REFLECTIONS ON ATHLETE-COACH RELATIONSHIP IN THE COURSE OF ATHLETIC CAREER: ATHLETES’ PERSPECTIVE

Sammanfattning: The objective of this study was to investigate the dynamics in the athlete-coach relationship in the course of athletic career, from the perspective of one individual sport athlete and one team sport athlete. The study tried to answer the following questions: (1) How one team sport athlete and one individual sport athlete perceive the athlete-coach relationships at different stages of the athletic career? (2) How the athlete-coach relationships change in the course of the athletic career from the perspective of a team sport athlete and an individual sport athlete? (3) How athletes perceive the characteristics of their most influential coaches? As theoretical frameworks the 3+1Cs conceptualization of coach-athlete relationship (Jowett, 2007), the multidimensional model of leadership (Chelladurai, 1990), and the developmental model on transitions faced by athletes (Wylleman & Lavallee, 2004) were used. In-depth narrative interviews were used. One team sport athlete and one individual sport athlete that had been active in their sport for at least 10 years were interviewed. Four analyses were made: sjuzet-fabula analysis, holistic-content analysis, categorical-content analysis, and critical narrative analysis. Poetic representations were used to present parts of the results. The results show that the athletes perceive their relationship to their coach differently in different stages of their career. They perceived the athlete-coach relationship as dynamic in structure. Finally their most influential coach could be found in the developmental stage of their career and this coach was important to them in different ways. The results were discussed in relation to theoretical frameworks and previous research.