One of the biggest and most positive changes I've seen during my coaching career has been athletes finding their voice. We listen more, we explain more, and athletes are encouraged to ask questions, tell us how they're feeling and be involved in decisions about their gymnastics. I think that's made us better coaches.
But I've also noticed something else happening, and I know from conversations I've had that I'm not the only coach thinking about it. Some coaches are becoming increasingly unsure of their own voice.
We're trying to do the right thing. We care about the athletes we work with and we're much more aware of the responsibility that comes with being their coach. But that can sometimes leave us second guessing ourselves. Should I challenge this? Am I pushing too much? Should I insist? What if they disagree?
Giving athletes a voice was never supposed to mean taking one away from coaches.
It should be a collaboration
The athlete and coach bring different things to the relationship. The athlete knows what they're experiencing. They know what they're feeling, what they're frightened of, what hurts and what's happening in their life outside the gym. We need that information. If we're not listening to it, we're trying to coach with half the picture.
But the coach brings something too: knowledge, experience, perspective and an understanding of the process. Sometimes our job is to see what an athlete is capable of before they can see it themselves.
Good coaching should bring those two things together. That doesn't mean every decision has to end in agreement. Collaboration isn't the same as everybody getting what they want.
Sometimes an athlete will tell me something that completely changes my decision. Other times I'll listen, understand their point of view and still believe that the right thing is to challenge them. Both can be athlete-centred.
The relationship makes that possible
For me, this is where everything starts. You have to know the person you're coaching.
There will be days when somebody needs pushing and days when exactly the same behaviour is telling you something isn't right. A policy, textbook or training plan can't always tell you the difference. Knowing the person in front of you can.
When athletes trust that you're on their side, difficult conversations become possible. They can tell you when you're wrong. You can challenge them when you think they're capable of more. Neither needs to feel like an attack on the other.
That's the environment I think we should be trying to create: not athletes who are frightened to speak, and not coaches who are frightened to coach.
We're doing our best too
Coaching involves judgement, and judgement means occasionally getting things wrong. I've certainly got decisions wrong during my career.
Most coaches aren't trying to control athletes or make their lives difficult. We're trying to help. We're making hundreds of small judgements about when to push, when to stop, when to change something, when to insist and when to let something go. We won't get every one of those decisions right.
We should be accountable when we get things wrong. We should listen, explain ourselves and be prepared to change our minds when an athlete gives us information we didn't have. But coaches also need enough confidence to coach.
Our job is also to challenge
Gymnastics is difficult. Athletes will experience fear, frustration, failure and disappointment. There will be days when they don't want to do something and moments when the easier option is understandably appealing.
Sometimes being helpful means changing the plan. Sometimes it means stopping. Sometimes it means listening and saying very little. And sometimes it means saying, “I hear you, but I think you can do this.”
None of those responses is automatically right. That's why coaching is a skill.
Challenging somebody isn't humiliating them. High standards don't require fear. Being the coach doesn't give us permission to ignore what an athlete is telling us. But equally, an athlete being uncomfortable, frustrated or disagreeing with a decision doesn't automatically mean something has gone wrong.
A gymnast can be frustrated with me and I can still care deeply about them. They can disagree with a decision I've made and still trust me. I can challenge them and still be on their side.
In fact, the relationship is what allows those conversations to happen.
Two voices, one goal
Ultimately, the athlete and coach should be trying to achieve the same thing. We want the athlete to improve, stay healthy, enjoy what they're doing and discover what they're capable of.
The athlete has a voice in that process. So does the coach.
Neither should overpower the other.
Maybe the next stage of athlete-centred coaching isn't about making one voice louder. It's about getting better at listening to both.