'Believe in Yourself, Channel Energy, and Play Your Trumps': Olympic preparation in complex coordination sports

Objectives: This paper is aimed at (a) analysing the psychological context of complex coordination sports (CCSs) and specific contextual factors related to Olympic Games, (b) sharing the authors' experiences in Olympic preparation of athletes in diving, figure skating, and artistic and rhythmic gymnastics with an emphasis on typical working issues and strategies; and (c) summarizing the authors' reflections on the role of the national sport system and cultural contexts in Olympic preparation and major lessons learnt in working with Olympic athletes. Design and Method: Analysing and structuring the authors' professional experiences in working with Olympic athletes in CCSs based on the scientist-practitioner model. Results: Major results include (a) a summary of psychological context for Olympic athletes in CCSs; (b) the temporal structure of Olympic preparation; (c) four categories of Olympic athletes; (d) consultants' strategies, reflecting major psychological aspects of Olympic preparation in CCSs; and (e) lessons learnt in working with Olympic athletes in CCSs. Conclusion: The authors emphasize the large responsibility of sport psychology practitioners working with Olympic athletes in CCSs and share lessons learnt, with a focus on seven major sport psychology approaches validated in their practice. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.