‘The elephant in the room is, I’ve never seen them run’: exploring the experiences, practices, and development of online running coaches

The COVID-19 pandemic forced sport coaches globally to embrace new coaching formats, where utilising digital technologies was considered a ‘needs must’ method in the absence of face-to-face coaching. These circumstances contributed towards the rise of online/remote approaches where coaching practice is delivered virtually via web-based platforms either synchronously or asynchronously, overcoming logistical, geographical, and financial boundaries. In endurance sports such as running, online/remote coaching existed prior to the pandemic, yet there remains limited understanding of what coaches do within a virtual environment. To address this lacuna, the aim of this research is to explore the experiences, practices, and development of online running coaches. Data were collected via online semi-structured interviews with eight running coaches (five male, three female) who provide online coaching delivery. Following a phronetic iterative approach to data analysis, three themes were constructed: (1) Limited value and instrumental intentions: Becoming a qualified online running coach; (2) Striving to build rapport: Perspectives towards effective running coaching in an online space; and (3) Prescribing training plans, data monitoring, and video feedback: Understanding the everyday practices of online running coaches. The findings reveal that formal coach education is perceived to lack value to online running coaches, with it being suggested that the online coaching space requires further regulation by national governing bodies. Online running coaches outlined the importance of open communication and acknowledged that although building rapport virtually can be problematic, online delivery enables an individualised and bespoke coaching approach. Finally, online running coaches’ everyday practices centred on prescribing training programmes while balancing tensions between objective performance data and the subjective perspectives of their athletes. This research advances our understanding of the online coaching environment and lends weight to the recommendation that increased professional learning and development opportunities for coaches who provide online delivery are needed.