Introduction:
How do Olympic and professional athletes maintain peak fitness and performance? The obsession with getting the gold has put an enormous amount of pressure on today’s Olympic athlete. The question before us isn’t if doping is the problem, but rather the coaching that catches athletes off guard.
What we are witnessing now is the shattered dreams of Russian gold medalists in the figure skating team event. The Olympic gold medal ceremony has been delayed indefinitely due to a “legal issue.” USA Today is reporting that a member of the Russian team has tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs.
Joining us in this discussion is Sheila Thelen. She trains Olympic figure skaters, including Donovan Carrillo, in vestibular training, otherwise known as spinning. Her work with amateur and professional athletes has given her unique insight into coaching and the culture around elite athletes and the struggle to maintain peak performance and the obsession with going for the gold.
Q&A:
- We are watching the Russian figure skating team go from triumph to tragedy with this new revelation of a failed drug test. What type of pressure are these athletes under to perform?
- Is the problem here doping or is it coaching – with coaches also under pressure to help their athletes perform.
- You work with figure skating, as well as other athletes, so how tough is the training on one’s body?
- One of the team figure skaters from Russia just performed the first female quadruple axel in competition, how can the body keep that up?
- Can these techniques be applied to other things? Tell us more about your vestibular training.
- Where may we get more information on your vestibular training and equipment?
- Answer: At: www.vestibulartrainingservices.com (please spell vestibular)
Sheila Thelen is President of Vestibular Training Services and Master Rated Figure
Skating Coach. She applies these world-class vestibular training tools (patent pending) to improve the brain’s balance and cognitive processes. Sheila speaks about using world-class athletic training tools to the general population to achieve remarkable results.
CONTACT: Tamara Colbert, c: 626-244-5571; e: tamara@ohsweetliberty.com or Celinda Hawkins at jerry.specialguests@gmail.com.
