criterion for becoming a successful coach. This clearly is not the case.</p>
<p>No evidence exists that a person can only coach at the highest levels if they have performed there. More specifically, there is no established threshold to be crossed to be eligible for future coaching success. </p>
<h2>What role does playing experience have?</h2>
<p>However, playing experiences do give players an unusually good opportunity to learn about coaching from their own coaches. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.sportscoachuk.org/sites/default/files/Coach-Learning-and-Dev-Review.pdf">Previous analysis</a> has shown playing experience does contribute coaching skills related to sport-specific knowledge, such as technical and tactical aspects, and a degree of “organisational socialisation”. This is where playing serves as part of a broader apprenticeship: an inculcation into shared understandings regarding aspects of a job. </p>
<p>However, these experiences can only give a partial view of coaching, and may not reveal the true extent of the coach’s role. What’s missing is what happens away from face-to-face training: the countless hours engaged in planning and preparation, the complex orchestration of commitments across all aspects of the business, and the personally challenging reflections that quality coaches engage in throughout their careers.</p>
<p>This may give some insight into why former players moving directly into coaching positions often face difficulties.</p>
<p>Clearly, then, previous playing experience has a role to play. And top-level playing experience – while not essential – can serve a socialising role within a coach’s development. But it does not justify the privileging of ex-players with fast-tracked progression through compulsory coach accreditation structures and enhanced career prospects within coaching.</p>
<p>In AFL, <a href="http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/sport/afl/teams/port-adelaide/michael-voss-return-to-afl-coaching-ranks-marks-a-telling-decision-to-not-be-beaten-after-brisbane-lions-mauling/news-story/f969f6ea8bb7ad1ba2d35915dd37f1de">Michael Voss</a> is a clear example of where moving into coaching so soon after playing can be fraught. Retiring at the end of 2006, Voss secured one of only 16 head coaching positions in the league at the end of 2008, when he became coach of the Brisbane Lions, the team he captained to three premierships. </p>
<p>Between retiring and beginning coaching he had done some TV commentary and coached a junior representative side. By mid-2013 Voss was sacked. That experience and his engagements since probably mean he is a much better coach now. </p>
<p><a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13573322.2012.670113">Research</a> shows there are advantages for coaches who have not played at an elite level. For example, those without elite playing backgrounds are generally able to start coaching and developing their craft much earlier. They tend to have more extensive and varied experiences in all aspects of coaching work and the pathways of their sport.</p>
<p>Similarly, coaches with more modest playing backgrounds generally have more opportunities to gain other qualifications and experiences that are valuable and relevant for coaching.</p>
<p>Jose Mourinho, the current manager of Manchester United (one of the world’s biggest sporting clubs), played less than 100 footbal games in the Portuguese second division. But he studied sport science, and worked as a physical education teacher, player scout, youth team coach and assistant manager before becoming a head coach. In his managerial career he has won league titles in Portugal, England, Italy and Spain.</p>
<p>Essentially, coaches who did not have a career as a player were able to develop coaching skills in ways former champions simply did not have the time to engage with – because they were busy maximising their athletic performances.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/155086/original/image-20170201-3259-12gaa73.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/155086/original/image-20170201-3259-12gaa73.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=434&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/155086/original/image-20170201-3259-12gaa73.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=434&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/155086/original/image-20170201-3259-12gaa73.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=434&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/155086/original/image-20170201-3259-12gaa73.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=545&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/155086/original/image-20170201-3259-12gaa73.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=545&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/155086/original/image-20170201-3259-12gaa73.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=545&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Jose Mourinho didn’t have a stellar career as a player, but is one of the world’s leading football managers.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">EPA/Hannah McKay</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Problems and potential solutions</h2>
<p>So, what’s wrong with former elite players immediately moving into elite coaching? </p>
<p>First, it is inequitable. With little basis upon which to privilege hiring recently retired champions over those with higher levels of qualifications and experience, the situation is discriminatory and unjust.</p>
<p>Just as problematically, the practice limits the pool of potential coaches from which to select. At the elite level, individuals and teams are all looking for an edge. But such practices serve to reinforce the status quo, limit innovation, and stifle creativity. </p>
