The Ninth Workshop

Psychological Support in Para Sports

Olympic and Paralympic reports call for an improvement of psychological support and training for athletes. However, there are still athletes who are unable to find ways to resolve these problems. One of the main reasons is that the mind and spirit are not visible. We need to propose a concrete method to train the mind and spirit. This needs to begin with the understanding that training the mind and spirit is a process that takes time.

The psychological support system used by the Japanese Paralympic Committee follows the following steps:

1. Education program
2. Assessment based on diagnostic tests of psychological competence
3. Assessment based on individual interviews
4. Providing continuous support
5. Providing tools

The third step, individual interviews, is particularly important and in team sports, include interviews with managers and coaches. In the fourth step, the kind of support that is needed differs between individual and team sports. The solution to problems is found by the athlete within him/herself, and too much external involvement in the process should be avoided. Psychological preparation for a second career is also necessary.

While supporting athletes, the support team needs to share information and continue to discuss the form of support being given. It is also important to cooperate with other areas of support, such as nutritional support and support from trainers.

People in leading roles should not use psychological support as negative material for evaluation. They should be knowledgeable about psychological support and be aware of what each athlete needs to work on psychologically.