The Recovery Umbrella in the World of Elite Sport: Do Not Forget the Coaching and Performance Staff
Julio Calleja-González,
Stephen P. Bird,
Thomas Huyghe,
Igor Jukic,
Francesco Cuzzolin,
Francesc Cos,
Diego Marqués-Jiménez,
Luka Milanovic,
Jaime Sampaio,
Isaac López-Laval,
Sergej M. Ostojic,
Margaret T. Jones,
Pedro E. Alcaraz,
Xavi Schelling,
Anne Delextrat,
Meeta Singh,
Jonathan Charest,
Tomás T. Freitas,
Lorena Torres Ronda,
Adam Petway,
Daniel Medina,
Antonio Tramullas,
Juan Mielgo-Ayuso,
Nicolas Terrados,
Chris McLellan
Affiliations
Julio Calleja-González
Department of Physical Education and Sports, Faculty of Education and Sport, University of the Basque Country, (UPV/EHU), 01007 Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain
Stephen P. Bird
School of Health and Wellbeing, University of Southern Queensland, Ipswich, QLD 4305, Australia
Thomas Huyghe
UCAM Research Center for High Performance Sport, University of Murcia (UCAM), 30107 Murcia, Spain
Igor Jukic
School of Kinesiology, University of Zagreb, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Francesco Cuzzolin
Technogym SpA, 47521 Cesena, Italy
Francesc Cos
National Institute of Physical Education (INEFC), University of Barcelona, 08038 Barcelona, Spain
Diego Marqués-Jiménez
Faculty of Education, University of Valladolid, 42004 Soria, Spain
Luka Milanovic
Faculty of Kinesiology, University of Zagreb, 10110 Zagreb, Croatia
Jaime Sampaio
Creative Lab Research Community, Research Center in Sports Sciences, Health Sciences and Human Development, CIDESD, University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro, 5001-801 Vila Real, Portugal
Isaac López-Laval
Department of Physiatry and Nursing, Faculty of Health and Sport Science, University of Zaragoza, 50009 Huesca, Spain
Sergej M. Ostojic
Faculty of Sport and Physical Education, University of Novi Sad, 21102 Novi Sad, Serbia
Margaret T. Jones
School of Kinesiology, George Mason University, Manassas, VA 20110, USA
Pedro E. Alcaraz
Strength and Conditioning Society, 00118 Rome, Italy
Xavi Schelling
Institute for Health and Sport, Victoria University, Melbourne, VIC 8001, Australia
Anne Delextrat
Strength and Conditioning Society, 00118 Rome, Italy
Meeta Singh
Performance Sleep Medicine, Detroit, MI 48202, USA
Jonathan Charest
Department of Kinesiology, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada
Tomás T. Freitas
UCAM Research Center for High Performance Sport, University of Murcia (UCAM), 30107 Murcia, Spain
In the field of sports science, the recovery umbrella is a trending topic, and even more so in the world of elite sports. This is evidenced by the significant increase in scientific publications during the last 10 years as teams look to find a competitive edge. Recovery is recognized to be an integral component to assist athlete preparation in the restoration of physical and psychological function, and subsequently, performance in elite team sports athletes. However, the importance of recovery in team staff members (sports coaches and performance staff) in elite sports appears to be a forgotten element. Given the unrelenting intense nature of daily tasks and responsibilities of team staff members, the elite sports environment can predispose coaches to increased susceptibility to psycho-socio physiological fatigue burden, and negatively affect health, wellbeing, and performance. Therefore, the aim of this opinion was to (1) develop an educational recovery resource for team staff members, (2) identify organizational task-specific fatigue indicators and barriers to recovery and self-care in team staff members, and (3) present recovery implementation strategies to assist team staff members in meeting their organizational functions. It is essential that we do not forget the coaching and performance staff in the recovery process.
