In this episode, I speak with leadership coach and team architect, Donna Fishter. Donna is owner of a consulting business working with teams, training leaders, developing culture and coaching coaches and individual athletes. Prior to this, Donna was a soccer coach for over 20 years. 13 of those years were at the University of Central Florida. We sp…

This week on the Way of Champions Podcast, we replay an episode from 2018 with a 39-time NCAA Champion Sport Psychology Consultant and one of the greatest coaches of all time! This is a show you cannot miss! Dr. Jerry Lynch and Anson Dorrance join John this week to talk Dean Smith, John Wooden, Alonzo Stagg, and what it is like to build an unrivale…

I am honoured to be joined by Justine Siegal in this episode. Justine was the first woman ever to coach professional baseball. Her experiences in the pro leagues motivated her to change the landscape of gender inequality in baseball. She has a PhD in Sport Psychology and is founder of Baseball For All, which is a national non-profit organisation em…

This week on the Way of Champions Podcast, we welcome Chris Snyder and Nadine Dubina from the US Olympic and Paralympic Committee. We dive into how to put fun back into coaching, how to handle push-back from coaches about coach development, and early sport specialization. Be sure to check out the Quality Coaching Framework on the Team USA website. …

I am honoured to be joined by Dr Christian Zepp in this episode. Christian splits his time between lecturing at The German Sport University in Cologne and consulting as an applied sport psychologist. Christian obtained his PhD in sport sciences with a focus on sport psychology at the Institute of Psychology at The German Sport University. Christian…

This week on the Way of Champions Podcast, we welcome High Performance Expert, Allon Khakshouri. Allon Khakshouri is a recognized personality in the sports world, and has managed the careers of some of this generation's greatest tennis players, including current world number one Novak Djokovic. We dive into what separates the great players from eve…

I am excited to be joined by Dr Andrew Abraham in this episode. Andrew is Head of Department for Sport Coaching at Leeds Beckett University. He is a coach developer with an interest in how coaches do their job in relation to effectiveness, judgement, decision-making and talent development. Andrew's research and consultancy work is recognised across…

This week on the Way of Champions Podcast, we welcome David and Keith Mayer, authors of the book Gold Dust: How to Become A More Effective Coach, Quickly: How to become a better communicator. We discuss intentionally evolving as a coach, writing a book with a family member, and why good coaches are great teachers. You can follow David and Keith on …

I am honoured to be joined by Lisa Alexander in this episode. Lisa is one of the most successful coaches in Australian sport. Formerly a maths and physical education teacher, Lisa worked her way up from coaching under 10’s netball to become the Australian Diamonds Head Coach. We speak about Lisa’s long career as Head Coach of the Diamonds. How she …

This week on the Way of Champions Podcast, we welcome Skye Eddy Bruce and Seth Taylor. We dive into the youth sports world and discuss the topic of being a great sports parent like how to get parents to listen to what their children want/need, the difference between encouraging and distracting sideline behavior by parents, and creating alignment be…

I’m excited to be joined by Stephen Renwick in this episode. Stephen is a sport psychology consultant, training through BASES as a probationary sport & exercise scientist specialising in psychology. He works with athletes in multiple sports and uses a framework called Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). Stephen also holds a senior world rankin…

This week on the Way of Champions Podcast, we welcome Austin Hatch, a two-time plane crash survivor and inspirational speaker. Hatch’s story is nothing short of Miraculous. On Labor Day of 2003, Hatch and his family were flying home from their vacation home in northern Michigan. As they were preparing to land, the aircraft crashed and burst into fl…

I have the pleasure of being joined by Jennifer Lace in this episode. Jennifer is Head of Sport Psychology and Personal Development at Nottingham Forest FC. Prior to her role at Forest, Jennifer worked at Burnley FC as Sport Psychology Practitioner and Lecturer. Jennifer has an MSc from Stafford University and is accredited by BASES (Bristish Assoc…

This week on the Way of Champions Podcast, we welcome Nick Winkelman, head of athletic performance & science for the Irish Rugby Football Union. He is also the author of The Language of Coaching, a book that focuses on the impact that communication has on an individual’s ability to learn and perform a movement. We discuss how Nick got into movement…

This week on the Way of Champions Podcast, we welcome Bill Kerig, founder and CEO of GreatCoach.com. Bill Kerig was a collegiate ice hockey player as well as a professional skier. In addition to Great Coach, he founded the sports fundraising platform RallyMe and was the COO of the extreme sports portal LevelRed as well as the medical informatics pl…

I am delighted to be joined by father and son, Keith and David Mayer in this episode. Both Keith and David are both coaches and ex-professional players. Keith has coached soccer for 37 years on 6 continents and is currently coaching Liverpool Football Academy. David also started coaching after his playing days and has coached on 4 continents and is…

