A presentation on the benefits of Talent Transfer with coaching tips and how Talent Transfer has previously been used in elite sports.

1. Talent Transfer
Sports Coaching Pedagogy
Joe cramp

2. What is Talent Transfer?
 Talent transfer occurs, either through an athlete seeking out
opportunities for themselves or through a coach that
‘releases’ an athlete with sufficient time to try an alternative
sport.
 The alternate sport will have similar movement
skills, physiological requirements, and/or tactical components
to their earlier sport.

3. Talent Transfer Motivation
 The switch is prompted by an injury, a plateau in
performance, a reduction in motivation, or retirement.
 Talent transfer can also occur through formalised talent
identification and development programs that are coordinated
by sporting organisations and/or institutes of sport.

4. The only way is up!
 Through the most basic level of talent transfer; it prolongs
athletes careers.
 Talent transfer is particularly worthwhile for athletes who
have already experienced somewhat successful careers in a
previous sport.
 Disadvantages or negative consequences of talent transfer
are virtually non-existent.

5. Transfer vs. Identification
 Athletes advance quickly in their new sports.
 Previous skill sets are used to enhance progression through
new development stages.
 Minimises adolescent maturational issues associated with
talent development.
 Maximises return on investments made to the athlete’s
involvement in their earlier sport

6. Coaching the transfer
 The coach must first distinguish the positive and negative
characteristics that the athlete will bring to the alternate sport.
 Following this the coach can then deliberate a coaching
program to eliminate the negatives and fast track the
positives into the alternate sport.

7. What elite athletes bring:
Positives:
highly motivated and goal oriented
accomplished in current sport
great self-management skills
good work ethic
proven performer in competition environments
no bad technical habits.

8. Is that all you need?
 Recent discovery's by the AIS coaches, have found more
then just a set of psychological skills is need for talent
transfer into an alternate sport; but a physical skill set
suitable is needed to succeed at the alternate sport.
 Tests and screening process are now in place to find the skill
sets needed for various sports.

9. Athlete problems
When transferring to an alternate sport athletes may
experience:
 skill, physiology and motivation not in balance — coaches
may need to help minimise injury and overtraining
 can be frustrated by inferior coaching and support
environments
 impatient for success — needs to be carefully managed
through realistic progressions.

10. Ice novice to Winter Olympian

11. The Transfer idea
 In 2002 the skeleton was re-introduced back into the winter
Olympics.
 At the time the number of athletes which competed in the
skeleton was very small (approx. 100 registered women)
 The Australian sports commission and Australian institute of
sport sore this as an opportunity to break into the sport

12. A set of skills
Scientists find characteristics that would lead to winning an
Olympic gold medal, they found:
Start time
Large correlation with pushing the sled and upright running
times
 Scientists went on a nation wide search for track and beach
sprinters.

13. Surfboard to Sled
 After 7 months of vigorous training 4 people were chosen
who had never been on the snow until the program began.
 The team included a two-time Junior World Champion in the
beach sprint event for surf lifesaving, an international level
track sprinter, a national level beach and track sprinter with
surfing experience, and an athlete with national level
experience in both beach sprinting and gymnastics.

14. Transfer of talent
 With less than 14 months on-ice experience, the team
qualified one member to compete in the winter Olympics.
 One Olympic cycle later and 5 years sliding experience
Australia qualified 2 members of there team who finished 10th
and 12th.

15. Who are your
favorite talent
transfer athletes?
© Clive Mason/Getty Images

16. References
 1. Gardner, A.S., Martin, D.T., Gulbin, J., Doney, G.E., Jenkins, D.G. & Hahn, A.G. (2002).
Laboratory and velodrome sprint cycling power in female cyclists in response to 6 weeks of
training. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 35(5), Supplement 1: S337
 2. Halson, S., Martin, D.T., Gardner, A.S., Fallon, K. & Gulbin, J.P. (2006). Persistent fatigue in
a female sprint cyclist after a talent-transfer initiative. International Journal of Sports
Physiology and Performance, 1, 65-69.
 3. Oldenziel, K., Gagne, F. & Gulbin J.P. (2004). Factors affecting the rate of athlete of athlete
development from novice to senior elite: how applicable is the 10-year rule? Abstract
presented at the Pre-Olympic Congress, Athens, 6-11 August, 2004.
 4. Bullock, N., Gulbin, J.P., Martin, D.T., Ross, A., Holland, T. & Marino, F. (2009). Talent
identification and deliberate programming in skeleton: Ice novice to Winter Olympian in 14
months. Journal of Sports Sciences, 27(4), 397-404.
 5. Hughes, Clara (2011). Clara Hughes: O.C., O.M., Olympic Athlete. Retreived from
http://www.clara-hughes.com/
 6. UK Sport (2011). Talent Identification & Development. Retrieved from
http://www.uksport.gov.uk/pages/talent-id/
 7. Gulbin, J. & Ackland, T. (2009). Talent identification and profiling. In Ackland, T., Elliott, B. &
Bloomfield, J. (Eds). Applied Anatomy and Biomechanics in Sport, Champaign IL, Human
Kinetics, p. 11-26.