The Sport Psych Show

Richard Fryer, a sports psychologist and AIS senior consultant with Olympic and Paralympic experience, explains coaching under pressure. He talks about psychological flexibility, mental skills for competition, and how coaches prepare with planning and simulations. He also covers in-competition emotion management, attention shifting, and clear, adaptive communication.

I'm delighted to speak with Dr Séamus Harvey and Dr Chin Wei Ong in this week's episode. We discuss a mental well-being screening process which was implemented at an elite youth football academy developed by Séamus, Chin and colleagues. Séamus is a Postdoctoral Researcher with the NetwellCASALA research centre at Dundalk Institute of Technology. Séamus researches digital health and health psychology as well as sport and exercise psychology. Séamus also lectures on Dundalk Institute of Technology's (DkIT's) Health and Physical Activity programme. Séamus completed his MSc. in Applied Sport and Exercise Psychology at Ulster University and a PhD in Sport Psychology at Bangor University. Prior to his PhD, Séamus worked as a Research Assistant with Liverpool John Moores University. Chin is a behavioural scientist and consultant with 15+ years' experience across elite sport, research, and organisational contexts. Chin's work focuses on how individuals and teams perform under pressure, and how organisations can design systems that enable sustainable performance. Chin previously worked across a global network of elite environments, designing systems that integrated performance, talent development, wellbeing, and risk. These are challenges that closely mirror those faced by organisations operating in complex, high-stakes contexts. Chin is particularly interested in helping organisations move beyond measuring talent to truly understanding it; using that insight to build stronger leaders, more effective teams, and resilient performance cultures.

Daniel Coyle, award-winning author who studies how people and groups grow, explains the ideas behind Flourish. He contrasts hard, deep practice with the sustaining power of connection, story and joy. He shares simple tools like the connective pause, the 4-Hs exercise, player-led practices and small acts of service that build ownership, presence and experimental, flourishing cultures.

Declan O'Connell, coach and performance consultant with 20+ years and a PhD focus on adaptability. He breaks down adaptive versus routine expertise. He outlines four pillars: self-awareness, flexing to connect, contextual sensitivity, and accelerated learning. Conversations cover mentorship, reading the room, curiosity, reflective practice, and practical steps to build adaptability in high-pressure settings.

I'm delighted to speak with Andreas Küttel in this week's episode. Andreas is a Swiss former ski jumper who won five World Cup competitions from 2005 to 2007, and placed third in the overall World Cup in 2006. He won a gold medal in the individual large hill event at the 2009 Ski Jumping World Championships. Andreas also competed at three Winter Olympics, earning his best finish of fifth in the individual normal hill event in 2006. After his competing days, Andreas entered academia working in the field of sports science at the University of Southern Denmark. In this episode we discuss a research paper he led on which explores mental health and performance dynamics in elite sport.

Dr David Moran, coach and researcher in Gaelic games and youth sport practices. He explores ability grouping (streaming) in youth sport. Topics include how streaming shapes team continuity and challenge. They discuss equity and implementation problems, coaching expectations, and practical club strategies to make streaming fairer.

Katja Rewitz, a second-year PhD student at the University of Hamburg studying decision making in sport, explores the explore versus exploit trade-off. She discusses how sensations, effort, fatigue and time pressure shape choices. Practical sport examples span shoes, tactics and tyre strategy. The conversation covers lab methods, coach implications and plans for future studies.

I speak with Dr Simon Quick in this week's episode. Simon is a lecturer in Sport Coaching at the University of Essex, specialising in sport pedagogy, coaching ethics, and holistic athlete development. Simon previously taught Physical Education in high schools holding leadership roles including Head of Physical Education, Athletic Director, and Deputy Headteacher. Simon is an active researcher and collaborator, with recent publications in leading journals such as the International Sport Coaching Journal, Quest, International Journal of Sport Science and Coaching, and Journal of Teaching in Physical Education. Simon completed his PhD at Leeds Beckett University. His current research focuses on the tensions between athlete performance and welfare in high-performance sport.

Dave Webb, a seasoned football manager and coach with over 20 years in elite football, shares insights from his journey as Georgia's National Team Assistant Manager. He highlights how sport psychology informs recruitment, emphasizing character and self-regulation in players. Webb discusses tactics for preparing teams under pressure, using cross-sport examples to build belief and identity. He reflects on past successes and challenges, aiming to shape the future of football in Georgia while pursuing his ambitions as a top club head coach.

Simon Gelsthorpe, a clinical psychologist with a focus on emotions, shares insights on Emotionally Informed Coaching, a framework designed to enhance athletes' emotional well-being and performance. He highlights the importance of understanding emotions as predictors of future actions rather than mere reactions. Simon discusses the need for coaches to develop a precise emotional vocabulary and to facilitate open conversations about feelings. He also emphasizes reframing sadness as a motivational force and advocates for measuring athletes' emotional experiences beyond traditional performance metrics.