2012 Games time review
“Long distance is a lonely event, what you put in is what you get out. I’ve had great support – Barry Fudge (EIS Physiologist) particularly, who’s been in Font Romeau with me, monitoring every little detail. He’s been away from his family for 5 weeks and I’ve been away from mine.” Mo Farah, Double Olympic Gold Medallist (quote from his post race interview after the 10,000m at London 2012)
“Sport science and medicine are inextricably linked to performance and are areas that British Cycling have continued to embrace. However, analysis by statistics and technology whilst important, are not as fundamental as their interpretation and the creative use of such information. Over the past 10 years the English Institute of Sport and Olympic sports have leapt ahead and are leading the way in the appliance of expertise and this is down to the breadth of experts they employ, many of whom have been young graduates employed in specific roles.” David Brailsford, Performance Director, British Cycling
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Introduction The EIS 2012 Games Time Review outlines the breadth and depth of Sport Science and Medicine across Olympic and Paralympic sports and highlights some examples of where the EIS has made a performance impact over the past cycle. “The successful performances at the London 2012 Olympic & Paralympic Games were magnificent for British Sport and indeed a culmination of many years of hard work too from the team behind the team at the English Institute of Sport (EIS). London 2012 marked a decade since the inception of the EIS. Since the Sydney 2000 Games the increased support of National Lottery and Exchequer funding and use of sport science and medicine to gain a performance edge has seen Britain enjoy unparalleled success at both Games, with a system left which aims to evolve further for Rio 2016 and beyond. The quotes within this review speak for themselves and assert the belief that sport science & medicine has played a crucial role in helping the British team punch above its weight, further demonstrated by the fact that 86% of the Olympic and Paralympic medallists had been supported by the EIS in the lead up to the Games. It is the targeted and focused approach to sport science and medical delivery, driven by the needs of the sports and athletes we support which drives us to constantly evolve and improve every aspect of service delivery.� Nigel Walker, National Director of the English Institute of Sport.
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EIS Impact: The facts and figures behind the use of sport science and medicine
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Getting Athletes to the Start Line: how intensive rehabilitation and a multidisciplinary team work
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Innovative Performance Solutions: where leading expertise can help hone competitive edge
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Life After Sport: Performance Lifestyle and Sports Psychology preparing athletes for a transition after sport
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EIS Impact
Olympic medallists
EIS worked with:
86%
of all Olympic & Paralympic medallists
Gold: 87% Silver: 85% Bronze: 87%
83% GOLD
88%
95%
84%
84%
SILVER
BRONZE
Paralympic medallists
93%
of Britain’s medal-winning sports
91% GOLD
SILVER
BRONZE
*Athletes receiving significant support in the 6-12 months leading into the Olympics
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EIS Staff At London 2012
Olympic/Paralympic Medals & Growth of EIS
Total
Since The EIS WAS formED in 2002
103
30
47
65
9
19
25
9
13
13
12
15
14
Olympic Medals
EIS Staff working with Team GB:
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EIS Staff working with Paralympic GB:
Paralympic Medals
The EIS Delivered an average of
of Sport Science & Medical support to Olympic & Paralympic athletes every week throughout the cycle leading into the London 2012 Games
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Beijing 2008
London 2012
35
42
34
30
29
43
29
31
43
94
102
120
hrs Total
4,
Athens 2004
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“I wanted to get back into training as soon as possible, my coach and the physiotherapist looked at the options for me to get running but at a reduced load and the underwater treadmill came up. Although I needed more physiotherapy and have had to adapt my training whilst I recovered, I was able to train across all three disciplines...” Alistair Brownlee, Olympic Gold Medallist
“We had a detailed rehabilitation plan to get Alistair back to fitness, which he and his coach were extremely involved in and were key to the success of his recovery. The journey leading into the Games and the Olympics themselves has been an amazing experience, both professionally and personally. Working with athletes who have put the extra work in to fight back from injury who then achieve their ultimate sporting ambitions is amazing.” Emma Deakin, EIS Physiotherapist, GB Triathlon
“The professional set up of the sport and the medical team at British Gymnastics now is amazing. When I suffered my knee injury ahead of London I thought it was the end. But, within 48 hours I’d had a scan and was lined up for surgery – when I first started Gymnastics I remember it could take weeks even to get a scan. Every moment of my week was planned around my rehab and training.” Beth Tweddle, Olympic Bronze Medallist, Gymnastics
“After initially reviewing the sport science and medicine support needs, we worked on refining and supplementing the service support for our gymnasts. Each area has been evaluated so that we can ‘tailor’ the service based on the specificity on each discipline within gymnastics. A team approach to service delivery is crucial.” Louise Fawcett, EIS Head of Sport Science & Medicine for British Gymnastics.
