ELITE SPORT

Athlete medical records are kept on the UK Sport’s web-based med- ical record programme; Injury Zone (where consultations, treat- ments, injuries, illnesses, test data, MRI scans and x-rays can all be stored). This facility allows local support providers (eg. sports med- icine doctors/physiotherapists at the HCIs) access to the medical records when required, ensuring that support staff are kept up-to- date with an athlete’s progress.

Finally, all swimmers on the World Class Performance and World Class Potential Programmes are subject to the UK Sport’s ‘out of competition’ drug testing programme, as well as those of their international governing bodies (eg. International Paralympic Committee). If required, athletes must apply for approval for the therapeutic use of a prohibited substance on the World Anti-Doping Code Prohibited List through the governing body/team doctor.

Physiotherapy support British Disability Swimming utilises the support of chartered phys- iotherapists through a number of sources. The three HCIs provide local support for the swimmers, on a regular basis should they require advice, treatment or rehabilitation. These physiotherapists also undertake musculoskeletal profiles of all the World Class Performance and World Class Potential swimmers twice a year, providing feedback to the swimmer, coach and governing body staff where appropriate. Data from this profiling is placed onto the athlete’s Injury Zone medical record.

Physiotherapists also attend all major training camps and competi- tions, where the main emphasis of their support is working along- side the swimmers, coaches and other support staff to ensure the health and wellbeing of the athletes. This would include providing prophylactic strapping, massage, land-based warm-ups prior to ses- sions and strength and conditioning sessions at training camps.

Dietetic support Nutritional support is provided through a British Dietetic Association accredited dietitian. All World Class swimmers should have dietary analysis with individual verbal and written reports at least once a year. Ideally, swimmers also have the opportunity for individual consultations with the dietitian when they first join a World Class squad (this involves taking a diet history, training times/work commitments, who does the cooking/shopping, plus a general advice sheet and individual advice where appropriate). The dietitian is also involved with liaising with hotels for training venues but less so for competitions which is entirely under the con- trol of the organisers.

At present much of this support is provided on an ad-hoc basis at training camps. In the future it is hoped that this work will be expanded to include: (i) short teaching sessions for both swimmers

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and staff at regional training weekends (eg. fluids, snacks, eating at competition); (ii) fact sheets for each country/region the team travels (eg. what foods/snacks are available in that locality, which cereal bars, squash, biscuits, sports drinks and cereals including cost and ease of availability); (iii) regular individual consultations with swimmers to deal with problems/changes in their diet, allowing them to take the correct nutritional supplements; and finally (iv) more influence over what is provided at hotels, espe- cially during competition. From experience many organisers are wasting vast amounts of money on what they provide for packed lunches and vegetarians are usually very poorly provided for at lunch and dinner.

Psychological support Psychological support has been very limited to-date as sadly there is still much opposition to the use of sport psychologists within this sport. The exact cause of this resistance is hard to pinpoint, how- ever there have been a few exceptions where individual athletes have insisted on one-to-one support from the British Paralympic Association’s sports psychologist for a variety of issues (ranging from clinical to sport-specific). Where these have occurred the ath- letes have been very positive about its benefits.

ADDITIONAL SUPPORT Performance lifestyle (formerly ACE UK) All athletes can access the Performance Lifestyle programme, a pro- gramme set up to help athletes prepare effectively for life both dur- ing and after their sporting career. Each athlete is assigned an ath- lete adviser who is on hand to provide advice and guidance for the length of the athlete’s sporting career if they so wish.

The focus of this support includes: ■ integration planning - helping athletes to combine the demands of sport with other personal aspirations

■ educational guidance - providing advice for those athletes who wish to continue with their studies, and support for those cur- rently studying

■ career planning - helping an athlete to discover their strengths and interests and match these to possible career aspirations ■ transitional support - for

those athletes who are injured, relo-

cating or nearing the end of their career. The programme provides guidance on future options; such as access to the Olympic and Paralympic Employment Network (OPEN), which matches athletes with companies who can offer a meaningful career path and flexible working arrangements; and training and development programmes, for example ‘media know how’ and ‘financial planning.’

Coach education This is vital in providing a comprehensive programme of sport

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