4. OBSERVATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
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4.3 The Athlete’s View of the Sport System
“I just returned from training with a Belgian team for three months. Although nearly everybody spoke some English, most did not speak English confidently and preferred not to speak it unless necessary. Thus practices were conducted entirely in Flemish, and I had to figure out how to do drills by watching others or by sometimes asking for a translation. However, there is always that period of bewilderment and lack of confidence caused by not knowing exactly what is going on. Furthermore, it is difficult to perform at your best when you can’t capitalize on the advice the coach is giving to other players because it’s in a different language. There is always a feeling of isolation and also hesitation to perform when you can’t understand exactly what is going on; you are at a disadvantage. I worry that athletes in Canada who do not speak the same language as the coach or the majority of the team may feel this isolation and, therefore, not be able to perform at their best or enjoy their sporting experience to the fullest.” (Comments from an Anglophone athlete, OCOL survey questionnaire)
This athlete’s observations exemplify much of what is good and bad in the sport system. On the one hand, through her involvement in sport, she has had an opportunity to travel, learn another language, and live in another culture, thereby gaining a better understanding of Canadian society and other Canadians. Many athletes added comments to our survey questionnaire that showed a depth of understanding and respect toward the other official language that was the most encouraging finding of this study. On the other hand, the problems this athlete describes – bewilderment, lack of confidence, the sense of isolation and hesitation to perform, the feeling that the sport experience is not all it could be – are very real for many French-speaking athletes.
