Transform the culture and impact of sport
Governed by Purpose, Heart and Impact. Recognised for Impact.
We believe that the clearer the purpose and more visible the heart within an organisation, the more transformative the experiences and real the impact across society will be. All through sport!
With our international, interdisciplinary team of practitioners, The True Athlete Project provides in-depth, tailored and independent support to sporting organisations of all shapes and sizes who want their legacies to stretch beyond traditional metrics of money, medals, members and participation numbers.
Together, we can build engagement, grow participation, improve performance, nurture mental wellbeing, and enable and measure real social impact that will excite your funders and inspire your team.
"At a point when athletes, coaches and sports organisations more broadly are realising that sport has lost its way, The True Athlete Project offers practical support and expertise to help explore sport's true potential for each of us and for society"
Dr Cath Bishop
Olympic Rower and Author of The Long Win
What can we do for your organisation?
Examples of what we do
Vision & Impact Mapping
- See impact beyond numbers
- Capture the stories that matter
- Measure meaningfully
- Connect behaviours, values and strategy
Discovery
We begin by reviewing current strategy, engaging key stakeholders, and understanding the people you serve. We can also design staff surveys and interviews that feel genuinely different, valuable and insightful.
Foundation Blocks
We establish a shared understanding of the foundations: what culture actually means in practice, who the organisation exists to serve, and what your community, funders, and staff need to thrive.
Understanding Impact
We help staff understand how activities lead to meaningful impact, and use that thinking to create a Theory of Change that feels both inspiring and actionable.
Connect the Dots
With a Theory of Change in place, we work across the organisation to connect it to each business area, ensuring it is owned and relevant at every level, not just the top.
Move to Measurement
We help you capture and measure impact in a way that builds connection, generates insight, and tells powerful stories, moving beyond numbers to what actually matters.
Ongoing Support
Throughout and beyond, we weave in practical support to bring the work to life: listening training, coaching, and learning opportunities from across the sector.
"Career light bulb moments are rare, but this project was definitely one of them. It has been an absolute pleasure to collaborate with The True Athlete Project to bring our strategic framework to life. We have created a roadmap that is as much about people as it is about performance."
Stephen Brown
Group Chief Operating Officer at British Cycling
Powered by Purpose
- Group-based curriculum
- 100% of athletes increase in confidence
- 100% more equipped to create change
- Increase connection between athletes
Our Powered by Purpose Programme
Click each stage to find out more
Culture Change
- Tailored, meaningful culture surveys
- Identify your values-led path
- Training in listening and communication
- Create the space for real conversations
"At a point when athletes, coaches and sports organisations more broadly are realising that sport has lost its way, The True Athlete Project offers practical support and expertise to help explore sport's true potential for each of us and for society"
Dr Cath Bishop
Olympic Rower and Author of The Long Win
Panel Speaking & Moderation
- Engaging, expert panelists
- Breakout room faciliation
- Chairing discussions
- Event design and delivery
Coach & Athlete Training
- Workshops
- Courses
- Camps and retreats
- Bespoke mentoring programmes
Our Coach & Athlete Training Support
Click each stage to find out more
"We brought TAP in to encourage our GB athletes to connect with a deeper meaning and personal understanding and fulfilment through sport and the impact has been impressive."
Georgina Usher
CEO at British Fencing
Coach & Athlete Training
- Workshops
- Courses
- Camps and retreats
- Bespoke mentoring programmes
Our Coach & Athlete Training Support
Click each stage to find out more
"We brought TAP in to encourage our GB athletes to connect with a deeper meaning and personal understanding and fulfilment through sport and the impact has been impressive."
Georgina Usher
CEO at British Fencing
Create a Shared Vision
- Workshops in support of your vision
- Practical courses to build capacity
- Camps and retreats to build connection
- Bespoke mentoring programmes
Discovery
We begin by reviewing current strategy, engaging key stakeholders, and understanding the people you serve. We can also design staff surveys and interviews that feel genuinely different, valuable and insightful.
Foundation Blocks
We establish a shared understanding of the foundations: what culture actually means in practice, who the organisation exists to serve, and what your community, funders, and staff need to thrive.
Understanding Impact
We help staff understand how activities lead to meaningful impact, and use that thinking to create a Theory of Change that feels both inspiring and actionable.
Connect the Dots
With a Theory of Change in place, we work across the organisation to connect it to each business area, ensuring it is owned and relevant at every level, not just the top.
Move to Measurement
We help you capture and measure impact in a way that builds connection, generates insight, and tells powerful stories, moving beyond numbers to what actually matters.
Ongoing Support
Throughout and beyond, we weave in practical support to bring the work to life: listening training, coaching, and learning opportunities from across the sector.
"Career light bulb moments are rare, but this project was definitely one of them. It has been an absolute pleasure to collaborate with The True Athlete Project to bring our strategic framework to life. We have created a roadmap that is as much about people as it is about performance."
