An Analysis of Olympic Sport Psychology Consultants'Best-Ever Consulting Experiences

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1 The Sport Psychologist, 1991, 5, I An Analysis of Olympic Sport Psychology Consultants'Best-Ever Consulting Experiences John Partington Carleton University Terry Orlick University of Ottawa This article provides direct accounts of best-ever consulting experiences as well as lessons about effective consulting given by 19 sportpsych consultants who worked with Canadian athletes in preparation for the 1988 Olympic Games. These consultants attended a workshop funded by Sport Canada, organized and conducted by the authors. Findings are based on the consultants' written answers to a preworkshop survey. Best-ever experiences were characterized in terms of the openness of athletes and coaches, how the consultation was started, time allowed to work with the athletes, and the fit of the consultant to the situation. Recommendations were also extracted from the content of audiotape recordings and written minutes of workshop discussion groups. These recommendations were directed to the following aspects of consultation: assessing commitment, defining one's role, beginning the consultation, testing, executing the consultation, team meetings, and consultant characteristics and practices. Implications for selecting and preparing effective consultants are discussed. Following the 1984 Olympic Games, we were asked by Sport Canada, the federal agency responsible for the pursuit of excellence in competitive sport, to evaluate the effectiveness of sportpsych consulting that had been provided for Canadian Olympic athletes. The results of our evaluation with national athletes and coaches have been presented in previous issues of this journal (Orlick & Partington, 1987; Partington & Orlick, 1987a, 1987b). As a logical follow-up, we wanted to disseminate this information to our working colleagues face to face and have them share their perspectives on their own effectiveness in the field. Sport Canada agreed to fund a workshop that would allow us to do this. They invited 19 sportpsych consultants who were receiving Sport Canada funding to work with Canadian Olympic athletes in preparation for the 1988 Olympic Games. These consultants included Canada's best, most active, and most experienced consultants as well as some less experienced ones who were just beginning to consult at the Olympic level. John FWington is with the DeparCment of Psychology at Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario K1S 5B6. Terry Orlick is with the School of Human Kinetics at the. University of Ottawa, 125 University, Ottawa, Ontario KIN 6N5.

2 184 Partington and Orlick Part of our agreement with Sport Canada for running this workshop was that we would develop a manual to help guide the future provision of sport psychology consulting services in Canada. The manual, Sharing Views on the Process of Effective Sportpsych Consulting, was published prior to the 1988 Games under the auspices of the Minister of State for Fitness and Amateur Sport, and was made available at no cost to all sport governing bodies, their national coaches, and sportpsych consultants (Orlick & Partington, 1988a). The manual included individual reports and recommendations from discussion groups about how to ensure effective sportpsych consulting. We were particularly interested in asking experienced consultants to share lessons learned from their best-ever consulting experiences. Our approach was based on investigations into processes of mental readying reported by Olympic medalists and world champions (Orlick& Partington, 1988b). This former work with athletes had demonstrated several things to us: First, the success of a top performer does not come as a fluke. Excellence is based on the consistent application of a reliable set of mental and technical skills and practices. When a highly committed, well-trained, talented, and experienced individual is asked to describe hislher best-ever performance, the recall is vivid and the report is detailed, reliable, and relevant to the pursuit of excellence. As expected, vivid and reliable reports about the principles of effective consulting were obtained by asking top consultants for reports about their best-ever services, just as was the case when asking top athletes about their best-ever performance. The practice of trying to improve by reference to the peak achievements of talented individuals is well rooted in previous influential work in psychology. For example, years ago Maslow undertook a prolonged study of exceptional people to understand self-actualization, that is, how some people enable themselves to be and do what they aspire to (Maslow, 1970a). Maslow believed that the capacity for peak experience, noted in exceptional people, could also be brought within the reach of ordinary people (1970b). More recently, similar beliefs about the value of top performers' experience in helping others to improve have been supported by systematic research and subsequent advice on mental factors in musical performance (Reubart, 1985) and in sport (McCaffrey & Orlick, 1990; Orlick & Partington, 1986b). It is our belief that consultants who have not yet achieved a high level of experience or excellence can learn from experienced Olympic consultants just as lesser skilled athletes can learn from those who have achieved the highest skill levels. Learning in many fields can be facilitated by clearly understanding how the best performers "do their thing" when they are doing it best. Excellence in performance is based at least in part on knowing how to do something, and requisite know-how can be shared, highlighted, or taught by those who have experienced it firsthand. I I i Participants and Procedure Workshop Description Participants included 19 sportpsych consultants, each of whom was funded by Sport Canada to work with Canadian national team athletes in preparation for the 1988 Olympic Games. They were providing service to male and female athletes in the following sports: Alpine skiing, athletics, basketball, canoeing and kayaking,

