The relations that occurred between the athletes and coaches of the national team during their preparations for the para-Joanna lympic games (according to the athletes)

Author(s): Joanna Sobiecka , Ryszard Plinta, lympic games (according to the athletes) Katarzyna Cichoń, Katarzyna Drobniewicz

The main purpose of this paper is to present the opinions on the relations between the national team coaches and Polish competitors during their preparations for the Paralympic Games in Beijing. This survey was conducted by means of the “T-S-1” test developed by J. H. Hanin and A. W. Stambu³ow, which was adapted to the needs of the disabled athletes. It involved 85 paralympic athletes with damage to the locomotor system or impaired vision aged between 15 and 53 years who trained 11 sports on a daily basis. Our analysis of the data proved that the relations between the coaches and their athletes of the national paralympic team were in general satisfactory. Those good relations, connected with communication and cooperation during preparations for the Olympic Games, were reflected in the opinions of the national team athletes about their good preparation for the paralympic competitions. Another major success of the Polish national team coaches was attributed to the fact that they took into account the particular traits of individual disabled athletes, good knowledge of their possibilities, and laid down adequate requirements for them. The athletes were also satisfied with the ways their selectors chose training methods for them, made remarks, and the relations between them that were strictly connected with sport. According to the respondents, their coaches were reliable persons and sensed their psychical disposition well during their preparations for the Olympic Games. The athletes were also satisfied with their selectors’ abilities to forecast their results and their joint planning of the workouts. However, it is alarming that the athletes were not fully satisfied with some coaches who did not take appropriate measures against undisciplined competitors and thus undermined their authority with the very athletes they had selected for the national team. Furthermore, the coaches’ remarks were not absolutely important for the majority of them during the preparatory period for the sports competitions.