11 Sep, 2024
Olympic & Paralympic Nutrition: the team behind the team
Image: Sports Dietitians Australia Fellow Kerry Leech serving ‘Taco Tuesday’ at the Olympics
It’s no secret that our Australian athletes have eaten well in Paris, being well-fueled for what has been record-breaking Olympic and Paralympic campaigns. But who makes up the nutrition ‘team behind the team’?
An expansive network of more than 50 Sports Dietitians Australia Accredited Sports Dietitians carry the responsibility of supporting Australian athletes to fuel their training, competitive performance and ambitions over the many years that lead into a campaign.
President of Sports Dietitians Australia, Sally Walker shares that ‘the support a sports dietitian provides is significantly more sophisticated than meal plans and ‘carb’ loading. Connecting with athletes on a personal level, understanding their sports related goals and then working collaboratively with them to integrate relevant nutrition strategies to help them reach those goals is key.’
‘At the Olympics and Paralympics, the job at hand is highly logistical and focuses on providing a comfortable, familiar environment so that athletes can roll out their performance plan that they have practiced so much in training. Choice is also vital so athletes can fuel and recover in a way that meets their individual demands and schedules’, says Ms Walker.
Associate Professor and Sports Dietitians Australia Fellow Gary Slater was one of 12 sports dietitians in Paris working with members of the Australian team across the Olympics and Paralympics. ‘The community of sports dietitians supporting Australian athletes during an Olympic or Paralympic campaign has grown significantly in recent years. It was only a few campaigns ago we only had one or two sports dietitians at the Olympics and Paralympics. Many sports now travel with their own Accredited Sports Dietitian for any major competition, and the Olympics and Paralympics are no different’.
Mr Slater added that ‘An Accredited Sports Dietitian is seen as a critical member of the athlete’s performance support team, delivering a food environment that enables athletes to execute on their performance nutrition goals. We really bring a unique blend of science and practice to the team. When overseas, that also includes delivering on a ‘home away from home’ food environment. To enable that, we sent across shipping containers of Australian favourites. Preparation begins 12-18 months before the games themselves.’
But what is it that makes a Sports Dietitians Australia Accredited Sports Dietitian the designated nutrition professional for our Australian athletes? Sports Dietitians Australia Executive Officer Marie Walters says the unique combination of being Accredited Practising Dietitians with Dietitians Australia in addition to specialising in sports nutrition is key. ‘Athletes are not exempt from the personal, health, stage of life and cultural needs that we all have, so it is vital that nutrition support is provided by qualified professionals who can support an athlete’s full dietary needs’ says Ms Walters.
A common misconception is that only elite athletes warrant the services of a sports dietitian. ‘This is most definitely not the case’ says Ms Walters, emphasising that the insights from working with elite athletes are readily translatable to the everyday active individual, no matter their age or level of sport. Accredited Sports Dietitians are also highly flexible in how they provide their support, whether it be group presentations at local clubs, online consultations or in person consultations. Being registered dietitians, consults may also be claimable on either Medicare or private health insurance. You can readily connect with an Accredited Sports Dietitian by visiting the Find a Sports Dietitian page on the Sports Dietitians Australia website.’
About SDASports Dietitians Australia (SDA) is a member organisation who supports and advocates for Accredited Sports Dietitians as the leaders in providing sports nutrition advice for health and performance. Our members work to proactively enhance the performance and health of people they work with through empowering behaviour change and improvement in lifestyle. Working with elite athletes helps our members learn methods and develop resources which can help the Australian public not just improve, but to thrive.
Image below, left to right: Sports Dietitians Kylie Andrew, Siobhan Crawshay, Olivia Warnes and Brie Salagaras celebrating a record breaking Paralympics campaign.
