Life Outside the Bubble

By Imago Group - Jenny Muir
Tuesday 09 May, 2006

When it comes to life-after-sport, the typical athlete can face a range of unfamiliar issues from the traumatic - such as depression, mental illness and alcohol abuse - to the mundane; financial concerns and what-to-do-next questions.

Sydney - The responsibility for preparing a high performance sportsperson for "life outside the bubble," throws up an array of social, moral and legal questions says La Trobe University Lecturer, Sonia Francis – the architect of New Zealand’s national player welfare system and the key presenter at Sport Knowledge Australia’s "Best Practice Player Welfare" seminar.

"There is a growing interest in the future direction of player welfare and there has been considerable dialogue over the last decade, at all levels of sport, about athlete-employer relationships," says Francis.

"Up until now, there has never really been an educational study of where player welfare has come from or where it’s going."

"The Sport Knowledge Australia seminar aims to take a viewpoint that is independent of sporting bodies and player associations to present an unbiased, and research-based analysis of current best practices from across the industry."

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Francis will present her new research study at the seminar at Sydney Olympic Park on 31 August which will delve into issues surrounding life after sport, covering competitive edge practice as well as issues faced by today’s players and administrators while casting ahead over the next decade.

The SKA seminar will also feature a presentation by University of NSW Associate Professor Braham Dabscheck – a luminary in the area of industrial relations in team sports. Dabscheck has consulted to the International Federation of Professional Footballers’ Associations and been called as an expert witness in cases involving challenges to controls on the employment of players.

Jeff Bond, head of Psychology at the Australian Institute of Sport for 22 years up until 2004, will present on topics which include athletes’ retirement needs. Highly regarded in his profession, in 2000 Bond became the first sport psychologist to be awarded Fellowship of the Australian Psychological Society. He is also received the Australian Sports Medal in 2000 and 2005.

Providing a combined academic and industry leading-edge insight at the seminar will be Yvonne Soper, National Player Development Manager for the Rugby Union Players Association of Australia. Soper has consulted to the Australian Olympic Weightlifting team and prior to joining RUPA worked at the South Australian Institute of Sport on the Athlete Career and Education program.