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Getting Athletes to the Start Line Whilst preventing injury is a crucial to the work of the EIS, not all injuries are preventable and therefore the rehabilitation process is often a critical area of work to get athletes to the start line when it counts.
Etienne Stott, Olympic Canoe Slalom C2 Gold Medallist Suffering a traumatic dislocation in March
Normally such an injury would warrant
The team ethos continued as Stott then
“Making the World Championships last
2011 was not the ideal preparation ahead
at least 12 weeks out of the water and
spent two weeks at the British Olympic
year was crucial in getting me here
of the Games for Etienne Stott, just months
a gradual return to training. However,
Medical Institute – Intensive Rehabilitation
and without the support team I simply
away from Games qualification at the
with just 20 weeks to go until the World
Unit, which operates in partnership with
wouldn’t have been able to get back and
World Championships. Whilst EIS Sports
Championship selection, a meticulous
the EIS at its site at Bisham Abbey. By
compete in the timeframe we had. The
Physician Dr Kate Strachen accompanied
plan was formed which involved specific
the time Stott returned he was already
coherence and coordination of the whole
Stott to the hospital where his shoulder
physio sessions to mobilise the shoulder,
back on the water just 10 ½ weeks post
support team made it happen.”
was relocated, EIS Physiotherapist, Julie
gym work which began after two weeks
operation.
Etienne Stott, Olympic Gold Medallist,
Pearce, wasted no time in getting Stott’s
of the operation under careful limits and
surgery booked with shoulder specialist
nutrition support, both through the EIS, as
Stott and Baillie achieved a Bronze at
Prof Lennard Funk.
well as an external sports psychologist.
the World Championships as well as their
“I was obviously devastated when it
“It was ambitious, but in my mind it had
happened as it was clearly a serious injury.
to be done and I trusted my support. The
But within two days I had an MRI scan, my
plan was managed really well so that I
surgery was booked and all the options
was always raring to move on to the next
had been clearly explained to me, which
stage of rehabilitation, whilst great care
was really reassuring. The speed at which
was taken at every level to ensure there
everything came together was crucial not
were no setbacks along the way. I had
just in terms of my physical recovery, but
clear goals and always understood exactly
also my state of mind.”
where I was on the plan, so I always felt I
Slalom Canoe
Olympic qualification, at which they won Canoe Slalom gold in the C2.
was moving forwards.”
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“Being able to work with sport science and medical staff both locally to my training as well as at camps and competitions through British Swimming and the EIS helped me feel prepared for the challenge of a home Games. I knew we were all working towards the same goal and felt the team around me were focused on helping me achieve the best performances I could.” Claire Cashmore, Paralympic Silver and Bronze Medallist, Swimming
“When I started this job I really wanted us to improve and now we’re really doing things better. This is the best team, and best staff, I’ve ever worked with. In my opinion, the most significant change since I started working with UKA in January 2009 is the overall improved level of integration in everything we do, but in particular the integrated support services that we share with our Olympic counterparts in areas such as physiology, physiotherapy, strength and conditioning, psychology and nutrition, for example, and also the improved quality of coaching, camps and other services we receive.” Peter Eriksson, Former Paralympic Athletics Head Coach, now Olympic Athletics Head Coach
“Knowing that the coaching, sport science and medicine teams at British Cycling and EIS had put everything into helping me prepare for the Games, whether it was in the lab or on the track, gave me the supreme confidence I needed going into the Paralympic Games and allowed me to focus 100% on my performance when it mattered most.” Mark Colbourne, Paralympic Gold and Silver medallist, Cycling
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Innovative Performance Solutions
Boxing Clever: Bespoke Performance Nutrition Solution
Bespoke Seating Solution in Boccia
Amongst the 10 sport science and medical support staff that the British Amateur Boxing Association (BABA) manages as part of the GB Olympic boxing programme, EIS Performance Nutritionist Mark Ellison has worked with the programme since the Beijing Games and developed a unique solution to help manage athletes’ diet in the weight making sport.
Unlike many areas of work at the EIS with disabled athletes where delivery is broadly the same as with non-disabled competitors, much of the work with Boccia is highly specialised and reflects the individual needs of the athletes and the range and severity of the disabilities they face which have a major impact on motor skills.