<p>Best practice for employing elite coaches should include a thorough appraisal of what the job of coaching entails, and a robust and rational assessment of the fit between applicant backgrounds and the job requirements. </p>
<p>In order to continue to expand the potential coaching talent pool, sports should also promote some of the coaching success stories and <a href="http://www.foxsports.com.au/afl/will-brendon-boltons-success-could-see-more-coaches-come-from-non-afl-backgrounds/news-story/a63f00c9ae706560dc6c006a2b38f6b0">celebrate examples</a> of those from different backgrounds. </p>
<p>Finally, coaches and those employing them should recognise that learning does not stop simply because they’re in the top job. Ongoing support for learning and development is crucial in the fast-paced and volatile world of elite sport.</p>
<p>Just because you were good at sport does not mean that you can coach without furthering your qualifications and experiences, in the same way that just because you were good at school does not mean you can teach without gaining a teaching degree and engaging in professional development. We must ensure we do not simply continue to privilege those who are already privileged. </p>
<p>Coaching <a href="http://researchprofiles.herts.ac.uk/portal/en/publications/the-usual-suspects%282a4023a3-0ec8-424d-865d-401caeea8d36%29.html">should be a meritocracy</a>, not an aristocracy.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/71625/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Just because you were good at sport does not mean you can coach without furthering your qualifications and experiences.Steven Rynne, Senior Lecturer, Sports Coaching; Affiliate, UQ Poche Centre for Indigenous Health, The University of QueenslandChris Cushion, Professor of Coaching and Pedagogy; Director of Sport Integration, Loughborough UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/629582016-08-21T20:04:45Z2016-08-21T20:04:45ZHere’s to coaches, unsung heroes and role models for social change<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/134753/original/image-20160819-12281-1vmux82.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Sporting coaches are often viewed as positive role models and mentors for their players.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Reuters/Sergio Moraes</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Sport provides <a href="http://www.athleticinsight.com/Vol11Iss3/Feature.htm#http://www.athleticinsight.com/Vol11Iss3/Feature.htm">opportunities</a> for social participation, identity construction, and engagement in the workforce. Indeed, the <a href="https://stillmed.olympic.org/media/Document%20Library/OlympicOrg/IOC/What-We-Do/Promote-Olympism/Sport-And-Active-Society/Sport-And-Active-Society-Programmes-Guide.pdf#https://stillmed.olympic.org/media/Document%2520Library/OlympicOrg/IOC/What-We-">International Olympic Committee</a> (IOC) identifies sport and physical activity as a meaningful and cost-effective tool for achieving improved health, quality education, and advanced human capital. </p>
<p>Olympic athletes play an important role within this sport-for-development agenda, promoting the Olympic ideals of fairness and social equality and encouraging wider sports participation across the community.</p>
<p>But despite these lofty goals, huge <a href="http://www.ausport.gov.au/supporting/funding/grants_and_scholarships/other_sources#http://www.ausport.gov.au/supporting/funding/grants_and_scholarships/other_sources">investment</a> in elite sport has done little to overcome the <a href="https://www.routledge.com/Indigenous-People-Race-Relations-and-Australian-Sport/Hallinan-Judd/p/book/9780415582698">social inequality</a> that impacts the life expectancy, health, and social outcomes of people in many <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2016/aug/02/olympic-games-2016-rio-human-rights?utm_source=esp&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=GU+Today+AUS+v1+-+AUS+morning+mail+callout&utm_term=184398&subid=19280776&CMP=ema_632#https://www.theguardian.com/sport">communities</a> across the globe. </p>
<p>And <a href="https://epress.lib.uts.edu.au/journals/index.php/mcs/article/view/4232/4611">researchers</a> have begun to raise doubts about sport’s role in overcoming disadvantage and marginalisation. While sport <em>may</em> have a place in the development agenda, it’s not clear that athletes – as role models – are able to drive change. </p>
<h2>Athletes as role models</h2>
<p>One of the arguments against using sport to solve problems in development contexts is that it promotes only one type of role model: the successful athlete. Athlete <a href="http://uhra.herts.ac.uk/bitstream/handle/2299/3320/901984.pdf?sequence=1#http://uhra.herts.ac.uk/bitstream/handle/2299/3320/901984.pdf?sequence=1">role models</a> can influence the lives of young people with their talent, messages about <a href="http://www.nasca.org.au/index.php/what-we-do/armtour/#http://www.nasca.org.au/index.php/what-we-do/armtour/">healthy and active living</a> and continuing <a href="http://www.cathyfreemanfoundation.org.au.#www.cathyfreemanfoundation.org.au.%20">education</a>. </p>
<p>The IOC has, for instance, <a href="http://www.teamusa.org/Lillehammer-2016-Winter-Youth-Olympic-Games/Team-USA/Athlete-Role-Models">handpicked 12 Olympic athletes</a> to serve as role models for competitors at the 2016 Winter Youth Olympic Games. These athletes will be focusing “on areas such as skills development, … environment and social responsibility, and Olympism.” </p>
