Ingredients of success at the GB Olympics

Chris Shambrook
Sophie Hosking and Kat Copeland – Lightweight Women’s Double Sculls Olympic Champions. Italy Training Camp, July 2012. Winning Strategies Wow! What an Olympic Games. The success was wonderful, the performances outstanding and the nation were proud – and that was just the Gamesmakers! We saw some incredible success from Team…
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Feel good factor?

Chris Shambrook
So much of great performance is about feeling right. Feeling prepared can really help confidence and performance for many people. How much were the results of a home Olympic Games for GB athletes due to a feel good factor and home crowds and how much was that the opportunity of…
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The delivery mindset

Chris Shambrook
Choose your mindset As the Olympic Games approaches, all athletes and coaches are faced with the choice of when to switch into their delivery mindset. The delivery mindset is all about being 100% focused on cashing in on what has been put in place and being passionately driven to find…
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Choosing your environment to thrive, focus, acclimatise and excel

Chris Shambrook
During the final throes of preparation for the Olympics, the choice of environment becomes critical to achieving ideal readiness to step into the melting pot of the Games. Many members of Team GB are currently out of the country deliberately in very different environments from the ones they'll end up…
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Under pressure – what’s your perception?

Chris Shambrook
Under Pressure? Whether you’re under pressure or not might simply be a matter of perspective. Writing this, there are 42 days to go to the start of the London Olympic Games. Now, there’s a very good chance that for most people a looming deadline for a critical event a kin…
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Learning how to outperform your opposition

Chris Shambrook
Winning the Mind Games The first FISA Rowing World Cup of the season took place in Belgrade earlier this year. It was the first of three regattas that are the only international competitions of note prior to the Olympic Games at Dorney Lake. This first foray back into international competition…
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Surprise doubles win

Chris Shambrook
Jonathan Marray's surprise doubles win at Wimbledon provides a great story. In a post match interview he said he could not quite believe he had won the title, adding: "When I see my friends and family and speak to them about it, over the course of a few days, a…
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Desire to win

Chris Shambrook
Same strokes with different folks The British Rowing Team announced their first competitive squad of the Olympic season in April this year. In an Olympic season there’s some interesting alterations to existing crews (who were already world champions and world medalists some 6 months ago). The decision to change is…
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More inspiration from elite level athletes…

Chris Shambrook
Rafa Nadal after defeat at Wimbledon yesterday "I played a great fourth set. He came back and played unbelievable in the fifth. The only thing I can do is go back home and rest, and I need and deserve it. I'm very, very disappointed, it's not a tragedy, it's only a tennis…
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Perspective, fun and talent

Chris Shambrook
Here are some interesting pre-Olympic comments from the UK Athletics head coach. Have a read and see what you think and make sure you get all the way to the last paragraph. It highlights some interesting paradoxes in elite level performance. It can help to care passionately about what you…
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