The balance between fuelling the boxers to train and compete at an intense level yet also enable them to manage strict weight guidelines is a difficult one and particularly tough during competition, when the boxers can be expected to compete and make the weight on 4-6 occasions over a two-week period. Not making the weight can cost medals and is a critical factor for boxers and a system to support this was therefore a priority for BABA to establish. A rigorous process of on-going weight management, where boxers were weighed daily when in training camp (Monday to Thursday), and were not allowed to be more than 5% over their competition weight was put in place. In 2011, the EIS was then presented with a new challenge when the BABA took possession of seven apartments which it had purchased to provide a homestyle accommodation for 19 boxers. Whereas previously the boxers had stayed in accommodation where food was prepared and provided for them and menus were centrally controlled, living in apartments presented a major challenge as it meant the boxers needed to be fuelled to train and compete yet had widely different levels of cooking ability, tastes and food education.
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Following extensive research and discussions an arrangement was developed with a catering company (www.soulmatefood.com) for them to provide personalised meals for every boxers in the Podium squad. The food is delivered to the boxer’s apartments in large individually-labelled boxes twice per week and includes three meals per day and snacks. Portion size is tailored for each boxer and all meals can be eaten cold or micro waved for ease of preparation, enabling boxers to prepare food quickly and eat when they need to. All meals are developed in consultation with nutritionist Mark Ellison, and each of the boxers to reflect their nutritional requirements and personal tastes. The nutritional requirements reflect: • The balance between carbohydrate and protein required at different times of the day, so breakfast and lunch are more carb heavy with a greater focus on light meals combining protein and vegetables in the evening. • Stages in the training cycle and proximity to competition, so that portion sizes are steadily reduced as the boxer’s approach competition and weight making.
The popularity of this arrangement with the boxers means many of them now have the food boxes delivered to their homes at weekends when they are not in the training camp in Sheffield. “The sport science back-up we receive from the EIS has been an important part of our success and the work that Mark does on nutrition has been central to this. He understands exactly what the boxers require in terms of nutrition and the systems and initiatives he has developed have been a big help to myself, the coaches and, most importantly, the boxers.” Rob McCracken, Performance Director, GB Boxing “With us, it’s all about physical work, and you don’t want to be finishing a hard run or a hard session and then having to cook things in the kitchen. It makes it a lot easier if you can just pour it onto your plate and put it in the microwave” Anthony Joshua, Olympic Gold Medallist, Boxing
Establishing the best seating position and wheelchair set-up is critically important in Boccia, where postural control and maintaining the best seating position can have a big impact on performance. One area of groundbreaking work that has been overseen by EIS Physiotherapist, Dawn Ibrahim, is a project on classification and developing a range of seating requirements that can help to maximise their performance in Boccia. Based on athletes’ classification, which reflects their impairments, functional ability and determines the requirements of athletes seating and set-up, Dawn worked with a number of experts to develop a series of bespoke seating systems and wheelchairs, specifically designed to reflect both the particular needs of the athlete and the requirements of playing Boccia.
“Many of the Boccia athletes had been playing in their everyday chairs which had not been adjusted specifically for Boccia. The versatility required and the demands placed on an everyday chair are very different to that of a sport specific chair. I brought in external expertise to assist in the assessment and provision of bespoke seating systems and wheelchairs to ensure we obtained the best solutions available.” Dawn Ibrahim, EIS Physiotherapist, GB Boccia Alongside physiotherapy the squad have individualised strength and conditioning programmes and prehabilitation regimes to build strength, improve flexibility or hone their warm up routines and recovery strategies. They also access performance analysis and biomechanics to better understand and identify the characteristics required for success, which has also helped to influence the Talent Identification process. Performance Lifestyle has helped a number of athletes to combine University studies with the demands of training as an elite athlete.
“The EIS staff that have been working on the programme have been first class and one of the things we cannot afford to lose into Rio is the performance expertise that now exist in Paralympic sport through the Institute. If we are serious about Rio, and we are serious about the investment made in the London cycle providing the springboard, then the EIS has to be a main player in this respect. The fact that we now have disabled athletes with a clear understanding of a performance environment, and understand the expectations of others in the programme (and consequentially themselves) about what being World Class really means, is an understated legacy achievement for the EIS.” Matt Hammond, Performance Director, GB Boccia
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Life After Sport As well as helping athletes develop skills to reach their full potential as elite athletes, the EIS Performance Lifestyle team, working closely with sports psychologists in the Performance Psychology team, work throughout the cycle to help develop athletes skills and preparations for a life after sport so that transition is something athletes feel prepared for, whenever it happens.
