Training the mind for Olympic battle

EARLY this morning, many of Ireland’s Olympic hopefuls gathered at the Tollymore National Outdoor Centre on the edge of the Mourne Mountains.

The venue was not chosen by accident. It is remote and private; mobile reception is intermittent, and there are few prying eyes in these parts to disturb the participants.

This will be a training camp with a difference, with the Olympic Council of Ireland’s Chef de Mission Sonia O’Sullivan admitting the objective is for everyone to “talk about things that sometimes don’t get talked about”.

Critics may consider this an exercise in psycho-babble however the OCI chief executive Stephen Martin believes this event is as crucial as any training programme ahead of a Games where hype and expectation will surpass all others.

He explained: “What we want to do this weekend is to ensure that we get as many of the athletes who have qualified and those who have the potential to qualify together and go over stuff with them that we’ve discussed with performance directors and support people. We’ve identified issues which you may not think are performance issues but are.”

Such issues may appear meaningless now in mid-December but come Games time could derail four years of preparation in an instant.

He explained: “Take social media, such as Twitter and blogs as an example. We are telling people not to use these tools but there are policies in place which we will share with the athletes and advice we can give them.

“Another issue relates to family and friends. Theses people can be very supportive but sometimes when an athlete needs to focus maybe that support comes at a wrong time. So we will talk through these scenarios and what an athlete should or shouldn’t be doing in terms of organising tickets and the like.”

But it isn’t just about athletes this weekend. Through sponsors P&G, parents will be invited along, accommodated at a nearby hotel and made “feel part of the family”, according to Martin.

“This is the first time we have the parents involved. We have to explain to them how it all works and how to get organised in terms of things like flights, accommodations and tickets for other events. The objective is to make the athletes their priority.”

He continued: “Other areas that we will discuss will include managing expectations. So for example if you are a young athlete not experienced with dealing with the media, we will discuss ways of not overestimating your targets.”

Earlier this week, Irish boxing coach Billy Walsh lifted the lid on some of the work being done to cope with life outside the ring before, during and after the Olympics. He knows how Olympic glory can quickly turn to tragedy. The suicide of Darren Sutherland and the alcoholism of Kenny Egan are two legacies of the Beijing Games that weigh heavily on the sport. Walsh admitted: “We thought of having the success but who thought of what you had to deal with in the aftermath? We just thought it was ‘well done, lads, good luck and enjoy it’. We didn’t think anything would happen but people’s lives completely changed.”

Martin insists that lessons have been learnt across the board in the wake of boxing’s tragedies.

“We all agree that if an athlete goes into the games this time round there should be no stone left unturned in terms of their preparations and what happens afterwards.

“If they perform well or not, there should be a referral system in place to help them when they come out the other end.

“If they have a nightmare, they have to deal with it. If they can deal with it themselves, that is fine but if they want to talk to someone in their own sport or if they want a specialist referral, then that is there for them.

“The same applies if they do especially well and there is a lot of interest in them when they come home. They might need someone to help them in terms of an agency or a PR firm. And that is something which we can help them with. The other thing is the knowing when it is time to stop the celebrating and getting back to what you are good at.”

The central message is for competitors not to become obsessed about their event, and focus all their energies on that one heat, and one final.

“The message is have a plan (outside of competition). Have a boredom strategy. When some become nervous, they become edgy, drink more coffee than they normally would and pace around. But that is wasted energy. We want them to do as they would normally, have a plan when in competition and out of competition.”

And a greater team ethos is another goal for Martin: “There is nothing more rewarding than seeing a competitor come into the Olympic Village and being congratulated by his colleagues. And equally, when things don’t go according to plan, we would hope that they will have a few shoulders to cry on.”