An evaluation made after the Olympic Games in Sydney showed that the coaches didn´t handle the pressure very well. For this reason the Swedish Olympic Committee(SOK)gave their support to educate the coaches. The Swedish Athletics Association (SFIF) and SOK joined in a financial venture project, The Coach Project(TCP), aiming at medals for athletes in Athens 2004. This study intends to evaluate the coaches´ experiences of TCP. The research questions are: Did TCP reach it´s goals? Did TCP affect the coach ability? Do coaches need education like TCP to develop into better coaches? What effects and/or consequenses did the project have? Method The study is qualitative the interview part and quantitative in the survey part. The information is collected through personal interviews with 6 coaches and one project coordinator in TCP and one coach outside the project. The surveys were sent to the rest of the participants in TCP(15 coaches) and one coach outside the project. A total number of 19 coaches and 4 other persons participated in TCP 2004. This study was planned through studies of internal material. The information was summarized and resulted in an interview guide and a survey, and then divided into thematic areas. Results The theoretical model used in analysing the interviews is hierarchical content analysis and the results from the survey is presented by descriptive analysis. The results of the information were divided in four categories: 1. The Aim and intentions from SOK, 2. TCP in general, 3. The four corner stones, which were the goals/content of TCP, (Championships skills, Coaching, Team-building, Mental strength), 4. The project coordinator. In category 1, the coaches found that the aim was team-building, to create championship skills and to educate coaches with the aim to get more medals. In category 2, they had a positive experience. In category 3 the coaches agreed that the skills in dealing with championships and coaching developed most. In category 4 the project coordinator received positive reactions. Conclusions The most successful coaches in Athens, were mentally prepared before and during the Games, focu-sed and committed. Those who underperformed could have had problems with focus, commitment and coaching problems. SFIF and SOK found the goals of TCP, the four corner stones, have been reached. My conclusions are that the coach ability was affected positively through TCP and that coaches need similar education to develop. Coaches need, like the athletes, support and consultation to be effective in championships. The greatest consequenses and effects with the coaches, were an increase of championship skills and coaching. Comparative studies emphasizes these conclusions.
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