Elite sports policy and coaching at the coalface Research Completed
Title
Elite sports policy and coaching at the coalface
Lead Author
Katie Liston , Robin Gregg , Jim Lowther
Organisation(s)
University of Ulster
Publication Year
2012
Publisher
International Journal of Sport Policy. Routledge
Contacts
Robin Gregg, Ulster Sports Academy
Abstract
Elite sports policy and coaching at the coalface
Katie Listona*, Robin Greggb and Jim Lowtherc
aSport and Exercise Sciences Research Institute, Ulster Sports Academy, University of Ulster,
Jordanstown, Northern Ireland; bSport Northern Ireland, Belfast, Northern Ireland; cUlster Sports
Academy, Ulster Sports Academy, University of Ulster, Jordanstown, Northern Ireland
This article marks an important watershed in the investigation of elite sport development
in the ‘Atlantic Isles’. It outlines some features of the emergence and development of
international elite sports policy and its idiosyncratic diffusion to Northern Ireland (NI)
specifically. Drawing on the SPLISS framework and the need for empirical work within
Pillar 7 (coaching provision and coaching development), there is also an examination of
elite coaches’ perceptions of the policy factors influencing international sporting success.
This goes some way towards redressing the dearth of knowledge about the complex
social and political realities in which elite coaches ply their trade. A ‘mixed methods’
approach was employed, which incorporated secondary analysis of government and
sports policy documents, the historical charting of the elite sports policy field in NI, the
completion of an internationally validated survey and also semi-structured interviews
with eight high-performance coaches (seven males and one female) who ranged in age
from 38 to 59 years. The study demonstrates some of the unique challenges for the dual
positioning of NI within Irish and British sports governance arenas. There, the resultant
fractured elite sports policy landscape has constrained coaches’ attempts to deliver upon
performance targets. There was also less than convincing evidence of a ‘high-performance’
oriented sport culture. The article concludes by bridging the gap between sports
policy and social policy in NI and, in so doing, offers some possibilities for developing a
more integrated research agenda.
Keywords:
elite sports development; talent
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/19406940.2012.735689
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October 16, 2013