#370 Steve Tashjian, Performance Specialist for US Mens Soccer, Everton, and AC Milan, on Trust, Collaboration, Leadership and Culture in High Performance Environments
Release Date: 03/29/2024
#447 Dr. Kristen Dieffenbach on the Difference Between Coaching Boys and Girls
Way of Champions Podcast
Dr. Kristen Dieffenbach (@DrDCoachScience) is an associate professor of Athletic Coaching Education, director of the Center for Applied Coaching and Sport Science at West Virginia University and president of the United States Center for Coaching Excellence. She is an Association of Applied Sport Psychology certified consultant, public relations and outreach head on the AASP e-board and president of the United States Center for Coaching Excellence. Dieffenbach is a professional coach with a category 1 (elite) USA Cycling license and Level II endurance specialization from USA Track and Field....
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#447 Dr. Kristen Dieffenbach on the Difference Between Coaching Boys and Girls
Way of Champions Podcast
Dr. Kristen Dieffenbach (@DrDCoachScience) is an associate professor of Athletic Coaching Education, director of the Center for Applied Coaching and Sport Science at West Virginia University and president of the United States Center for Coaching Excellence. She is an Association of Applied Sport Psychology certified consultant, public relations and outreach head on the AASP e-board and president of the United States Center for Coaching Excellence. Dieffenbach is a professional coach with a category 1 (elite) USA Cycling license and Level II endurance specialization from USA Track and Field....
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#446 Geoff Carlston, former Ohio State and Ohio U Volleyball Coach, on Fear vs Love Based High Performance Environments
Way of Champions Podcast
Over the course of his collegiate coaching career, Geoff Carlston served as head coach at Ohio University, Ohio State University, and Concordia University, amassing more than 400 career wins. His teams consistently competed at the highest level, earning multiple NCAA Tournament appearances, including several Sweet Sixteen runs, and he has been honored with numerous Coach of the Year awards. In 23 years of leading high performance NCAA volleyball programs, Geoff only had one student athlete transfer out of his program. Think about that for a moment. At Ohio University, Geoff led the...
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#445 Tom Renney, Former NHL Head Coach and Hockey Canada CEO
Way of Champions Podcast
Tom Renney is a Canadian former ice hockey coach and executive. Renney began his coaching career in the Western Hockey League (WHL), capturing a Memorial Cup in his two-year stint with the Kamloops Blazers. He served as an NHL head coach of the Vancouver Canucks, New York Rangers, and Edmonton Oilers and associate coach with the Detroit Red Wings. He also participated in the coaching staff for Canada's national teams on numerous occasions, capturing a silver medal as the head coach at the 1994 Winter Olympics. After retiring from coaching, Renney served as the chief executive officer of Hockey...
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#444 What Does it Take to be an Elite Youth Athlete? Baltimore Orioles Draft Pick Slater de Brun and 2x USA Swimming National Champion Campbell McKean Share Their Stories
Way of Champions Podcast
Living in Bend, Oregon, our host John O'Sullivan has gotten to know some extraordinary young athletes, none more so than our two guests today, Slater de Brun and Campbell McKean. He has know both boys since elementary school, and had the privilege of coaching Slater for 5 years in soccer before he went full time into baseball. Slater was recently the 37th overall pick in the Major League Baseball draft, and signed a multi-million dollar contract with the Baltimore Orioles. Campbell is the US National Champion in the 50 and 100 meter butterfly, and recently won a bronze medal in the World...
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Dr. Nick Holton and Dr. Adam Wright of The Antifragile Academy
Way of Champions Podcast
Dr. Nick Holton’s work focuses on helping individuals, teams, businesses and organizations become better versions of themselves through the application of the cutting-edge science of human flourishing – a synergistic development of both peak performance and overall well-being and fulfillment. Nick currently serves as a private coach and consultant, working with individuals and groups ranging from professional athletes, NCAA programs, educational institutions, and Fortune 500 businesses. He also runs a podcast alongside the Human Flourishing Program at Harvard. The show...
