Tom Young - Sports Psychologist

As Head of Sport Psychology at i2i, I supported a number of British athletes as they prepared for the London 2012 Olympic Games.  We work to the philosophy of ‘person first, athlete second’ and over the last 18 months before the Games I worked with athletes on a number of issues including goal-setting, home-sickness, dealing with injury, funding difficulties, coach-athlete relationships and developing bespoke mental strategies for peak performance.  I spent time at altitude camps, observed training and conducted individual consultancy sessions, all to ensure that our athletes were mentally prepared for what was undoubtedly be the pinnacle of their sporting lives.  I have witnessed, at first hand, the sacrifices that British athletes have made and their irrepressible levels of drive and commitment. 

Working at the London 2012 Olympic Games was the achievement of a lifetime/career goal for me.  However, as is often the nature of elite sport, my clients had contrasting fortunes. In the case of two runners, one suffered an injury before the games and was unable to fulfil their dream of competing in a home Olympics, whilst I was able to witness first-hand as a second client performed brilliantly in their event.