The life of high-level athletes: The challenge of high performance against the time constraint

Abstract

The conditions for high performance have changed considerably over the last few years. Athletes must spend more time training and competing, devote a lot of time to mental, physical and nutritional professionals and continue to respond to some constraints such as studying, spending time with their families, friends and quality of life. In this context and based on the work of Rosa, we wonder about the capacity of elite athletes to combine all these constraints, namely to manage the acceleration in their pace of life, in order to be able to achieve always more and better in the same time unit. To address this issue, we interviewed 42 French high-level athletes who train at the National Institute of Sport, Expertise and Performance (INSEP). Results show that to suit their goals, athletes implement arrangement and adjustment strategies aimed at making the time they have wholly useful and efficient. This time constraint puts athletes in a perpetual state of tension, on the verge of a good or poor life. The paper shows how the question of time, and particularly the acceleration of pace of life, is vital for modern sporting performance.

Swedish university student-athletes’ dual career scenarios and competences

“…Debois et al, 2015;De Knop et al, 1999). In previous qualitative research several DC competences have been identified (Aquilina, 2009;Brown et al, 2015;Burlot et al, 2018;Cosh & Tully, 2014;MacNamara & Collins, 2010;McKenna & Dunstan-Lewis, 2004). This study supports previous findings, but also extends previous research with an understanding of how well developed the DC competences were within a sample of Swedish university student-athletes.…”

“…In relation to this, the transferable competences are of particular interest as they add to coping across different scenarios. The most recurrent competences across papers in previous research relate to good planning, organisation and time-management (including planning time for recuperation) and the ability to prioritise (Aquilina, 2009;Brown et al, 2015: Burlot et al, 2018Cosh & Tully, 2014;MacNamara & Collins, 2010;McKenna & Dunstan-Lewis, 2004). This study supports and adds to previous research showing that the transferable competences (i.e.…”

“…time constraints), but a matter of teaching student-athletes how to deal with such barriers. Burlot, Richard, and Joncheray (2018) found that the student-athletes who understood how to optimise their sport and study combination were characterised by high autonomy and responsibility.…”

“…Examples of competences for a successful DC have been reported implicitly or explicitly in several qualitative studies (e.g. Aquilina, 2009;Brown et al, 2015;Burlot et al, 2018;Cosh & Tully, 2014;MacNamara & Collins, 2010;McKenna & Dunstan-Lewis, 2004) and include career-and self-awareness, patience in development, commitment to exceling, dedication and strong work ethic, ability to set and monitor goals, interpersonal skills, self-discipline, being resilient and adapt well to different circumstances, and ability to make personal decisions and take responsibility for own actions. Moreover, the most recurrent competences across papers relates to good planning, organisation and time-management skills (including planning time for recuperation) and the ability to prioritise.…”

Construire et assurer l’héritage des Jeux olympiques et paralympiques. Pour une inclusion sportive durable des personnes vivant des situations de handicap

“…Jaarsma et al Plus globalement, la pénurie de temps est identifiée comme une autre barrière à la pratique paralympique de haut niveau (McLoughlin et al, 2017). À l'instar des travaux effectués auprès des athlètes olympiques (Burlot, Richard, & Joncheray, 2016), la gestion du temps constitue ainsi un enjeu décisif de la performance des athlètes paralympiques. Il s'agit, pour ces sportifs, de consacrer suffisamment de temps à la préparation sportive, sans pour autant sacrifier la vie sociale et familiale (McLoughlin et al, 2017), les soins médicaux et l'activité professionnelle (Beldame et al, 2016).…”