Applied Coaching Research Journal Research Journal 1 | Page 53

Are there any
challenges
of applying
research
findings into
practice? Yes – even if research is done really well
it is difficult to apply. Research is driven
around originality and novelty. This is
good because it allows progression in
science but it almost makes the research
harder to apply. Imagine looking at
the physical demands of a sport. From
a researcher’s perspective it would
not be a good way to take the exact
methodology and apply it to 50 different
sports, as there is limited originality. But
then from the practitioner’s perspective,
if everything is done slightly different it is impossible to compare them. I also
think there are some difficulties around
the complexity of some work that goes
on, that while it appears to have a
practical application if you do not have
that specific equipment for example, you
cannot use it with your athletes. In terms
of how research is disseminated, it is
still typically disseminated in academic
journals that only academic institutions
subscribe to. Practitioners working in
policy and practice do not subscribe
because of cost, and also struggle to find
the time to read it.
What is next on
your research
agenda? What
are your key
priorities for
research? My key priorities are trying to create an
infrastructure and a system to increase
the usefulness of research which is
around translational sports sciences.
Can we create roles for people who
can help disseminate the information,
as opposed to people who only make
new knowledge? Can we increase
the dialogue in terms of people’s communication so that academics,
practitioners and people in policy are
talking more? If this happens, everyone
understands the challenges, and people
therefore address the real problems.
That is in addition to our work which is
still based around understanding the risk
and demands of a sport and how we can
better support our athletes.
What aspects
of coaching
would you
like to see
transformed
over the next
decade? I strongly believe that coaches are
really good at coaching and scientists
are good at science. I would like to see
more joint appointed roles between
sports organisations and institutions,
whereby somebody can let the coach be
a coach, let the scientist be a scientist
and mediate between the two. I would
also like to see systems and structures
improved, regarding the management of
medical and science staff, who is actually
supervising and managing them – should
it be the head coach? The coach can be a
phenomenal coach in terms of technical,
tactical skill and motivation, but they
may not have appropriate training
to manage medical or sports science
provisions. Creating new bespoke roles
within sport, to manage systems and
structures and organisations to allow
people to do what they are good at and
what they are trained to do.
APPLIED COACHING RESEARCH JOURNAL 2018, Vol. 1
53