<p>But young athletes are often thrust into being role models at a time where they may not be ready to take on this responsibility. And <a href="http://easm.net/download/2012/40f039976ea2cb2e271e241b0697237a.pdf#http://easm.net/download/2012/40f039976ea2cb2e271e241b0697237a.pdf">research</a> shows that “only 10 percent of elite athletes have been inspired by other elite athletes … to start with their current sport” and even fewer might inspire young people to live as “model” citizens.</p>
<h2>Coaches as role models</h2>
<p>Coaches are often viewed as positive role models and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2016/mar/04/jason-mifsud-and-fitzroy-stars-a-man-on-a-mission-at-a-club-that-means-so-much#https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2016/mar/04/jason-mifsud-and-fitzroy-stars-a-man-on-a-mission-at-a-club-that-means-so-m">mentors</a> for their players, working behind the scenes to bring teams to victory, supporting them in their defeat and sharing in the joy of participating. </p>
<p>Good coaching goes beyond physical skills training; it involves the development of life skills, confidence, resilience and social participation. </p>
<p>This is not to say that coaches are immune to poor behaviour. They could be overly competitive, for instance, prone to criticising athletes, and may overlook unsportsmanlike conduct such as <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/athletics/2016/06/20/mo-farah-distanced-from-jama-aden-after-controversial-coach-is-a/#http://www.telegraph.co.uk/athletics/2016/06/20/mo-farah-distanced-from-jama-aden-after-controversial-coach-is-a/">doping</a>.</p>
<p>But <a href="http://westernsydney.edu.au/sports/home/news/featured_stories/aboriginal_and_torres_strait_islander_sports_coaching_forum#http://westernsydney.edu.au/sports/home/news/featured_stories/aboriginal_and_torres_strait_islander_sports_coaching_forum">our research</a> with Aboriginal coaches in Australia shows that coaching has the potential to play a significant role in shaping an individual and community’s identity, culture, and knowledge. </p>
<p>Many of the coaches we spoke to embraced their leadership role and used it to engage in broader forms of social and community development. Off the field, they were involved in the lives of players, alongside actively promoting positive messages about healthy living, social responsibility and education. </p>
<p>It’s disappointing, then, that coaches have largely been excluded from the narrative about sport and social development.</p>
<p>Many people could rattle off names of athletes who have succeeded at Olympic and Paralympic Games. But if asked to make a similar list of coaches involved in the thees Games, they would probably struggle.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/134754/original/image-20160819-12281-1s6lzhj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/134754/original/image-20160819-12281-1s6lzhj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=403&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/134754/original/image-20160819-12281-1s6lzhj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=403&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/134754/original/image-20160819-12281-1s6lzhj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=403&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/134754/original/image-20160819-12281-1s6lzhj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=506&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/134754/original/image-20160819-12281-1s6lzhj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=506&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/134754/original/image-20160819-12281-1s6lzhj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=506&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Many would struggle to name a coach involved at the Olympics or Paralympics, despite the key role they play.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Reuters/Antonio Bronic</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Actually outstanding</h2>
<p>Although they often work behind the scenes and are less likely than athletes to become household names, Australia has a number of notable Olympic coaches whose contributions to sport and society have been recognised.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.womenaustralia.info/biogs/AWE2268b.htm">Marlene Matthews</a> won bronze in the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games in the 100m and 200m events, and later set a world record (10.3 seconds) for the 100 yard sprint. After retiring, Matthews started her own athletics club, before being appointed athletics coach with the Rothmans Sports Foundation, where she was responsible for the then newly formed Australian Track and Field Coaches Association. </p>
<p>Matthews was a pioneer. She forged a path for future generations of female sport coaches and administrators, defiantly protecting her right to be a coach “<a href="http://www.womenaustralia.info/biogs/AWE2268b.htm">and not in the kitchen</a>” in a field where “<a href="http://www.womenaustralia.info/biogs/AWE2268b.htm">being a man was virtually a pre-requisite to success</a>”. </p>
<p>Her services to athletics were rewarded when she became a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in 1979, and an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) in 1999.</p>
<p>In the 1960 Paralympics, <a href="http://www.basketball.net.au/hall_of_fame/kevin-coombs-oam/#http://www.basketball.net.au/hall_of_fame/kevin-coombs-oam/">Kevin Coombs</a> became Australia’s first Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander representative (Paralympics or Olympics) in wheelchair basketball. He represented Australia at five Paralympic Games, including two as captain. </p>
