Book Review - Pure answer on sports pyschology (From The Westmorland Gazette)

Book Review - Pure answer on sports pyschology

10:13am Saturday 1st November 2008 in Sport By Gazette Sports

KENDAL educated John Kremer is the co-author of Pure Sport: Practical Sports Psychology, a new book that attempts to explain in every-day language what works and doesn't work when it comes to performance enhancement.

Kremer, who is the brother of Peter, the late chief coach at Kendal RUFC, is an expert in the field and is a Reader in Applied Psychology at Queen's University in Belfast.

He and co-author Aidan Moran have worked with individuals and teams at club and international level.

He said: "There has always been a gaping chasm between the theory and practice of sport psychology - between those who just do it and those who research and ignore the outside world.

"The book at long last was an attempt to bridge the gap, to take the available literature but then to try to distil it right down and present it in a way that wouldn't be heavy going for those who don't have a background in the discipline.

"Surprisingly one of the key messages of Pure Sport is to put psychology in its place, not to over psychologise but to go back to basics - hence the title.

"To truly realise your potential often there is a need not to add more psychobabble but to take away the mental baggage that may have accumulated without you knowing it over the years. As sport becomes so professional and pressured so the need to keep psychology in check grows.”

* Pure Sport is published by Routledge, Taylor and Francis Group.

A fuller e-mail interview with John follows:

***What are your Kendal antecedents, where are you now and what has your job involved to date?

We moved to Longsleddale from the Fylde when I was 10 (1966) and I started at Kendal Grammar the following year, where my father taught English and my brother Peter was in the year below.

For a family that was so steeped in sport, KGS was just perfect. Despite being such a small school with limited facilities there were still incredible opportunities to be involved in so many sports - from rugby to cricket, athletics, swimming, tennis, badminton – even chess!

Rugby was always my main passion though and I would have played at school and then for Kendal from the age of 15. I went to university in Loughborough (playing rugby twice a week) and stayed on there to do my postgrad.

A lecturing post came up at Queen’s University in the Psychology Department just as I was finishing my PhD. Jane and I were newly married and we moved over to Belfast at the height of the troubles in Christmas 1980 – and have been there happily ever since.

I was always an applied psychologist, and now work half-time as a private consultant alongside my university commitments, but began working with sports teams in and around 1990.

***What does your new book Pure Sport add to the existing subject material on the subject and what motivation did you have in writing it?

There has always been a gaping chasm between the theory and practice of sport psychology - between those who just do it and those who research and ignore the outside world. For too long I’d be working with teams and really enjoying that practical hands on side - but then only writing for an academic audience. The book at long last was an attempt to bridge the gap, to take the available literature but then to try to distil it right down and present it in a way that wouldn’t be heavy going for those who don’t have a background in the discipline. In some ways it was a book that I should have written ages ago but I don’t regret waiting as it made the process easier since I had a long time to reflect on what I had found really worked and what didn’t. Between us, Aidan and I reckon we have worked with around 50 sports but at this time of life I’m probably a bit more precious about my weekends and evenings than I used to be and so I’m not looking to add to the number.

***Where do you think sport is heading and can you foresee any developments as part of our lifestyle for the next 20 years?

From a time when any involvement with sport science was looked at sideways, we are moving to a position where athletes and teams will consume almost anything that they hope can hone the winning edge.

There are dangers in heading too far in this direction as there are many passing fads and fashions that promise more than they deliver – ice baths and nose clips spring immediately to mind.

In some respects, sport psychology could be accused of being flavour of the month but to be honest it is probably one of the last sport science frontiers that remain to be explored fully and yet which sorts gold from silver.

What I would suggest to those who want to explore this field is tread carefully as there are a variety of goods on offer and it’s best to read the small print before jumping in too quickly.

Surprisingly one of the key messages of Pure Sport is to put psychology in its place, not to over psychologise but to go back to basics – hence the title.

To truly realise your potential often there is a need not to add more psychobabble but to take away the mental baggage that may have accumulated without you knowing it over the years. As sport becomes so professional and pressured so the need to keep psychology in check grows.

The money floating around in modern sport is already starting to open a fissure between those who compete and those who spectate, and I do feel it is important that modern sport works actively to ensure that its doors remain open to all.

And incidentally, as any self-respecting sport psychologist will tell you, money is not a good motivator in sport. Once there it becomes a nuisance that has to be managed, and especially around equity or fairness, but it is unlikely ever to improve performance With the Olympics upon us it’s interesting to note that the ancient Greek games fell into disrepute and decay for that very reason – because professionalism took over, performances became inhibited and passionless, and support waned. I’m watching Beijing with interest.