3 Best-Ever Consulting Experiences 185 cross-country skiing, cycling, curling (demosport), diving, field hockey, figure skating, gymnastics, ice hockey, luge, rhythmic gymnastics, rowing, sailing, shooting, ski jumping, speed skating, synchronized swimming, volleyball, and wrestling. Twelve of the consultants were primarily university based, and represented 10 institutions. Each prospective participant was telephoned 2 months prior to the scheduled workshop to determine interest and availability. All were enthusiastic about participating. Several weeks prior to the workshop we sent a letter and a questionnaire to all participants. The letter was to orient them to what we expected to accomplish in the workshop discussion groups. The questionnajre included the following items: In your best-ever consulting situation, what services did you provide which were ultimately well received and made a difference for the athletes? What things within that situation andlor withii your approach made it possible for you to have a positive impact? In other, less effective consulting situations, what services did you attempt to provide which were not well received andlor did not seem to make a difference for the athletes? What things within that situation andlor within your approach made it diff~cult for you to have a positive impact? Workshop Program At the workshop, participants were assigned to one of four groups, with assignments planned to ensure balanced representation of sport types as well as location of consultants and their level of consulting experience. One individual in each group was designated as recording secretary. Each group first elected its own chair and spokesperson, then worked together for 4 hours. The groups focused their discussions on how to best ensure that consultants provide the most effective service possible to meet the needs of athletes preparing for the Olympic Games. Suggestions were sought to help us become more effective in our role as consultants. Later, small groups reassembled as a forum to hear and discuss the recommendations put forward by the spokesperson for each group. This session was tape-recorded. Just before closing the workshop, participants were asked to spend a few minutes in silent reflection and then to write and submit personal resolutions about any fine-tuning they then intended to do in order to guarantee the provision of effective sportpsych services in the countdown period prior to the Olympic Games. Questionnaire Results Data in the form of written answers to the items in our questionnaire were obtained from all participants. The contents of these preworkshop submissions were reviewed for commonalities. The resulting categories were represented as direct quotations according to accepted content analytical procedures (Patton, 1980). Contents of the preworkshop descriptions of best-ever consulting experiences are given below in the form of quotations taken directly from the questionnaires and organized into five categories. Swng the ConsuUation. The consensus was that best-ever consultations began by identifying the needs of athletes and special demands than imposing a standard intervention package:

4 186 Partington and Orlick I spent time on-site learning the tasks and getting acquainted with everyone involved. I tried to be helpful in any way possible. I used simple questions and patient listening to learn what was missing. I looked at problem areas only after they were identified by the athletes in discussion. I worked hard to provide direct and speedy feedback to give athletes confidence [in what they were learning]. I start with their needs [not my package]. I listen to what they feel they need to perform or function better. I begin with their awareness of their own best and less-than-best performances. I also ask them at the first training camp when they would prefer to have me around for the rest of the year. I took time with the athlete to establish rapport and trust. The intervention was planned only after the athlete and myself, in collaboration, had agreed what was important at this point in time. Consultant Style. An individualized, athlete-centered approach characterized best-ever consulting experiences: I find a problem-solving approach particularly effective in dealing with competitive planning problems, where I lead the athletes to find their own solutions. I view them as the experts and have them use their expertise through a variety of questions and trial-and-error. I listen to athletes and coaches intently and intensely. I draw from their perspectives and experiences. I help them think about, recognize, and discover what works for them. Together we discuss ideas about what might work best. Then it is a question of working together for follow-up and refinement. I have cut down on the paperwork, shortened the assessment forms, and I do much more one-on-ones. I tried to view my involvement with the team from the athletes' [and coaches'] perspectives. I demonstrated a long-term commitment to the team. The athlete was not being evaluated, but rather we were sharing ideas to reach a goal-the pursuit of excellence. Consistency and continuity of service was important. I took a fairly low-key role, trying to deal with athletes where they "were at" currently. I encouraged written notes of their mental skill-learning experiences which I was able to use in one-on-one interactions. Ongoing assessment and immediate feedback made a big difference. I also had the athletes keep a "mental training" book to summarize the salient points and mental techniques implemented. I work on an individual basis, not a package approach. I integrate mental skill training into practice [training sessions] and focus on training mental skills to the point of mastery. Services Provided. Consultants drew from and used a common core of services. The eight most frequently mentioned services in descending order included focus and refocus control, activation and anxiety control, competition planning, monitoring and evaluation, imagery, precompetition planning, goalsetting, and interpersonal communication. The following questionnaire responses illustrate the multidimensional nature of services provided:

