Masters Swimmers' Experiences With Coaches: What They Want, What They Need, What They Get

Much work addresses coaches' contributions to younger athletes; however, the psycho-social coaching needs of adult Masters athletes remain unexamined. This study explored the lived experiences of 10 Masters swimmers (5 male, 5 female; age range = 45-65 years) through interviews. Interpretative phenomenological analysis delved into benefits that swimmers wanted to derive from coaches, how they wished to be coached, and what they liked about coaches. Themes related to (a) swimming and non-swimming benefits; (b) coaches' experience and professional development, personal attributes, and behaviors holding athletes accountable to training; (c) preferences for coaching instruction; (d) preferences for coaches' planning/structuring of the practice and program; and (e) preferences for how coaches prepare and interact with them at competitions. We discuss how benefits relate to models of athlete development and identify how preferences link to adult learning literature and models of coaching practice. Finally, we note incongruent findings and limitations to be addressed in future.