The objective of British Swimming’s Performance pathway is to develop athletes that have the skills; characteristics and behaviours to thrive in the highest competitive arenas, specifically at the World Championships and Olympic Games.
The Optimal Athlete-Development Framework (OADF) sets out to describe the characteristics that we believe our swimmers will need to possess in order to be successful in 2024 and beyond.
The framework defines the characteristics of-both “The Great British Swimmer”, as well as those that are showing “Future Performance Potential”. It is not a rigid curriculum, nor indeed a tool for talent identification or selection.
These characteristics we have chosen have been determined following consultation with leading coaches, support staff and athletes, and further developed by British Swimming in conjunction with Swim England, Scottish Swimming and Swim Wales, supported by the Home Nation Sporting Institutes.
The 6 ‘A-C-C-E-S-S pillars of the OADF describe the approach and underlying principles we will use to develop and then transition our ‘Future Performance Potential’ athletes on to becoming a ‘Great British Swimmer’
- Athelete Centered
- Coach Led
- Culturally defined
- Expert Informed
- Science Support
- System Aligned
ATHLETE CENTRED OUR ATHLETES ARE AT THE HEART OF EVERY DECISION WE MAKE
• We coach our athletes as people
• We adopt an individual approach to training
• We give the athlete what they need, not just what they want
• We tell our athletes the reason ‘why’ before we guide their development
• Our athletes contribute to their own program and their own development
COACH LED OUR COACHES ARE EFFECTIVE IN LEADING OUR ATHLETES BY SETTING HIGH STANDARDS
• Our coaches are the leaders of our programs
• Our coaches are well informed and well educated, continually looking for ways to improve
• Our coaches have leadership skills and understand British Swimming Team Behaviours
• Our coaches provide an individual approach to the long-term development of our athletes
CULTURALLY DEFINED OUR CULTURE DEFINES WORLD-CLASS BEHAVIOURS TO DELIVER PODIUM SUCCESS
• Athlete wellbeing and duty of care is at the heart of our culture
• Our culture is aligned to British Swimming Team Behaviours
• We have a culture of continuous improvement -Kaizen
• We deliver seasons best performances at the Benchmark Meet
EXPERT INFORMED OUR DECISIONS ARE GUIDED BY EXPERT KNOWLEDGE
• We use an evidence-based approach to inform our decisions
• Our Support Staff ensure we work to stay ahead of the pack by implementing marginal gains
• We continually develop all of our staff to be experts in their field
SCIENCE SUPPORTED OUR PRACTITIONERS WORK AS AN INTERDISCIPLINARY TEAM TO SERVICE OUR ATHLETES
• We believe that the collective knowledge and skillset of our practitioners provides the most effective way of solving complex performance problems
• We collaborate to ensure we investigate all possible ways of developing our athletes
• We provide a seamless set of support services to our identified athletes
SYSTEM ALIGNED OUR SYSTEM IS WHOLLY COHESIVE AND ALIGNED
• Our system has a clear Vision and Mission which has been bought into by all of our stakeholders
• We work in absolute synergy with all of our partners
• British Swimming and the Home Nations are all working towards the same agreed set of outcome goals
• We have a domestic competition programme which provides appropriate levels of race opportunity for all ages and stages of development
BRITISH SWIMMING’S HEAD OF ELITE DEVELOPMENT, TIM JONES:
This is an incredibly important project that will help determine our collective future. We are adopting non-prescriptive approach, steering clear of telling coaches and practitioners how to do their jobs. We believe in promoting autonomy, and want to encourage individuality by urging the team around the athlete to exercise all of their knowledge and skill in developing the characteristics set out in this framework.”
Read more in the attached file