5 Best-Ever Consulting Experiences 187 Services well received were as follows: Initial evaluation [of goals and of what works for the athlete in competition], prerace and race focus plans and refocusing plans, regular follow-up [evaluating, revising, learning], teaching and motivating the practice of imagery skills, counseling [personal concerns], improving coachtathlete relationship. Individual consultation with each athlete to explore strengths and difficulties, group sessions to improve team cohesiveness, stress and anxiety management strategies, imagery strategies, mental plan for competition, special counseling with one athlete to improve confidence, regular monitoring of team's mental state through individual discussion. Techniques which benefited the athletes most were the self-regulatory techniques, relaxation, concentration, mental rehearsal, communication skills, assertiveness training, and competitive planning. Also, I was able to assist athletes during competition to relax and refocus when things appeared to be slipping away! This was a detailed program to increase an athlete's confidence. It included pretraining mental preparation, focus during the event, simulation just below the "winning" parameters, and postpractice recording. Ongoing development and athlete feedback on mental readiness for competition; regular postcompetition performance evaluationldebriefs, and assisting when athlete was injured. Openness and Commihnent of Athletes and Coaches. Best-ever consulting experiences were made possible by committed coaches and athletes who were receptive to what the consultant had to offer: The coaches were very responsive to my input. I felt appreciated by the coaches and athletes. I had many candid discussions with the coaches and athletes, and together we evaluated, refined, and improved all aspects of the program. Athletes, coaches, and parents were highly supportive. The coaches and athletes wanted to improve their mental skills. The mental training program was not imposed. My input was wanted and my role was clearly defined. The head coach was open-minded about the usefulness of mental training and made every effort to cooperate with suggested programs. The performers were well motivated and highly committed. I had great support from top veteran athletes. The coach was receptive and cooperative. The team was receptive and members were honest and open, both between themselves and with me. Time for Consultation. Best-ever consultations were characterized by the opportunity and financial support for the consultant to spend a considerable amount of one-on-one time with athletes and coaches, both at training and competition sites for a lengthy period prior to the target date for major competition: The time frame for our program was appropriate. We had adequate time to spend with the athletes scheduled so that new information did not produce overload. We were also able to schedule our work and living arrangements to satisfy our own needs for privacy and recreation.

6 188 Partington and Orlick I had the required time to interact and assess individual needs and implement programs in a way that did not compete with technical and physical training programs. I had enough time to make a difference. Multiple one-on-one contacts beginning at the first training camp, with regular contacts through to the worlds and to the Olympics. I had a lot of contact hours with the coaches and athletes. I spent a tremendous number of hours with the teams at training sessions, competitions, meals, social functions, and so forth. I had plenty of time at the spring training camp to ensure that the athletes understood and had faith in the program. Athletes were walked through and monitored in the program so that the techniques were well-learned, practiced, and used. Discussion The consensus was that the best-ever sportpsych consultations started with an individualized, athlete-centered approach to identify needs of the athlete and special demands of the sport. In addition, consultants utilized a common core of services and skills, particularly goal setting, focusing and refocusing control, activation and anxiety control, imagery, precompetition and competition planning, good communication, and ongoing monitoring and evaluation. Finally, a set of situational prerequisites also characterized the descriptions of best-ever consulting experiences. For example, best-ever consulting was made possible by coaches and athletes who were committed and receptive to what the consultant had to offer and the opportunity for the consultant to spend a considerable amount of time working one-on-one with athletes and coaches, both at training and competition sites for a lengthy period prior to the targeted important competition. There are a number of reasons why the consulting lessons implicit in these descriptions of best-ever consulting experiences should be taken seriously: Foremost, there is such a clear fit between what these consultants have said and what Olympic athletes and coaches have previously described about consultant effectiveness (Gould, Murphy, Tarnmen, & May, 1991; Orlick & Partington, 1987; Partington & Orlick, 1987a). For example, national team athletes and their coaches defined consultant effectiveness in terms of the following: having something practical to offer, being easy to talk with, drawing on athletes' strengths, fitting in with the team, having a positive constructive attitude, and having the time and opportunity to work with athletes. Second, the extent and breadth of their consulting experience enabled these consultants to make useful comparisons, which made it possible for them to identify elements of effective consulting. The sample included all sportpsych consultants who had been invited to work with Canadian athletes in preparation for the forthcoming Olympic Games. Some 75 % had worked with Olympic athletes in preparation for the 1984 Games. Among these were eight (five males and three females) who had received very high ratings on the Sport Psychology Evaluation form (Partington & Orlick, 1987b) in our extensive survey of 235 Canadian Olympic athletes (Orlick & Partington, 1986a). The final reason for taking these findings seriously is that much of what was described by our sample in their 1987 workshop has been substantiated through recent publications in this journal (e.g., Gipson, McKenzie, & Lowe, 1989; Halliwell, 1989; Orlick, 1989; Salmela, 1989).

