2Steps4Health – Prevention level one: Results of a universal, sport psychological workshop program for junior professional athletes

• Two-level program delivers universal and indicated mental health prevention • Level 1 combines health knowledge and key psychological and life skills • Biopsychosocial approach prepares athletes for sport and life challenges • 105 junior professional athletes joined a 3-wave longitudinal intervention study • Strong athlete engagement despite limited quantitative improvements Junior professional athletes face elevated psychosocial demands related to elite sport participation, academic requirements, and adolescent development, which may increase vulnerability to mental health difficulties. While prevention programs exist, few adopt a comprehensive approach tailored to the elite youth sport context. The #blinded-for-peer-review# project aims to promote well-being and reduce mental health risks through a structured two-step prevention program. This study reports preliminary findings from the universal prevention level. A quasi-randomized controlled design was employed, including an intervention group (IG; n = 52) and a waiting control group (CG; n = 53) of junior professional athletes aged 12–21 years ( M = 14.9). The universal prevention level comprised three interactive workshops (3 × 3 hours) focusing on stress and coping, communication and conflict management, and sleep and nutrition. Participants completed the KIDSCREEN (quality of life) questionnaire and the RESTQ-Sport (stress-recovery-balance) at pre-, post-, and six-week follow-up assessments. Session-specific feedback on the workshops was also collected. Due to substantial attrition at follow-up, complete data were available for fewer than 30 participants per group. A 2 × 3 repeated-measures ANOVA revealed no significant changes. However, participant feedback indicated high acceptance and perceived relevance. Although no significant differences between IG and CG were observed, the findings provide important insights into the feasibility of universal mental health prevention programs in youth elite sport settings. Key methodological considerations include participant retention, age-appropriate content, session duration, and the alignment of outcome measures with targeted competencies, informing ongoing program refinement and future evaluation.