(Dual) Career Development of Talented and Elite Athletes
Elite Sport and Higher Education in the Brussels-Capital Region
Optimizing the combination of study and elite sport in the Dutch and French speaking universities in the Brussels-Capital Region.
IOC Advanced Olympic Research Grant Programma
How should athletes be supported before, during and after athletic retirement? Moving from an athlete-centred needs analysis to practical guidelines for career support stakeholders.
Erasmus+ Sport - Mind the Gap
Closing the gap’ between the end of the professional sporting career and entering the labour market by enabling a transition into a second career of the professional player in transitions’ choice.
Erasmus+ Sport - Ecology of Dual Career
Exploring Dual Career Development Environments across Europe.
Erasmus+ Sport - Be a Winner In elite Sport and Employment before and after athletic Retirement (B-WISER)
Optimizing active and former athletes' employment and employability.
IOC Advanced Olympic Research Grant Programma
The development and evaluation of training modules for dual career support providers (DCSPs): A European pilot
Erasmus+ Sport: 'Gold in Education and Elite Sport (GEES)'
Optimizing student-athletes' dual career in elite sport and education
The Development of Psychological Competences for Talented and Elite Performers
Vlaamse Leerstoel Topsport Sportpsychologie
The Vlaamse Leerstoel (2014 - 2017, completed), funded by Sport Vlaanderen, aimed at developing four psychological training techniques (cognitive readiness, resilience, deliberate practice, biofeedback) to promote the development and use of mental skills in talented and elite athletes.
The development of performance behaviour - In collaboration with Rijksuniversiteit Groningen and NOC*NSF
TeamNL provides its elite athletes with the possibility to develop optimally and perform at their maximum level (ongoing). The psyche has a strong influence on athletes' development and performance. That is why "mental well-being" is prioritized by NOC*NSF.
TeamNL Performance Behaviour consists of a team of elite sport lifestyle coaches - employed at the Centra voor Topsport en Onderwijs (Centers for Elite sport and Education) -, sport psychologists, health (GZ-) and clinical psychologists and psychiatrists who collaborate in providing services to athletes and coaches.
The support provided by this team is not only focused on performing but also at the mental health of elite athletes and coaches. The broad range of expertise available in TeamNL Performance Behaviour allows for a flexible and fast support provision required by coaches, athletes, medical doctors, physiotherapists and Performance Managers.
Team Resilience - In collaboration with NOC*NSF
This project (completed) was directed at operationalising and developing team resilience in Dutch national elite teams. This included organising several workshops and setting up a pilot project to develop resilience.
Doping
WADA social science research grant (co-funded by NADO Vlaanderen): A lifespan and holistic approach in studying the influence of career transitions on athletes drug-taking behaviours
This project (2013-2016, completed) aimed at stuyding the influence of career transitions on athletes' drugtaking behaviours. Doping use is still very much a prevalent problem in elite sports. Efforts should therefore be made to complement current repressive anti-doping strategies with more preventive strategies. In order to do so, a clear understanding of the reasons why some athletes choose to use doping, and others do not, is necessary. This study provided an overview of incentives and deterrents for doping use on five developmental domains and throughout the athletic lifespan.