7 Best-Ever Consulting Experiences 189 What else can be said about validity? Did these consultants really open up? Did we accurately report what they told us? Consider first that the participants willingly volunteered to attend the workshop, the explicit requirements of which included being ready to share best-ever consulting experiences. Furthermore, most of the participants were well acquainted with us and with each other through previous conference and workshop attendance. Finally, participants were secure in their consulting roles, already being funded to provide services to one or several national teams. We believe that workshop participants had nothing to lose and much to gain by being open. This belief is reinforced by the fact that participants enthusiastically supported a proposal to hold such a workshop at least once a year in the future. We are also confident that we have provided an unbiased treatment of the data. Findings were not represented by statistical or other abstractions; rather, they were given in the form of direct quotations. Furthermore, all participants received a copy of a manual based on the workshop and none of them questioned the authenticity of its contents. Small-Group Workshop Recommendations Beyond providing their written descriptions of best-ever consulting experiences, workshop participants made many useful recommendations. These were extracted from the minutes submitted by group recording secretaries, audiotape recordings of the discussions, and brief written resolutions for change submitted by each participant at the close of the workshop. The recommendations were directed toward seven aspects of consultation. Assessing Commitment. Before getting heavily committed to a sport, make sure that you have an opportunity to determine how good a fit you feel there is, or will be, between you and the coach and you and the team. The match between you, the coach, and the team is very important. Determine whether there is a committed, supportive coaching staff. Determine the athlete's interest in and commitment to mental training. If the athlete says he or she wants a consultant, go for it; if not, forget it. Guard against being imposed from above, or sent in by an administrator rather than being requested by a coach or athlete. Defining Your Role. Develop a mutual understanding with coaches and athletes concerning expectations about mental training, and work out a clear delineation of roles and responsibilities. Guard agahst being expected to compensate for weaknesses or deficiencies in other parts of the program. If there are major deficiencies in the athlete's physical capacity, training program, coaching, opportunities for competition experience, and so on, it is not likely that we can overcome all these deficiencies through a mental training program. Before starting the program, determine what is needed. What areas does the coach think need work? What areas do individual athletes think they would like to improve? Once these needs have been identified, you can design and provide individualized services to meet individual needs.

