Leadership in athletics was the one of the core themes at the European Athletics Future Leaders Forum which recently ran parallel to the Roma 2024 European Athletics Championships.
The conference, in association with Deloitte, took place 9-12 June within the prestigious Foro Italico complex and brought together 71 emerging leaders from 42 countries.
It consisted of four days of inspiration and innovation featured presentations from the current generation of leaders, discussing hot topics in the sport, and exploring the future of leadership in athletics.
"Talk is cheap...do the action"
The conference was opened by European Athletics President Dobromir Karamarinov, with presentations by World Athletics President Lord Sebastian Coe and European Athletics Vice President and Development Commission Chair Karin Grute Movin.
The opening day was titled “You as a leader,” with influential voices from across Europe presenting to an enthralled audience.
“Talk is cheap, do go out, do the action and be yourself while doing it,” said German psychologist Katrin Heyers who was co-presenting with her partner Robin Schrödter in their talk that asked: “Who am I as a leader?”
They launched the event by sharing their insights on research about the right personality of a leader. “What makes a good leader is highly depending on the situation and emotional intelligence is one of the core skills a person has to have,” Heyers said afterwards.
“But there is so much more to that. I think what is most important is that anyone that is a leader, is a good listener and is ready to actually be active, do the work, and ask the right questions.”
Key insights from Heyers and Schrödter also included the importance of dealing with your own failures and mistakes. “The only way to get better, whether it be as an athlete or as a leader, is to understand what you did wrong in the past and to actually work on that,” Heyers emphasized.
“If I want to be a good leader, I have to understand my weaknesses and where I come from in order to see where I can go and how I can get there.”
Heyers and Schrödter shared facts about the “Big Five,” namely five traits that determine one’s personality. These traits, according to research, barely change over the course of life, prompting questions whether there are born leaders on the one side and people not equipped to lead.
“I would say there are some people that maybe have the ‘right’ personality to lead a team of some sort, but in the end it’s all about adapting to the right situations and this requires work nonetheless,” Schrödter explained.
“You can have the right personality for one situation, but to really adjust your personality to a multitude of situations, you have to work for that.”
Most importantly, Heyers and Schrödter pointed out the essentialness of post-hoc analysis. “To use resources and analyze the things you did after an event or decision, is crucial,” Schrödter said.
“You have to put in the effort and consciously analyze the situation and understand the reason why you decided one way or another.”
Heyers, a former participant and facilitator of the Future Leaders Forum and member of the European Athletics Development Commission, also observed “It’s hard to get it from this little impression, but I believe every single person in this program has the potential to be a leader or is a leader already in whatever they do and if they keep working hard, I am sure they will go a great way.”
Learning from the best
Getting valuable insights from former Olympian track athletes was the objective of the afternoon session on the opening day.
Vice President of the Royal Dutch Athletics Federation and Olympic sprinter Esther Akihary started the session reflecting on her learnings as an athlete, lawyer and a European Athletics Development Commission member.
“I think what athletes learn from a very young age is how to perform under very high pressure,” Akihary said. “And you can only perform under pressure, if you can be you and know how to deal with stress situations.”
“Some athletes maybe seem like super human beings, because they are so capable of dealing with stress, even though it’s just something you learn along the way. Even athletes are scared sometimes, but we are just trained to focus on the more positive side.”
Akihary also looked back on leaders she learnt from. “I had many people I looked up to when I was younger,” she said. “My parents where always very important to me, a safe haven, but also my coaches, to give me the confidence to do whatever I was dreaming of doing.”
Older athletes played an equally important role for her. “There were also some big athletes we met during championships, that, without knowing, gave me lessons, that were actually really valuable.
“To pick out one person, Gregory Sedoc, a Dutch hurdler told that the most important thing it to have fun, which is one of my deep motivational drivers.”
And what is Akihary’s advice to all the Future Leader participants? “Don’t be afraid to ask questions!” she said. “And really involve people in your dreams for your future careers, because you cannot do it just by yourself.”
"New ideas and visions"
Finally, on stage, Switzerland’s Lea Sprunger, the 2018 European women’s 400m hurdles gold medallist. The now-retired athlete emphasised why events like the Future Leaders Forum matter to her and the world of sports.
“We need young people in our sport and athletes to stay within the sport, because the younger generations are a real asset,” Sprunger said. “They can bring some new ideas and visions, it’s good to have those forums and help the people who really want to stay in the sport, staying with us.”
Reflecting on her own career, Sprunger found not one, but a couple of leaders she was looking up to. “There were many of them and I tried taking a bit out of each of them, but still be my own personality,” Sprunger explained.
“Of course it is important to have role models and leaders, but it is also important to understand that you are your own person and you need to build something for yourself.
Her final advice to the group of future European Leaders was “Be yourself and don’t try to play a role and be someone else, you need to believe in what you do and say.”
Annika Saunus for European Athletics