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Tools for Implementing the Way of Champions Culture with Matt Booth, Jerry Lynch and John O'Sullivan
Way of Champions Podcast
In June of 2025, John and Jerry gathered in Lake George, Colorado with 30 coaches, athletic directors, and sport performance coaches for our first ever Way of Champions Retreat and Certification program. Over the course of four days and three nights of intense inner work, group discussions, hikes and delicious meals, we gave these coaches not only tools, but a deep understanding of what it means to bring this type of work to your team, school and community. It was an incredible event, life changing for some, and according to our participants more impactful than any coach development event they...
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Tools for Implementing the Way of Champions Culture with Matt Booth, Jerry Lynch and John O'Sullivan
Way of Champions Podcast
In June of 2025, John and Jerry gathered in Lake George, Colorado with 30 coaches, athletic directors, and sport performance coaches for our first ever Way of Champions Retreat and Certification program. Over the course of four days and three nights of intense inner work, group discussions, hikes and delicious meals, we gave these coaches not only tools, but a deep understanding of what it means to bring this type of work to your team, school and community. It was an incredible event, life changing for some, and according to our participants more impactful than any coach development event they...
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#441 How to Be a Better Parent Coach: A Discussion with Skye Eddy, Jerry Lynch, and John O'Sullivan
Way of Champions Podcast
One of the most common questions we get here is could we cover the challenges of being a parent coach. Statistics tell us that on the grassroots and recreational level, somewhere around 80% of coaches are also parents of one of the athletes on the team. As we move into the travel and more competitive older ages, that number shrinks, but as those of us who have coached their kids in a high performance environment know, the scrutiny increases exponentially. A few weeks back, John received an email from a listener who was struggling with coaching her child in a high performance environment,...
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#440 Scott Allen, Washington Capitals Asst. Coach on Being a Great Assistant, the Importance of Loyalty, and How to Make Every Individual Better in a Team Environment
Way of Champions Podcast
Scott Allen is the assistant coach of the Washington Capitals of the NHL. Prior to joining Washington, Allen spent three seasons with the Hershey Bears of the American Hockey League (AHL). With Hershey, Allen served as an assistant coach for two seasons before being named the Bears’ head coach ahead of the 2021-22 season. Under Allen, Hershey finished with a record of 34-32-6-4, clinching a Calder Cup Playoff berth, and ranked tied for 11th in the AHL in goals against (209). The New Bedford, Massachusetts native has coached professionally for more than 25 seasons, including...
info_outline Steve Tashjian is the Founder of Elevation Project, which collaborates with elite organizations, communities, and institutions to build high-performance teams and systems. Steve is an expert physical therapist, sports scientist, movement specialist, and director of high performance. He was the High Performance Director of the Columbus Crew of MLS before becoming the first full-time American performance specialist in the English Premier League, leading the Sport Science efforts for Everton Football Club. He led the high performance department for U.S. Men’s Soccer Team for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, and has prepared triathletes for the Kona Ironman, boxers for world title fights, supported Matt Fitzpatrick for the 2023 PGA Championship and US Open, and just announced a consultancy with AC Milan of the Italian Serie A.
Beyond sport, he has coached executive VPs at Stanley 1913, performance directors at the Phoenix Suns, helped the Colorado Rapids (MLS) develop organizational identity. Today we discuss his sporting journey, his work under high level coaches such as David Moyes and Greg Berhalter, as well as the importance of trust, collaboration, and much more.
Connect with Steve on LinkedIn here
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This week’s podcast is brought to you by our friends at Sprocket Sports. Sprocket Sports is a new software platform for youth sports clubs. There are a lot of these systems out there, but Sprocket provides the full enchilada. They give you all the cool front-end stuff to make your club look good– like websites and marketing tools – AND all the back-end transactions and services to run your business better so you can focus on what really matters – your players and your teams.
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