8 190 Partington and Orlick Starting the Consultation. The timing and circumstances of the first contact between the consultant and the team must be appropriate to establish a positive beginning. You never get a second chance to make a fvst impression. Ideally, the first contact should be when athletes are well rested, have the time to meet, and are in a relatively nonstressful setting, long before the competitions begin for the season. It should be agreed that all athletes and coaches attend at least the first team session. Give a lot of thought to the content of the initial group presentation, because this is the time when you will either gain the respect and commitment of the athletes or lose them. It helps to have a top veteran athlete on your side, right from the start. This may require doing some preliminary work with that veteran athlete to ensure that you have some support at meetings and in the locker room. At the first meeting, if possible, get respected athletes from the team, or former team members, to discuss the importance of their own mental preparation. Get athletes talking to athletes. To sell mental training may require something as basic as showing the "Visualization" video [Botterill& Orlick, 19861, having athletes read Psyched [Orlick& Partington, 1986b1, or pointing out that some ofthe best competitors will be going to the lime with certain mental skills. The question is, do they want to take the chance of letting their competitors go to the line with certain skills that they might not have, or would they rather have the mental advantage? The information is available and the consultant is willing to help develop the skills. Do they want to get involved? Following the initial team meeting, set times for individual interviews with each athlete and coach. Establish a positive, caring, supportive relationship with athletes and coaches. A low-profile approach is an important part of this process. Testing. Guard against the use of personality tests and other types of standardized inventories. They are generally useless in practical terms unless they are directly related to the sport or focus directly on the athlete's experiences in competition or training. Batteries of personality-type inventories are a good way to turn off athletes right from the start, not only because athletes view them as time consuming and irrelevant but also because these inventories tell nothing about how to solve the practical concerns of athletes. Testing fonns and questionnaires should only be used if they help to focus on real performance needs of athletes in this sport, and if their use leads to demonstrated improvement in self-understanding and performance. Executing the Consultation. Initially it is best to consult with the athlete in order to target a couple of areas for improvement, and then do some quality work with the athlete to master those skills. Trying to do too many things at once often results in overload.

9 Best-Ever Consulting Experiences 191 Early planning of the mental training program and long-term commitment to practice mental skills is critical to ensure the mastery of mental skills needed for stressful competitive situations. Once you know what athletes and coaches want to improve, take them stepby-step through the various mental planning pmxdures. Explain that thorough planning and mental preparation [e.g., preevent plan, refocusing plan, media plan] lead to feelings of mental readiness and feelings of confidence in the athlete's abiiity to face challenges. To be most effective with athletes, it often helps to spend enough time with the coach to help himther become more mentally prepared and better able to meet the athlete's needs, and to support what we are trying to accomplish. Multiple contacts, especially one-on-ones with adequate time for thorough discussions, are required to be effective when working with either athletes or coaches. Specific, straightforward, practical information and constructive feedback are critical to the effective consulting process. It helps if athletes/coaches/consultants "keep book" on themselves by using a log or diary to become more aware of what works best for them. Writing things down, such as goals or details about best focus, serves as an important reminder and also often triggers spontaneous imagery of best performances or approaches. a Team Meetings. Team meetings can be useful under certain circumstances, for example when athletes themselves want to meet to discuss a problem or when the consultant has relevant new information to share. Team sessions can draw out the multiple resources in the group, provided that the consultant has the interpersonal skills to allow this to happen. Some consultants have found small group meetings to be very effective 12-5 athletes]. When handled well, the discussion can bring out the wisdom of the group and be a great learning experience for all involved, including the consultant. Consultant Characteristics and Practices. The most important personal assets for the consultant to develop are good communication and interpersonal skills, especially skilled listening. The consultant should try to model or live the self-control and refocusing skills that helshe is teaching. Develop your own plan so that you are most effective in respecting athletes' needs for mental training, as well as on-site during training camps and at competitions. Develop your own competition plan and prepare yourself to provide a neutral corner for athletes who might want to talk to someone in a nonjudgmental way. The most effective mnsultant projects a capacity to remain open to learn about the range of needs of different individual athletes and different sports, and attempts to meet these different individualized needs. Guard against assuming

