USOPC Presentation #3: 14+ Years of Age

BY TERRI MILNER TARQUINI

Coaching with a purpose and a plan is important at all levels of skating, but can be especially vital to keep on track once an athlete has reached the higher levels of the sport.

At the 2019 PSA Conference in Palm Springs, coaches were led through the concepts of advanced skating, off-ice strength and conditioning, mental training and the success structure during a skater’s more-developed years on the ice, titled USOPC Presentation #3 – 14+ Years of Age.

One of the segments, focusing on measurement and evaluation through the stages of skating, was led by Scott Riewald, Senior Director of High Performance Projects for the U.S. Olympic Committee.

“One of the messages I want to drive home is about measuring, about testing, about knowing versus speculating,” Riewald said. “You must know — really know — about those areas that are about the health, well-being and performance of the athletes you are working with.”

Identifying something like strength, or power, or flexibility that can help a skater the most should be at the forefront of a coach’s mind.

“Your job is to boil down what’s important to measure and, once that’s identified, are you tracking that important thing?” Riewald said. “You need to capture that data and monitor your athlete with regards to it.”

Part of the monitoring process is being aware of potential pitfalls that can befall a high-performance athlete.

“As you get into these higher stages, you have the ability to train athletes 10 hours a day,” he said, “but does that mean it’s the right thing to do?”

Monitoring how much and what kind of training your athlete is doing is vital to their success so the skater is getting the diverse types of training necessary to compete at the higher levels and also respecting the rest and recovery that is needed to continue performing optimally.

“The needs of an athlete change as they go through the stages and they get to a place where the training is more intense, the effort is higher,” Riewald said. “They now have the opportunity to not only do on-ice training, but off-ice training, ballet, choreography and the demands take up more of an athlete’s time. Who’s managing that and making sure the athlete is not in a position where they burn out or get injured and end up wanting to walk away from the sport?”

While accountability by the athlete increases as they get older and are more aware of what is expected of them in order to perform at the level they desire, at the outset of any of the stages should be a coach they can learn from.

“It’s ultimately going to fall on the athlete to manage their time, but, initially, as they come into this space, they will look to you as the expert,” Riewald said.

“You can help provide the guidance and the framework for the athlete. You can help them with training and how they’re approaching their performance now that they’re at a higher level.”

This is also trackable information that deserves to be observed and measured.

“Measuring something like jump count could be an indicator of how much load an athlete is experiencing in day-to-day training,” he said. “Are you periodizing so that there’s not just 50 jumps today, 60 jumps tomorrow and 70 jumps on Wednesday? Think about those things. There are scientific principles that should guide your work in the areas of load in high volume, high intensity days, but also providing opportunities for the athlete to rest and recover.”

Another measurable area that is key to a skater’s success, made easier under the IJS judging system, is knowing where your athlete stacks up against the competition and being aware of what their weaknesses are and what opportunities should be explored for their improvement.

“When you start a trip, you have a road map and you know where you’re starting and where you want to end up,” Riewald said. “You need to fill in the steps on how you’re going to get from your current location to where it is that you ultimately want to be. Understanding the gaps in their performance is fundamental in developing the road map that will take an already good athlete and make them great.”

Determining the best road to travel on the trip to greatness is often driven by a coach who has engaged in selfexamination.

“Take some time to reflect and look at what you do, how you do it, why you do it,” Riewald said. “Take all opportunities to learn from your experiences and revise and do things better.”

In this over-14-year-old group, the guidance a coach provides for their skater has different facets than in previous age groups.

“At the higher levels, there must be increased understanding how strength and conditioning compliments what’s done on the ice, talking about nutrition and dietetics, you’re now giving them guidance about their life as a whole and advice on how to structure things appropriately,” Riewald said.

“That’s a very valuable thing you bring to your athlete that you didn’t necessarily have to bring to the earlier phases of an athlete’s development.”

Part of the journey to getting better is recognizing that asking for help can serve to improve both coach and skater.

“In the eyes of your student, through their development, you have been viewed as an expert, as someone they can come to and ask questions,” he said. “As they get to this later stage, if they see you working to learn and to get better, or if you don’t know an answer to a specific question but you work to discover it, that has real value.”

The rest of presentation #3, focusing on the third stage of a skater’s development, included Audrey Weisiger, two-time Olympic coach, discussing the on-ice skills at this point in the athlete’s career for skaters and parents; Brandon Siakel, USOPC Strength and Conditioning, presenting next-level off-ice training; and Nadine Dubina, USOPC Coach Development and Mental Skills, presenting more advanced mental training ideas.

To learn more about the concepts of on-ice and off-ice skating, the body, the mind and successful progression during the time when a skater has now reached an advanced level as a skater, go to the PSA TV link at www.skatepsa.com and watch the event in its entirety.

PSA TV is an on-demand video library of educational content that includes tips from master rated coaches, webinars, and podcasts. We proudly offer a selection of free content, videos for purchase, or subscribe for only $4.99/month for access to the full catalog.