Jack is a PhD student at La Trobe University. He is interested in the Ecological Dynamics Framework and its application to shooting, where he is uniquely positioned to combine his sports science background with extensive experience as an ISSF rifle shooter. Jack has shot for Great Britain at European Championships, World Cups, and the World Championships. He is actively applying his shooting knowledge by coaching ISSF rifle athletes in Australia, from athletes just starting out to those aiming for success on the world stage.

Jamie Hamilton, a UEFA A-licensed coach and academy coach at Ayr United FC, dives into the fascinating world of football tactics and coaching methodologies. He discusses the evolution of strategies from traditional positional play to innovative concepts like 'relationism.' The importance of communication on the field shines through, along with an exploration of cultural influences from Brazil's football scene. Hamilton also critiques the current tendencies in coaching, advocating for a blend of analytics and human understanding to enhance player development.

Matt is a coach, coach developer and lecturer in sport coaching with fifteen years’ experience across grass roots, elite and paralympic environments covering team and individual sports. Theoretically underpinned by an Ecological Dynamics rationale of learning, Matt’s research explores how coach learning can be guided in context by a coach developer. As a coach, Matt has been a British Athletics team member (speed and hurdles) on seven international age group teams. His first selection being a particular highlight, Cali Colombia, for the World U18 Championships, where he supported athletes through to five finals, a UK record and medal winning performances. Matt joined the University of Northampton in June 2023, from his previous institution, Cardiff Metropolitan University where he was part of the Sport Coaching and PE teaching teams. He is currently completing a Professional Doctorate in Sport, exploring the practice of a coach developer adopting a constraints-led approach. In this research Matt collaborated with a national governing body in the redesign and delivery of mentoring and in-situ coach development across three environments and sixteen coach participants.

Matt is a coach, coach developer and lecturer in sport coaching with fifteen years’ experience across grass roots, elite and paralympic environments covering team and individual sports. Theoretically underpinned by an Ecological Dynamics rationale of learning, Matt’s research explores how coach learning can be guided in context by a coach developer. As a coach, Matt has been a British Athletics team member (speed and hurdles) on seven international age group teams. His first selection being a particular highlight, Cali Colombia, for the World U18 Championships, where he supported athletes through to five finals, a UK record and medal winning performances. Matt joined the University of Northampton in June 2023, from his previous institution, Cardiff Metropolitan University where he was part of the Sport Coaching and PE teaching teams. He is currently completing a Professional Doctorate in Sport, exploring the practice of a coach developer adopting a constraints-led approach. In this research Matt collaborated with a national governing body in the redesign and delivery of mentoring and in-situ coach development across three environments and sixteen coach participants.

Duarte Araujo, director of Expertise in Sport at the University of Lisbon, dives into the fascinating interplay of cognition and sport. He discusses how conscious and unconscious learning impact performance, challenging traditional coaching methods. The conversation explores 'active perception', urging athletes to engage dynamically with their environment, and rethinks coaching strategies to foster autonomy and self-organization in athletes. Araujo also critiques conventional performance metrics, advocating for a holistic understanding of intelligence in sports.

Duarte Araujo, director of Expertise in Sport at the University of Lisbon, shares his insights on the critical role of cognition in athletic performance. He delves into how cognition and ecological dynamics intertwine, pushing for a holistic understanding shaped by environmental interaction. Duarte discusses the complexities of memory, emphasizing its significance beyond muscle memory. He critiques traditional coaching methods, advocating for future-focused learning that enhances athletes' adaptability and problem-solving skills in dynamic situations.

This week we are joined by Paul Garner live from the Manchester Festival of Coaching. Paul is an Assistant Professor in Sport Coaching and Player Development at the University of Birmingham. Paul has represented Great Britain as a member of the British Alpine Skiing Demonstration Team, and has worked extensively in snow sports as a performer, coach, coach developer and assessor. Paul continues to work closely with a number of governing bodies to drive excellence in coach education, development and assessment across the coaching landscape. Enjoy!

Join Craig Morris, a British Canoe Slalom coach, as he shares his journey from athlete to coach. Explore his coaching philosophy evolution towards a constraints-led approach, emphasizing athlete involvement, game design, and performance analysis. Discover the challenges faced and the importance of evolving coaching practices and building relationships with athletes. Dive into the publication of an academic paper on skill training periodization for the Olympics, highlighting collaboration between academia and practitioners.

Marianne Davies, Senior Coach Developer for UK Coaching, shares insights from her 25+ years in adventure sports and education. She discusses how an ecological perspective is shaping coach education, addressing the disconnect between qualifications and real-world challenges. Marianne emphasizes the importance of flexible frameworks, self-directed learning, and research integration. The conversation promotes creating supportive, personalized learning environments and encourages collaboration among coaches and athletes for enhanced development.

In this episode we are joined by Véronique Richard from the University of Queensland. Véronique specialises in performance psychology and creativity, working across research and applied environments. She is currently conducting applied research combining creativity and movement sciences to optimize performance, health and wellbeing. In her prior roles as a mental performance consultant for Canadian national sport organisations and Cirque du Soleil, Véronique observed the challenges of balancing high-level performance and well-being for sport and performing arts stakeholders. To tackle this challenge, she designs enriched movement activities to build creativity supportive environments, while examining the impact of such environments on creativity-related cognitive, affective, and socio-cultural variables. We discuss how the framework of ecological dynamics influences her work and informs intervention designs across all levels of sport.Enjoy!