Stephen Brown
Group Chief Operating Officer at British Cycling
Create a Shared Vision
- Agree on outcomes that really matter
- Capture and measure growth/change
- Help students/staff connect to values
- Create a shared language of behaviour
Discovery
We begin by reviewing current strategy, engaging key stakeholders, and understanding the people you serve. We can also design staff surveys and interviews that feel genuinely different, valuable and insightful.
Foundation Blocks
We establish a shared understanding of the foundations: what culture actually means in practice, who the organisation exists to serve, and what your community, funders, and staff need to thrive.
Understanding Impact
We help staff understand how activities lead to meaningful impact, and use that thinking to create a Theory of Change that feels both inspiring and actionable.
Connect the Dots
With a Theory of Change in place, we work across the organisation to connect it to each business area, ensuring it is owned and relevant at every level, not just the top.
Move to Measurement
We help you capture and measure impact in a way that builds connection, generates insight, and tells powerful stories, moving beyond numbers to what actually matters.
Ongoing Support
Throughout and beyond, we weave in practical support to bring the work to life: listening training, coaching, and learning opportunities from across the sector.
"Career light bulb moments are rare, but this project was definitely one of them. It has been an absolute pleasure to collaborate with The True Athlete Project to bring our strategic framework to life. We have created a roadmap that is as much about people as it is about performance."
Stephen Brown
Group Chief Operating Officer at British Cycling
Embedded Support
- Make the TAP magic part of your culture
- Support tailored to individual needs
- Workshops when they are needed
- Gain a new family member!
Our Embedded Practitioner Model
Click each stage to explore a year of embedded support at Central High School
Built to fit inside practice
TAP worked with teams across the full arc of their seasons rather than in isolated visits, making practitioner presence a normal, expected part of practice life and building enough trust for the work to go somewhere real.
Sessions fitted within practice time, typically 10 to 30 minutes: a brief check-in to settle and connect, a short mental skills exercise or reflection, and a closing that tied the experience back to the team's values.
One of the clearest signs of progress: players began using the language independently, and coaches referenced the work in their own conversations with athletes.
The embedded approach
The softball season showed what becomes possible when the practitioner is not just a visitor, but a fixture. Sessions could respond to what had just happened: a loss, a conflict, a stretch of negativity, a moment of low energy before a big game.
The most useful moments came when the coach's concerns were engaged with directly, and the conversation moved toward curiosity and adaptation rather than control.
That is slow work. But it is the work.
The first cohort at CHS
A small group of five to ten student-athletes, drawn from captains and emerging leaders across sports, met once a month for a dedicated 45-minute session.
Over seven sessions, the program moved from personal values, through communication and challenge, to team culture, initiative and reflection, developing a shared language that students could carry back into their own teams.
What the camp was built for
Over two days, the camp treated mind, body and spirit as a single picture, weaving mental resilience, mindfulness, dynamic movement and reflection into one continuous experience.
Creative, expressive games gave students a version of sport built around connection and joy rather than sport-specific skill, and a space where resilience could be practiced and learned rather than simply expected.
"I learned that through maturity and collaboration, you can play any sport to the best of your ability and be compassionate with other people."Camp participant
Priorities for 2026 and 2027
The next chapter brings school leadership and key coaches together around a shared vision for CHS athletics, builds structures so team facilitation no longer depends on individual relationships, and develops workshops that put coaches in a listening posture, including a possible summer coach development offering.
Alongside this, a stronger second leadership cohort and a simple, consistent approach to measuring impact will give the program a much firmer evidence base.
“The partnership with the True Athlete Project has provided our athletes and teams with meaningful, engaging, and fun activities designed to develop a healthy mindset which extends beyond the sport itself."
Donald Simmons
Central HS Athletic Director
Coach & Athlete Training
- Workshops
- Courses
- Camps and retreats
- Bespoke mentoring programmes
Our Coach & Athlete Training Support
Click each stage to find out more
"We brought TAP in to encourage our GB athletes to connect with a deeper meaning and personal understanding and fulfilment through sport and the impact has been impressive."
Georgina Usher
CEO at British Fencing
Coach Training
- Workshops to inspire and grow capacity
- Practical courses to learn through doing
- Camps and retreats to build connection
- Bespoke mentoring programmes
"We brought TAP in to encourage our GB athletes to connect with a deeper meaning and personal understanding and fulfilment through sport and the impact has been impressive."
Georgina Usher
CEO at British Fencing
Powered by Purpose
- Group-based curriculum
- 100% of athletes increase in confidence
- 100% more equipped to create change
- Increase connection between athletes
Our Powered by Purpose Programme
Click each stage to find out more
Panel Speaking & Moderation
- Engaging, expert panelists
- Breakout room faciliation
- Chairing discussions
- Event design and delivery