This week on the Way of Champions Podcast, we welcome Dr Neeru Jayanthi, Emory Sports Medicine & Tennis Medicine physician specializing in research on safety and risks of young athletes. You may recognize his name. We have mentioned him in blogs and podcasts, and his work is cited all over the youth sports world. We discuss how his young athlete pa…

I have the pleasure of being joined by Prof Brendan Cropley in this episode. Brendan is Professor of Sport Coaching at the University of South Wales. He is also Head of the Centre for Football Research in Wales. Brendan has made a significant contribution to the Sport & Exercise Sciences, particularly in the area of sport psychology and sport coach…

This week on the Way of Champions Podcast, we welcome Joe Ehrmann, Jody Redman, Nate Baldwin and Bev Smith for an incredible cup of virtual coffee as we dive into what the purpose of youth sports is and what we should do when sports start back up. We discuss how the pandemic will change the demand of Youth Sports, how program directors can layer in…

I’m excited to be joined by Morgan Lewis in this episode. Morgan is an ex-professional footballer, having played for AFC Bournemouth in the 1980’s. Since his playing days, Morgan has worked as a teacher for 15 years as well as in healthcare communications, using behaviour change theories to create interventions that help people to make better decis…

This week on the Way of Champions Podcast, we welcome Alan Keane and Mark Bennett, both previous guests on our podcast. We dive into the purpose of coaching, how to be a "deficit detector", and the behaviors a coach needs to help their players become problem solvers. If you have listened to episodes #31, #76, or #90, then you know you are in for a …

I’m excited to speak with Stuart Lancaster in this episode. Having held various leadership, management and coaching positions at different levels of the game, Stuart became head coach of the English national rugby union team in 2011. Stuart now coaches Leinster Rugby in Ireland. He currently sits on the Technical Advisory board for the Football Ass…

This week on the Way of Champions Podcast, we welcome Tara Vanderveer, Head Coach of the Stanford Women’s Basketball team. Coach Vanderveer is a 2-Time national champion coach, has been to 12 Final Fours, coached the 1996 US National Team at 1996 Olympics, and has been named Pac-12 Coach of the Year 10 times! She is also one of only nine NCAA Women…

I’m delighted to speak with Skye Eddy Bruce in this episode. Skye is the founder of Soccer Parenting Association which aims to inspire players by empowering parents. Skye is also a soccer coach and holds her USSF “B” license. She is a grassroots instructor for US soccer and a goalkeeping instructor for United Soccer Coaches. The work that Skye does…

I’m honoured to speak with two-time FIFA Women's World Cup champion, two-time Olympic gold medallist, and two-time FIFA Player of the Year, Carli Lloyd and her personal coach and mentor James Galanis in this episode. Carli needs no further introduction, she’s one of the greatest soccer players of all time. James is technical director of Medford Str…

This week on the Way of Champions Podcast, we welcome George Mumford, author of The Mindful Athlete and Mindfulness & Elite Performance Expert. We dive into why sports are so important in teaching life-lessons, how to get buy-in from players, and the most important lesson to teach athletes for peak-performance. Named Phil Jackson’s ‘Secret Weapon’ …

I’m excited to speak with Dr Noel Brick in this episode. Noel is a Lecturer in Sport and Exercise Psychology at Ulster University. He has a Masters in Sport and Exercise Psychology and a PhD in Attentional Focus and Psychological Strategies in Endurance Activity. As a runner himself, Noel was interested in what endurance athletes think about during…

This week on the Way of Champions Podcast, we welcome Chris Armas, New York Red Bulls Head Coach, and former professional soccer player. Armas made 66 appearances with the US National Team, and was US Soccer's Player of the Year in 2000. He was names to 6 MLS All Star games and five times was named MLS Best XI. He won the 1998 MLS Championship and …

I speak with Steve Magness in this episode. Steve is a sport scientist and a track and field coach. He coaches competitors at all levels, including athletes who have competed in the World Championships and the Olympics. He is Head Cross Country coach at the University of Houston, a Lecturer of Strength and Conditioning at St. Mary’s University, UK …

This week on the Way of Champions Podcast we welcome Dr. Meeta Singh, a sleep medicine doctor from the Henry Ford Sleep Disorder Center. Dr. Singh specializes in a variety of Sleep Disorders with a focus in Insomnia, Obstructive and Central Sleep Apnea, and Sports Medicine. Sleep is perhaps the most important component to peak performance, yet many…

I’m excited to be joined by AFC Wimbledon Academy Manager, Michael Hamilton. Prior to his role as Academy Manager, Michael was Academy Head of Coaching. In this episode we speak about the forward-thinking coaching process that are being implemented at AFC Wimbledon including practices that aim to enhance player development; creating a supportive en…

This week on the Way of Champions Podcast we welcome Esfandiar “Esse” Baharmast, a former referee, player, coach and current instructor who has been involved in more than a dozen World Cup tournaments and Olympic Games, and was named the 2020 winner of U.S. Soccer’s prestigious Werner Fricker Builder Award. We dive into how great referees prepare f…