<p>Coombs went on to captain and coach the Australian wheelchair basketball team at the <a href="http://www.basketball.net.au/hall_of_fame/kevin-coombs-oam/#http://www.basketball.net.au/hall_of_fame/kevin-coombs-oam/">1998 Goodwill Games</a>. He has been an ambassador for the National Indigenous Strategy for Literacy and Numeracy and received an OA for his service to sport and the community.</p>
<p>Coaches lead as well as inspire; they can play a direct role in <a href="https://sphcm.med.unsw.edu.au/sites/default/files/sphcm/About_SPHCM/Football_United_Report.pdf#https://sphcm.med.unsw.edu.au/sites/default/files/sphcm/About_SPHCM/Football_United_Report.pdf">shaping the life choices</a> of their athletes. The promotion of Olympic and Paralympic coaches as role models for aspiring athletes and future leaders (both within and beyond sport) could be a powerful vehicle for change. </p>
<p>They show how involvement in sport can lead to so much more than athletic success.</p>
<p>Our research, and other work like it, shows how coaches can be key agents of change for delivering important messages espoused by the <a href="https://stillmed.olympic.org/media/Document%20Library/OlympicOrg/IOC/What-We-Do/Promote-Olympism/Sport-And-Active-Society/Sport-And-Active-Society-Programmes-Guide.pdf#https://stillmed.olympic.org/media/Document%2520Library/OlympicOrg/IOC/What-We-">IOC</a> about education, physical health and mental well-being.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/62958/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Olympic athletes play an important role within the sport-for-development agenda. But because they both inspire and lead, coaches may be better placed to assume that mantle.Andrew Bennie, Director of Program, Health and Physical Education, Western Sydney UniversityNicholas Apoifis, Lecturer in Politics & International Relations, UNSW SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/619752016-08-01T20:06:30Z2016-08-01T20:06:30ZSports coaches need to be educated about concussion to keep players safe on the field<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/132445/original/image-20160729-24683-d3d7im.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Research found that community coaches were unclear about the common signs and symptoms of concussion.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">from www.shutterstock.com</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Athletes who play collision sports, like rugby league, rugby union and Australian rules football, are at increased risk of concussion. </p>
<p>Although the injury has become recognised as a <a href="http://www.theconcussioncrisis.com/">public health concern</a>, alarmingly, <a href="http://sma.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/SMA-Position-Statement_Concussion-190815.pdf">Sports Medicine Australia noted</a> that:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>… there is no routine monitoring or reporting of sport-related concussion in Australia and the incidence of sport-related concussion in Australia, especially at the population level, is unknown.</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>What can we do to help keep athletes safe from concussion?</h2>
<p>Coaches can be key to promoting a supportive environment when it comes to concussion safety and prevention. This is because <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/262413773_Coaching_high_performance_athletes_Implications_for_coach_training">coaches are among the most influential individuals in an athlete’s life</a>. </p>
<p>Their role extends beyond teaching technical and tactical aspects of sport, as they play an integral role in athletes’ <a href="http://spo.sagepub.com/content/10/2-3/379.short">health, well-being and personal development</a>. </p>
<p>However, researchers have found that <a href="http://cpj.sagepub.com/content/51/3/283.full.pdf+html">coaches lack knowledge about concussions</a>. </p>
<p>For example, <a href="http://bjsm.bmj.com/content/48/2/119">an Australian study</a> found that community coaches, who play a fundamental role in young people’s initial experiences and safety in sport, were unclear about the common signs and symptoms, management and return-to-activity guidelines associated with sport-related concussions.</p>
<h2>How are coaches learning about concussions?</h2>
<p><a href="http://www.appliedsportpsych.org/site/assets/files/19013/concussion_resource_7.pdf">Our research</a> in Canada explored coaches’ knowledge about concussions, including how they have acquired information about the injury. </p>
<p>Despite working in an environment with full-time athletic therapists at most practices and all games, the high school coaches in our sample did not feel confident in their knowledge of concussions:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>If you asked me all the concussion symptoms right now – I would be guessing. I would be looking at their eyes to see if they’re dazed or dilated … I don’t know. I would look for an abnormality in the eyes. But I certainly couldn’t list the proper protocol.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The Canadian coaches told us they primarily acquired knowledge through personal experiences (as athletes and now as coaches and parents) and from reading sports media reports of prominent athletes’ experiences. One coach said:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>I think media reports have changed the way I think about concussions. I take them more seriously. How many times did we get our bell rung and get back into a game? When you hear about the retired football, hockey and rugby players who are describing what they are going through … I’m sure that current players would not want to experience that in their retirement.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>None of the coaches in our sample used, or were aware of, the free online educational materials offered through the Coaching Association of Canada (CAC). </p>