10 192 Partingfon and Orlick that you have the solution before you have taken time to understand the athletes and their perspective on the issue. The most effective consultant keeps his or her own life in perspective through rest, relaxation, overall fitness, and a good balance between work, play, and relationships. They maintain a positive, confident attitude and project warmth, openness, and support. Guard against being defensive, critical, judgmental, cutting, all-knowing, dogmatic, or always right. If you don't have your act together, or if you are not there for the right reasons, you are not likely to be very effective. It is difficult to fake mental training interest, personal commitment, or a joy in helping, or living, if it is not there. For high-performance results you should either "be there" totally and carry the right perspective or not be there at all. Considered together, the preworkshop findings about best-ever consultation work, and the workshop recommendations by the consultants, support and add to our understanding about effective consulting. How to get started, and what to do, is not available in textbooks or from classroom teaching. A major contribution of these findings was that they made it very clear that consulting effectiveness is a shared responsibility and that the essential ingredients for success are personal and professional, as opposed to strictly scientific or technological. Hence the consultant must not only possess knowledge about principles and techniques of positive change within a sport context but helshe must also be there for the right reasons. Moreover, consultants must maintain a healthy, balanced lifestyle and perspective in order to remain helpful to the athlete or coach. Similarly, for athletes to excel at this level, not only should they have physical talent, fitness, and technical skills but, along with their coaches and administrators, they should be committed to the pursuit of excellence and be open to advice and ready to try new approaches for enhancing performance. Implications Two educational implications are obvious from the findings of our workshop experience. First, if quality consulting requires personal, professional, and life skills, then these prerequisites for sportpsych graduates must be ensured either through admission policy and screening of candidates or our graduate programs or other training venues must provide significant amounts of this training. Second, if there is a significant body of professional know-how associated with effective consulting, beyond research information about intervention and research methods, then our training programs should enable students to develop this experience through extensive, high quality practicumlapprenticeship arrangements. Our final point concerns consulting implications emerging from the findings on situational characteristics associated with best-ever consulting. Based on our own experience, we fully agree with the workshop participants that consulting becomes effective and personally rewarding to all parties when conditions of openness, respect, and support prevail on both sides. This does not mean that all consultants should avoid involvements with athletes in less than ideal circumstances. Most consultants have worked in at least one situation that may have either started with or deteriorated into a negative situation, with some coaches and athletes being defensive. Experience shows, however, that the poor competitive performances that such situations inevitably generate can lead to dramatic conversions in open-

11 ness and other situational-prerequisites of and third season can be a joy to the consultant who is Such perseverance requires commitment, skill, require developing a reputation for exc scapegoating in the form of premature will not be an easy option for the client. The implication for the novice is very clear: Make sure that your first few solo contracts satisfy con effective consulting outlined herein. Considering all of the lessons in the above findings, we conclude that our workshop process was valuable. Moreover, we feel that much more can be learned in the future by repeating the process of bringing together consultants to share what they have learned individually from their best-ever consulting experiences. References Botterill, C., & Orlick, T. (1986). Visualization: What you see is what you get. Video produced by the Coaching Association of Canada, Ottawa. Gipson, M., McKenzie, T., & Lowe, S. (1989). The sport psychology program of the USA women's national volleyball team. The Sport Psychologist, 3, Gould, D., Murphy, S., Tammen, V., &May, J. (1991). An evaluation of U.S. Olympic sport psychology consultant effectiveness. The Sport Psychologist, 5, Balliwell, W. (1989). Delivering sport psychology services to the Canadian sailing team at the 1988 Summer Olympic Games. Zhe Sport Psychologist, 3, Maslow, A.H. (1970a). Motivation and personality (2nd ed.). New York: Harper & Row. Maslow, A.H. (1970b). Religious values, and peak experiences. New York: Viking. McCaffrey, N., & Orlick, T. (1990). Mental factors related to excellence among top professional golfers. Intenrational Jouml of Sport Psychology, 20, Orlick, T. (1989). Reflections on sportpsych consulting with individual and team sport athletes at summer and winter Olympic Games. The Sport Psychologist, 3, Orlick, T., & Partington, J. (1986a). Documenting athlete readiness for the 1984 Olympics and evaluating sport consulting. Ottawa: Coaching Association of Canadatsport Canada. Orlick, T., & Partington, J. (1986b). Psyched: Inner views of winning. Ottawa: Coaching Association of Canada. Orlick, T., & Partington, J. (1987). The sport psychology consultant: Analysis of critical components as viewed by Canadian Olympic athletes. The Sport Psychologist, 1, Orlick, T., & Partington, J. (1988a). Sharing views on the process of effective sportpsych consulting. Ottawa: Sport Canada. Orlick, T., & Partington, J. (1988b). Mental links to excellence. The Sport Psychologist. 2, Partington, J., & Orlick, T. (1987a). The sport psychology consultant: Olympic coaches' views. The Sport Psychologist, 1, Partington, J., & Orlick, T. (198%). The sport psychology consultant evaluation form. The Sport Psychologist, 1, Patton, M. (1980). Qualitative evaluation methods. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage. Reubart, D. (1985). Anxiety and musical perjbrmance. New York: De Capo Press. Salmela, J.H. (1989). Long-term intervention with the Canadian Men's Oly~lpric Gymnastics Team. The Sport Psychologist, 3,