London games 2012 canoeing review

Zuppy

This is taken from the ISC review on London 2012. The full text is available from their website and I haven't bothered to cut and paste much or give my interpretation yet as I am still digesting it. Posted more as an FYI and to see what the comments are.

Zuppy


Canoeing

The Games

Irish athletes came 10th and 14th in the slalom kayak and 9th in the sprint (men’s C1 200m). However, despite what might be argued to be significant placings at London, it is anticipated that funding will continue to be a problem.
Athlete performances at the 2012 Games (in alphabetic order and by event)

Athlete Event Performance

Hannah Craig Slalom kayak (single) 10th
Eoin Rheinisch Slalom kayak (single) 14th (semi finals)
Andrzej Jezierski Sprint C1 200m 9th

Note: All positions from BBC final Olympic tables, some positions taken from overall standings

The slalom athletes stayed in accommodation at Lee Valley that they were allowed to choose and which was funded by the OCI. The sprint event did not take place until the latter part of the Games. Consequently, the athlete arrived three days before his event and stayed at Eton Dorney, a satellite to the Olympic Village. Both approaches seemed to work to the satisfaction of the athletes involved.

One of the other main tactics to establish the right environment for performance was to take all pressures and distractions away from the athletes, other than for training and performing. For example, arranging tickets for friends, renting apartments near to the venue to reduce travel time, providing sand to remove sweat before competing. The I.C.U. placed a considerable emphasis on attention to detail.

There was some confusion around the way that rotational accreditations worked. They allow support staff access to village and venue during the athlete’s competition and can then be transferred once to allow another sport to benefit from the accreditation. Although one athlete felt that this limited the amount of support he/she could access following completion of their Olympic competition, it is important to note that it was beyond the remit of the ICU and the OCI as the rules applied to all personal coaches.

Management

The slalom kayak and sprint canoeing are in many respects entirely different disciplines; it thus requires different skillsets and expertise. For example, analysis for the slalom kayak is not so much about metrics as it is about walking and viewing the course, video analysis etc., including live feedback during the event to look at how certain obstacles, gates etc are performed and the problems they pose – sprint canoeing is much more a ‘straight line’ sport.

Canoeing has undergone significant personnel changes over recent years as the previous Performance Programme Manager was replaced, after 25 years in post. The CEO has fulfilled his own plus the PD role in recent years but it is felt that a separate PD would enable the CEO to focus on his own role. This reflects our interpretation of the OCI perspective as a sport that is emerging from a state of flux and has reasonable prospects under the leadership of the current CEO.
In the past High Performance had been based around personalised plans which appear to have worked well when there are good, proactive athletes coming through. However for the long term development of the sport there needs to be more of a whole sport plan – athletes were not convinced it is there as yet.
Prior performance and personal relationships were felt by some athletes to have previously played too significant a part in the selection process. However, it was seen as a positive that things were now far more black and white with people having ‘to do their talking on the water’. Examples were given where it had been made difficult to ‘hold the line’ of a shift to results based decisions but doing so will prove beneficial to all concerned as the sport moved forwards.

After stagnating for a number of years there is a feeling that the sport has a lot to sort out ‘in house’ but is finally moving in the right direction. The performance pathway has improved from previous years but work is still needed to ensure that it is clear and fully understood.

Senior athletes feel there is a good set up within the sport with the scope for them to use their own coaches. This differs from the team ethos of many high performance coaching plans and whichever approach is finally adopted there is a need for coaches to gain more exposure to, and experience of, international events. Furthermore, considerable care needs to be taken to ensure that athletes, coaches and the national team all work to the same goals.

This change to a coaching team rather than individual coaches should also prove more cost effective. The move to squads reflects the model used by GB, French, German and other nations. However, it is recognised that this would have been too disruptive to start prior to the 2012 Games.

Canoeing is in a transitional phase in its shift from an athlete to a process driven squad system. As part of this shift, coaching courses are in place for Level 2 Club coaches to bring juniors up to an appropriate level.

One athlete commented that there was a better service now than ever before; contrasting views were, however, also expressed. Athletes have bought into the idea of not peaking for every event and the need to work towards a career plan with major event peaks for real high performance achievement. Coaches, however, are more likely to wish to see their athletes ‘place’ or reach the final at every event as this reflects on their own inputs and achievements. This creates understandable stress with the reputation of each party measured along different time-paths. Ironically the sport is not that vulnerable to coaches leaving as it does not actually have that many.