“For the majority of the GB hockey squad, further education
“Sailors, like many elite athletes, have a breadth of transferable
“For the Women’s programme, as a new Olympic sport, the
and developing short and longer-term career opportunities
skills from being high performers in their sport. Success is
majority of athletes came to the programme from professional
have been part and parcel of their life as elite athletes. Whilst
influenced by being an effective decision maker, being
and semi-professional careers already so require a different
the time that athletes can commit to future career development
organised, managing logistics effectively and demonstrating
approach to the men’s programme. Traditionally with the
varies within an Olympic cycle, we have been able to develop
excellent technical and problem solving skills. Their transition
men’s programme, there has been a high drop off from the
some creative tailored opportunities with employers who
into a life after sport can be better supported if they can
programme post-Games into professional boxing. However,
recognise and value the skills that elite athletes can bring to the
identify, develop and then translate these skills into other
with the UK Sport funded World Class Programme, the World
work environment. The EIS Performance Lifestyle Athlete Career
settings.”
Series, potential AIBA Pro Boxing as well as the improved
Development Programme has supported a number of athletes
Edd Vahid, EIS Performance Lifestyle Advisor working with GB
profile and commercial interest in amateur boxing ,the boxers
in lining up post-Games opportunities; a few even arranged
Sailing.
have real options. This cycle has been more about providing
and had in place before the Games started.” Emma Mitchell, EIS Performance Lifestyle Advisor working with
“Following the lessons learnt from the Beijing Games, in terms
GB Hockey
of the impact the Games had on athletes who did and didn’t achieve what they wanted and support staff alike, I developed,
“From previous Olympic Games, the post-competition period
in coordination with the EIS Psychology Team, a two-pronged
has been identified as one that needed a more rigorous and
support mechanism to ensure that the effects were better
thorough support framework for the GB hockey squad. Firstly,
managed, particularly in light of being a home Games. The
meetings with all GB Olympic athletes have been arranged to
first prong was ensuring each sailor had a simple but clear
provide a space for athletes to be psychologically screened
plan for 1 day, 1 month and 3 months post Games to help them
and to talk about their experiences and feelings of playing in
transition from the stringent and rigorous sporting routine that
an Olympic Games. Alongside this all athletes met with Emma
is involved in the build-up to having little focus and nothing to
Mitchell (PL Advisor) and I to discuss their post-Olympics plans in
do for a period of time post Games. The second prong was to
terms of finance, work, accommodation etc. The key thing from
ensure that each Olympic and Paralympic sailor, and support
a psychological point of view is for athletes to have space and
staff where required, was given a health check using a semi-
time to reflect and subsequently being able to access support
structured interview process immediately prior to finishing their
if needed, or if advised.”
event. This comprised of 4 main areas: psychological wellbeing,
Tom Cross, EIS Sports Psychologist working with GB Women’s
physical, lifestyle and media. This enabled signposting to
Hockey
appropriate support, such as performance lifestyle, so athletes and staff were not left to ‘just deal with it’! The health check was followed up at 1 month and 3 months post Games.” Ben Chell, EIS Sports Psychologist working with GB Sailing
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athletes with a breadth of information about these options, whilst also working on things like gym instructor qualifications as a back-up for them if their boxing careers are cut short. The aim is to encourage the boxers to take their time and ensure that they have the necessary information to make the right decisions for them.” Dan Salcedo, EIS Performance Lifestyle Advisor, GB Boxing “Following the Olympic Games, there’s typically a period of downtime in which athletes, whether they achieved their Olympic dream of not, can experience something of an anticlimax. This is a natural part of the post-games period, but it can sometimes lead to athletes making ill advised career decisions - they feel the need to act to avoid these feelings. As an integral part of the debriefing process, we’ve spent time with the squad and support team to normalise these feelings, highlighting the natural emotional journey that occurs post-games. Aligned to the work of our Performance Lifestyle Advisor, this work assists in aiding the boxers to make the best decisions for themselves and their future.” Pete Lindsay, EIS Sports Psychologist, GB Boxing
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“The excellent working relationship between the EIS and British Gymnastics has assisted us in making some major performance gains this cycle. The feedback from our athletes’ and coaches is clear in that the advances we have made in the areas of science and medicine, in conjunction with the EIS, have been significant in supporting our progress at international level. We are now significant players on the world stage, with our world class practitioners acknowledged as playing a significant supporting role.” Tim Jones, Performance Director, British Gymnastics
“Better facilities, and support from the English Institute of Sport on everything from nutrition to performance analysis, have moved us from being ranked seventh in the world to a team achieving bronze at the Olympics” Hannah MacLeod, GB Hockey Bronze Medallist
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Š English institute of sport
For more about the team behind the team visit www.eis2win.co.uk or follow us on twitter @eis2win
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www.eis2win.co.uk info@eis2win.co.uk English Institute of Sport National Office Sportcity Gate 13, Rowsley Street Manchester, M11 3FF Tel: +44 (0)870 759 0400