Pinnacle events: the highs and lows as a coach

Article

As we all sit on the edge of our seats watching the Olympics, we typically focus on the athletes and their efforts chasing their dreams, trying to make Aotearoa proud. However, I’d love to draw your attention to those dedicated folks behind the athletes and their coaches. As coaches, we know that a pinnacle event like the Olympics is a career highlight and
has the same weight of expectations as it does for the athletes. The years of dedication to our coaching craft, the highs and lows along the way, the countless hours away from our friends and families, the need to test ourselves against the best and the huge public and media expectations all contribute to pinnacle events like an Olympics bringing a lot of stress, fear, uncertainty and sleepless nights.

Perhaps you and your athlete(s) have exceeded expectations, and you don’t know how you did it. Perhaps you’ve failed to meet public expectations, and the scrutiny is overwhelming. Perhaps you don’t know what you’re going to do next, or your contract is up for review. Or perhaps an unexpected event has compromised your plans, and you’ve been left feeling frustrated and helpless.

If you’re a coach, it doesn’t matter whether you’re coaching Olympians, elite sports teams, or amateur athletes who are striving to wear the silver fern. Your own version of a pinnacle event like the Olympics will bring the same stressors and threats to your well-being.

So, here at Te Korowai, we wanted to tell you that we have your back when it comes to well-being. We know the pressures of high-performance coaching can be extreme, and that’s why we offer expert support and advice for coach wellbeing. If you’re feeling overwhelmed or see a rough patch coming up, don’t hesitate to reach out. We’ve got well-being experts who understand what you’re going through and can confidentially help you figure out your next steps.

We know you might have some awesome people in your NSO or sport to talk to, which is fantastic, but if you’d rather chat with someone outside of your immediate circle, Te Korowai is here for you. We’re all in this together, and we’re here to support you every step of the way.

As part of Te Korowai’s coach membership, we are proud to offer free wellbeing support for our coaches in the form of:

a confidential consultation with a high-performance well-being expert;
great information and resources for self-education on a broad range of wellbeing-related topics like sleep, mental health, social connections, and finding your purpose. If you’re about to conclude your own pinnacle event or you’re finding the going really tough in general and would like to better understand what you’re experiencing and find some options to help you move forward, then check out:

Our free wellbeing resources for anyone on our website here;
Our offer is for high-performance coaches to become Te Korowai members and access all of the free benefits here. We want you to know that you’re not alone, and we understand how difficult the role of a high-performance