<p>The CAC developed a series of <a href="http://www.coach.ca/-p153487">online modules</a> aimed at educating coaches about concussions to help them better ensure athletes’ safety in training and competition. </p>
<p>However, coaches are not required to complete the modules to gain accreditation. The extent to which these modules have improved athletes’ safety from concussions is also not clear.</p>
<p>Similarly, the <a href="http://www.ausport.gov.au/participating/coachofficial">Australian Sports Commission</a> provides coaches with general information about injuries on its website, but there is little to no information on concussions.</p>
<p>Some independent sporting bodies, such as the <a href="http://www.aflcommunityclub.com.au/index.php?id=66">Australian Football League</a> and the <a href="http://www.nrl.com/About/ReferenceCentre/ManagementofConcussioninRugbyLeague/tabid/10798/Default.aspx">National Rugby League</a>, have more detailed information about concussion management for their coaches. However, this type of information does not appear to be a mandatory part of their coach education, nor does it appear to be widely available for Australian coaches in other sporting disciplines.</p>
<p>This indicates that important concussion messages are not reaching coaches, which suggests coach certification agencies need to do more to ensure coaches are appropriately educated about the injury, recovery and management processes.</p>
<h2>What is a concussion and what information are coaches missing?</h2>
<p>A concussion is a <a href="https://www.clearinghouseforsport.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0007/691351/Position_Statement_-_AIS_and_AMA_Concussion_in_Sport.pdf">brain injury</a> caused by a direct blow or indirect forces (whiplash, for example) transmitted to the head. </p>
<p>Concussions can involve physical, behavioural and cognitive effects such as dizziness, unsteadiness, irritability, difficulty concentrating and sleep disturbances. </p>
<p>Symptoms typically resolve within two weeks. However, a number of <a href="http://bjsm.bmj.com/content/47/5/250.short">modifying factors</a> (eg history of injury, age) can lead to a prolonged recovery. </p>
<p>Athletes who experience <a href="http://journals.humankinetics.com/AcuCustom/Sitename/Documents/DocumentItem/05_Caron_JSEP_0086.pdf">multiple or repeated concussions</a> have been found to experience more severe symptoms, including depression and anxiety. Researchers have begun linking these instances with <a href="http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs11916-015-0522-z">chronic cognitive impairment</a>.</p>
<p>Researchers have also found that <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25820456">athletes under the age of 18</a> suffer more severe concussion symptoms than adults. This is concerning given the important cognitive development that occurs throughout adolescence. </p>
<p>Aside from lacking general knowledge of concussions, there are some common misunderstandings among coaches about the injury. </p>
<p>Some coaches believe that athletes must lose consciousness to be concussed, <a href="http://bjsm.bmj.com/content/47/5/250.short">which is not true</a>, and that protective equipment such as helmets/headgear and mouthguards will prevent concussions, <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0278591910000840">which is also not the case</a>.</p>
<p>Coaches are not expected to have the same training as medical doctors, nor should they be considered to be the sole person responsible for dealing with concussion injuries. But they can play a pivotal role in injury recognition and promoting a safe and supportive environment.</p>
<h2>What can coaches do to help ensure athletes’ safety?</h2>
<p>Coaches can ask their local or provincial sport associations for concussion resources, policies and procedures before the season. </p>
<p>They can also take advantage of free educational resources like the <a href="http://bjsm.bmj.com/content/47/5/267.full.pdf">concussion recognition tool</a>. Experts developed this to help coaches recognise possible signs and symptoms of a concussion. </p>
<p>This pocket-sized tool can be printed out and carried to the field of play. It is particularly useful for those who do not have access to on-site health professionals (which is the majority of youth sport coaches).</p>
<p>Although only accredited medical and health professionals can make a diagnosis, this tool can empower coaches to help protect their athletes from the <a href="http://journals.lww.com/neurosurgery-quarterly/Abstract/2015/08000/Second_Impact_Syndrome___A_Rare,_Devastating.32.aspx">potentially catastrophic injuries</a> that can occur when athletes return to play while concussed.</p>
<p>They can also create and foster a sport environment that encourages athletes to accurately report possible concussions. </p>
<p>To help dispel some athletes’ fears or apprehensions about accurately reporting concussion symptoms, <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24560034">coaches could develop a protocol</a> that would ensure all athletes have an opportunity to re-establish their position on the team after receiving medical clearance.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/61975/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>School and community sports coaches’ lack of knowledge about concussion leaves players vulnerable on the pitch.Jeff Caron, Postdoctoral Fellow, McGill UniversityAndrew Bennie, Director of Program, Health and Physical Education, Western Sydney UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.