Athlete Development

Athlete Development

The Bank of Confidence: What to Deposit for Sporting Success

Confidence is impossible to touch. Unlike speed, which can be easily measured, confidence is intangible. However, defined as one’s belief in their own abilities,...

What can we learn from skateboarding?

No coach. No rules. No scheduled training sessions. Yet hours of purposeful practice. Why? Part of the beauty of coaching early morning training sessions is...

Surviving the Gap: Navigating Puberty in Sport

Beware of the gap. It’s a challenging time for you - physically and psychologically. Some of your friends will be experiencing it already, some not...

EP 54 – Maria Folau – Positive Parenting, Learning to Shoot,...

“You can’t make excuses. You had to wake up every morning to train. You had to eat the right foods and make sure you...

Listen and Learn: The power of knowing your athlete

In episode 27 of the Athlete Development Show, I spoke with Mystics and Silver Ferns defender Michaela Sokolich-Beatson. On the show, I asked Michaela...

3 essential physical skills for surfing

You love the ocean and the adrenaline-charged feeling of carving fresh lines down a wave. It makes you feel alive. Your joy of surfing began...

Why Movement Skill is Essential for Children

One of my favourite Olympic events is the gymnastics. Why? I like the variation in apparatus. The rings, bars, vault, floor, the gymnast does...

6 Active Listening Techniques for a Coach or Parent

I’ve been lucky enough to interview many of New Zealand’s best athletes, both on the Athlete Development Show, and in the halls of AUT...

10 quotes every athlete should live by

Planning is so crucial for the modern athlete. Athletes must juggle ever-increasing training and competition schedules, academic and social stresses at school and...

Too Little Sleep and an Unhealthy Diet Increase Your Chances of...

There are some skills every young athlete can’t do without. Netballers, for instance, need to know how to catch. And pass. Rugby players on...

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Debunking a common myth: Youth weight training

There are these common generational myths that have been passed down to us and it would be fair to say that we really don’t...

AD Alumni: Anna Steven

We're shining the spotlight on some of Athlete Development's alumni who are doing great things in their chosen sport. Meet sprinter Anna Steven, who...

Preparing for school and club sport

Now that school and club sports teams trainings and games are gearing up again, what can your young athletes do to better prepare for...

Pat Chat: Sleep enhancement for youth athletes

In the second of our three-part series,  AD Academy Programme Manager and Lead Coach Patrick Davenport focuses on the importance of sleep for the...

How can you build psychological safety?

When it comes to pursuing excellence, moving from where we are now to a place that is more effective, how we behave is what...