***Coming from the Lake District, what do you think this area can offer to sport in the future and what innovations would you like/be interested to see?

In the face of considerable commercial pressures driving elite performance, the world of sport must strive to present itself as a broad church, catering for all sizes and ages.

If you wanted to design a natural venue for ‘sport for all’ then you’d be hard pressed to beat this part of the world - it has it all.

It still remains a magnet for those who choose outdoor activities but the potential for catering to a broader spectrum of sporting interests, especially as a training base, must be considerable.

There is always a tricky balance to be struck in the management of sport facilities – you want to provide the opportunities and to nurture interest but then allow the freedom for people to reach their own level or ‘do their own thing’.

I’m not sure that many sports have struck the right balance in this regard, some paying too much attention to the top end, others not providing progression routes for those who relish competition.

Along with this, opening the door to all-comers does remain a constant challenge for many sports, it is still surprising how many sports continue to run in families or depend on considerable financial support.

I’m sure that the transition between full-time education, when sport that is organised for you, and life beyond, when you make choices about what you want to to do, is pivotal and should be the focus of greater attention in encouraging a lifetime involvement in sport.

****Any specific area of sport that particular interests you at present as a sports psychologist?

The great thing that I continue to enjoy about sport is its diversity - and I still derive a great deal of pleasure working with sports that throw up such new and varied challenges.

So, for example, if you contrast the thinking time that a golfer or cricketer has with the spontaneity required of say a footballer or judo player you can see that each sport presents unique psychological issues.

Then add to that huge individual differences in terms of how we each deal with, for example, stress, and then throw team dynamics into the mix and it’s no surprise that it stays so fresh. The golfer Padraig Harrington was recently asked which attribute set him apart as a champion and interestingly he ignored the technical and physical (he is adamant his brother is a better golfer!) and chose only one, his capacity to keep learning, and it’s continuing to learn that probably keeps me going.

***Sport is often said to be a civilised replacement for war, can we make such a comparison and is it valid?

Psychology, unkindly, has been described either as the science of the bleeding obvious or of uncertainty, and regarding the latter, despite being centre-stage for well over a century, the nature – nurture debate shows no sign of being resolved – we’re still uncertain as to whether we are naturally competitive or we learn.

That aside, from the time of the Ancient Greeks, societies have defined their well-being by their physical prowess and wasn’t it the Iron Duke, who said that Waterloo was won on the playing fields of Eton?

To be perfectly frank I do think the parallels between sport and war can be drawn too closely but at heart they may both reflect on inherent human tendencies.

Sport can be many things, and yes it often does revolve around competition and winning, but one lesson the book tries to deliver is that if you want to maintain intensity and passion in your chosen sport than above all you have to build from a foundation of pure enjoyment and a focus on performance rather than winning at all costs.

That road can lead to disaster - which is one reason why Mark Williams just kept singing ‘Delilah’ over and over in his head on his way to winning the Embassy World Snooker Championship in 2003, to stop thinking about winning.

*** Tell us your three sporting heroes, and why?

A tricky question and one I’d sidestep (if I still could) as I’ve seen too many sportsmen and women, and teams, struggle to try to be someone else instead of being at ease with themselves, warts and all.

Having said that there are a number of people involved in sport who I would admire for what they have achieved and as importantly, how they have gone about achieving it. Often these aren’t superstars but those who have either realised their true sporting potential or have helped others realise theirs.

A good manager is one who brings ‘value-addedness’, and from football, Brian Clough stands supreme. Definitely a flawed hero (the best usually are) but a talent for bringing out the best in either young players or those who felt they had no more to give. In a very different vein, someone else who comes straight to my mind is my own brother Peter, who coached at Kendal RFC during some of their most successful seasons and who brought such an unbridled passion to what he did that it was hard not to be carried along on the tide. Sport still needs characters and if sport psychology ever takes the passion and the personality out of sport then it will be a very sad day indeed.

What would be your perfect sporting day out?

(With poetic licence to allow for the seasons), it would begin very early with a walk on the fells, say Harter Fell or High Street, then back to Mint Bridge to watch Kendal take on old rivals from the days when ‘friendlies’ mattered (maybe Orrell or Sale - and win!), then in the car and on to Cartmel or Carlisle for an evening of national hunt racing with two great athletes, Tony McCoy and Ruby Walsh, battling it out over the sticks. Pure heaven!