Canadian Olympic Committee: 14 Gold Medals and the Participant-Driven Strategic Plan (Proof)

The Canadian Olympic Committee set an audacious goal in 2001: win more medals than any other country at the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics. Canada had never won a single gold medal on home soil in either Summer or Winter Games. The conventional answer was more training budget. The participant-driven answer was a 22-strategy plan where the athletes, coaches, National Sports Federations, and COC governance co-designed the path themselves — starting with Learn2 Inspire the Future in 2001.

The outcome: Canada set a new world record for most gold medals at a single Winter Olympics — 14 Gold. Canada won its first-ever Olympic gold medal on home soil. Citizen engagement in sport reached a generational high. Learn2 became the COC’s Strategic Partner for High Performance Learning in 2011 and still works with the organization today.

This is Pillar 4 of the participant-driven category — proof via named clients. The Canadian Olympic case is the “participant-designed strategy out-performs expert-handed-down strategy at the highest-stakes tier” case. The full story across 5 participant-driven programs follows below.

The Canadian Olympic Committee announces Learn2 as their Strategic Partner for High Performance Learning. Sports training programs enable governance, admin, team and athlete results. Building on a decade of amazing success leading up to the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Games, the Olympic Committee recognizes the contribution and support of Learn2’s sport leadership programs to the Canadian Olympic Team, Olympic Excellence Series, governance, National Sports Federations and of course the 2001 Strategic Plan created with Learn2 Inspire the Future. That strategic plan’s goal was to win more medals than any other country in the world. While Canada did not achieve that goal, Canada received 14 Gold Medals!! Setting a new world record for the most Gold Medals at a Winter Olympic Games. Learn2 works in partnership with the Canadian Olympic Committee to develop high performance training programs both on and off the field of play. Athletes, Coaches, National Sport Federation leaders, the Session, the Board and the staff discover, learn, change and focus through inspired training programs! Read the Client Success Story below to discover how Learn2 helped the Canadian Olympic Committee, athletes and coaches achieve results at the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Games.

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5. If you would like to run the Olympic Results program in your company or in your geographic area – get certified.  

CLIENT SUCCESS STORY 

THE GOAL

Help the Canadian Olympic Committee achieve their vision – To make Canada a world leader in sport, inspired by the passion and performance of the Canadian Olympic Team. To win more medals than any other country in the world.  

THE RESULT OF THE RIGHT SPORTS TRAINING PROGRAMS

Canadian athletes were prepared! Although Canada did not win more medals than any other country in the world, new records were made: 1. A first Olympic gold medal on Canadian soil! 2. 14 Gold Medals! 3. A massive citizen engagement in Sport! 4. Canada set a new world record for most gold medals won at a single Winter Olympics by winning 14 medals! Today Learn2 works with the Canadian Olympic Committee on a number of initiatives – becoming their Strategic Partner for High Performance Learning in 2011.  

THE SOLUTION

Help the Canadian Olympic Committee leaders, athletes and coaches discover, learn, change and focus through facilitation and communication inspired leadership training programs! Learn2 worked with the leaders and teams of the Canadian Olympic Committee to engage all the employees in the 2010 Olympic Winter Games goal of winning more medals than any other country through its Inspire the Future strategic planning program. Starting in 2001, the sports strategic plan targeted brave results, unheard of in Canadian History. In fact, Canada had never achieved a Gold Medal even after hosting the Olympic Games twice. This strategic plan required an action plan to implement the largest collaboration in Sport between the government, the High Performance Sport System and all the National Sports Federations. Team Forward Leader and Team Implementation Program served as the basis of a 22 strategy plan that culminated in a radical transformation of Canadian High Performance Sport. Learn2 contributed to the incredible success of the Olympic Excellence Series with its Dream Big leadership expansion program – designed to support athletes in defining their goals and embracing the impact of both a gold medal moment and a gold medal life. To increase collaboration and open dialogue between athletes and coaches, Learn2 delivered its Communicate Naturally communication transformation program.  Through this program long-ignored challenges in the athlete/coach dyad were addressed through neutral language focused on describing needs and achieving results. Sports teams and athletes amazed coaches by creating a 2-way dialogue about training and communication preferences. Some athletes described the ensuing relationship with their coach as transformational. Learn2’s Get Connected training program ramped up team building efforts and increased collaboration between athletes from all sports. Olympic athletes explored how to collaborate and support each other in a world where a gold medal win impacts not only themselves, but their sport, family, friends, hometown, and the nation. Connecting the importance of team to the impact of success also helped athletes inspire children who dream of becoming part of the Canadian Olympic Team – just like them. The outputs of the session were posted in the Olympic Village to remind athletes and coaches of the incredible impact of living a gold medal and the impact of a gold medal performance on their communities. Athletes and teams prepared for the high-pressure environment of the Olympic Winter Games with Learn2’s Lead the Endurance – a leadership development program that challenges leaders to remain focused, calm and goal oriented under severe and intense conditions. To cause morale and remain focused on the big picture regardless of the distractions. Given the results in the Vancouver Olympic Games, the Sports Department wanted to optimize their performance to match the athletic performance on the field of play. The result was an innovative Meetings Effectiveness training program that achieves greater results in a meeting with less time inputs. Now this development program is available to any organization and reduces the number and length of meetings by 25% while increasing results dramatically. In fact, many organizations end up developing their leaders and teams ability to implement change because leaders and teams make decisions faster! The High Performance Sports System is filled with organizations that ideally collaborate and coordinate their efforts. Yet many of the organizations are filled with leaders who are inherently competitive. So how do you get 50 National Sports Federations to collaborate? Learn2 Share Best Practices empowered large and small sports federations to share strategies and tactics to drive performance and results both on and off the field of play. These kinds of sports training programs transform entire sports systems.  

WHAT THE CANADIAN OLYMPIC TEAM SAYS ABOUT THE EXPERIENCE:

“Working with Learn2 was a truly impactful experience. The day created quite a buzz with both the athletes and coaches alike. The focus on leading an Olympian Life versus an Olympian Moment was a critical part of our Olympic Excellence Series!” – Marnie McBean – 3x Olympic Champion – Manager, Olympic Preparation – Canadian Olympic Committee  

THE RESULTS OF THE SPORTS TRAINING PROGRAMS

Canadian athletes were prepared! Although Canada did not win more medals than any other country in the world, new records were made: – A first Olympic gold medal on Canadian soil – Canada broke the record for most gold medals won at a single Winter Olympics by winning 14 medals Today Learn2 works with the Canadian Olympic Committee on many initiatives – becoming their Strategic Partner for High Performance Learning in 2011.

Find the Right Learn2 Program for Your Team

Answer three quick questions about scope, friction, and depth. The Learn2 router matches your team to the right program in 90 seconds. Use the Learn2 router →

5. If you would like to run the Olympic Results program in your company or in your geographic area – get certified.