While one athlete said the PD is good to work with, has an understanding of high performance and the sport is moving in the right direction, another suggested he does not have the relevant experience, makes poor judgements and bad decisions. The issue appears to be founded more in a personality conflict than to be an issue of performance.


Similar difficulties also appear to have extended into the work between individual coaches and athletes and affected the team’s ability to make effective representations at appeal. In essence it does not always appear that people are all pulling in the same direction.

Other concerns centred on funding and facilities. It was suggested that serious cuts in funding, compounded by delays in payment, were creating a situation whereby (at least for a period of time each year) athletes were having to fund themselves. Furthermore, a lack of facilities is considered to be holding the sport back in Ireland; consequently some athletes must travel over 200 days per annum to get to and train at suitable facilities.

In a more positive vein:

CI has taken a 16 year old to the Senior European Championships to give him experience at this level and prepare him for what should be a long career. The sport also recognises the importance of his maintaining his education to safeguard his future. Olympic athletes are used to paddle / coach with the Under 23’s and juniors as this helps to enthuse younger rowers, promote credibility etc.
By at least one measure, youth development is working as at the Junior Slalom World Championships, Irish canoeists achieved 4th, 8th and 11th positions, with the added bonus that by working as a squad they have become more closely knit and a stronger team under one coaching structure.

The technology used includes, for example, ‘dartfish’ (an animated imaging system) which allows you to overlay one performance on another – as used, for example, in Top Gear. It is then possible to see where you are winning/losing by section, entry to gate etc. the intention being to achieve improvements by coaching out weaknesses. Motivational speakers are to be brought in from other sports to bring credibility and understanding of what it takes to win.

In overall terms the key features of/requirements for success in high performance were seen as management (removing all extraneous distractions and pressures), preparation (for example, the right accommodation, walking the course etc.), sports sciences (access to medical, sports psychologists, strength and conditioning etc.), technology (effective use of video feeds etc.) and relationships (with coaches, other organisations etc.).

On balance, the performance levels achieved would suggest a case could be made for improved levels of funding based upon its demonstration of a capacity to drive a specific, well-implemented plan.

Governance

In terms of overall governance within the sport each of the seven disciplines has its own committee with specific knowledge and technical expertise. Most importantly, however, while some of the Board understand HP they are happy to give the CEO/ PD space to run the programme as they see fit.

A number of practical and historical issues were referred to during consultation. Historically, the process involved in the investigation and restructuring of the sport was felt to have impacted negatively on athlete preparation. During this time it was suggested that the NGB was able to make any decision it wished to without consulting or considering athletes.

Bureaucracy, it was claimed, remains an issue for athletes recovering expenses. They are encouraged to meet their own costs during preparation with the promise that they will be reimbursed. However, the process is too long, onerous and distracting; one athlete stated that s/he had an outstanding expenses bill of €25,000+ during the run up to the Games; contrary to this, we were informed, the system requires athletes to submit receipts with payment taking no more than a week so long as any queries are answered satisfactorily.

Communications

A direct link between communication, culture, behaviour and performance with clear targets is regarded as the correct approach for sustainable improvements. Although not too many specific comments were made in this regard during the consultation exercise some comments were voiced about a lack of feedback
Since returning from the Games, the I.C.U. has, however, written to congratulate all athletes and has also invited them to consult and have input on the ‘Road to Rio’.


Canoeing recommendations

It is recommended that:
1. The ISC in association with the Irish Canoe Union:
i. Examine the option to establish a PD post or the alternate inclusion of CI within a series of ‘bubble’ sports to be covered by a cross-sport PD / facilitator.
ii. Support a shift to coaching of squads rather than individuals.
2. The Irish Canoe Union should:
i. Develop a training programme for coaches focusing on the development of career peaks for athletes, thereby aligning all coaches in the same direction.
ii. Invest directly in, and examine the potential to jointly develop and test IT products for, high tech video, live playback, analytical tools etc with Universities, IT companies etc.
iii. Where appropriate, adopt the generic recommendations outlined earlier.

Zuppy

http://www.irishsportscouncil.ie/Media/Latest_News/2013/ISC_2012_Olympic_Debrief.pdf

is the link to the full report