"The Path to Excellence" is the first in-depth study conducted by the USOC that provides information from the Olympians' perspective. From their induction to the sport, to making an Olympic team, the athletes describe the motives, processes, people and organizations that helped them reach the elite level of their sport.

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Due to the large amount of information gathered, the results will be delivered through several reports. This first report, the main objectives were to provide the general patterns and trends that characterized the training and development of U.S. Olympians.

Questions on twelve topics critical to athletic success were asked of the Olympians, including topics about training and coaching. This article discusses notable highlights from the survey that are directly applicable to coaches.

Coaching is a Critical Factor

Coaching is a critical factor for the proper development of talented and motivated athletes. Olympians were asked when their coaches played the most important role during their development; the responses indicated the importance of coaching was highest during national and international competitive phases. For women and men, this occurred around 18 and 19 years of age, respectively. Nearly equal in importance was the coaching that occurred during the skill acquisition phase of development. Average age of skill acquisition was 13.3 years for women and 13.8 years for men. Results of the survey strongly suggest that Olympians regard coaching as an important factor across many phases of development.

Teach and Motivate

Olympians ranked the ability to teach and motivate or encourage as the two most important qualities of a coach. The next three qualities were ranked similarly and included training knowledge, skill competence and strategic knowledge of sport. Interestingly, the qualities reported as least important were assistance with goal setting, management/organization skills and assistance with balancing athlete's lives.

Responses from female winter athletes who medalled suggests that medalist have the ability to motivate themselves rather than seeking a coach to motivate them. They valued a coach's strategic knowledge, regardless of his/her personality. Olympians consider coaching among the top five factors contributing to their success. In fact, among medal-winning female swimmers, coaching ranked as the third most important factor for long-term performance progression.

Period of Talent Development

Most Olympians reported a 12 to 13 year period of talent development from an introduction to a sport, until making their first Olympic team. In addition, medalist were younger in age during the first five stages of athletic development than non-medalists, and it is likely that medalist were receiving motor skill development and training at an earlier age.

This suggests that physical activity and motor skill development during childhood and early adolescence may be an important part of an Olympian's overall development. There are individuals who transcend the average developmental period; however, the data suggests that a long period of training, education, and nurturing are needed to develop Olympic-level talent in most American athletes.

Specialization in Sport

Many coaches and parents grapple with the idea of having their children specialize in a sport at a young age; however, encouraging findings from the questionnaire indicated some Olympians participated in as many as four sports during their childhood and teenage years. During the teenage years, the time Olympians were involved in multiple sport activities, is when they were becoming competitive at the junior and senior national level. This dispels the myth that early specialization is necessary to be successful.

Athletes into Coaches

The survey indicates that many Olympians became coaches following their athletic careers. Thirty percent reported they were coaches at the time they completed the questionnaire. Female winter athletes finishing between ninth and 25th place in their sport at the Olympic Games were the most likely to become coaches.