The purpose of this study was to describe the professional experience of a Japanese high-performance water polo coach in Singapore. Informed by the Job Demands-Resource (JD-R) theory, we adopted a life story approach within a single case study design to capture the coach`s first-hand perspectives on navigating a culturally distinct coaching environment. The participant was one Japanese coach at the Singapore national men's water polo team. Data were collected through a demographic questionnaire, a face-to-face semi-structured interview, and followup e-mail. We analysed the data using reflexive thematic analysis. Throughout the analysis process, we drew on both deductive insights from JD-R theory and inductive findings emerging from the data, ensuring a nuanced understanding of the coach`s experiences. To enhance trustworthiness, we employed member checking and conducted peer debriefing sessions. Three core themes emerged from the analysis. First, Job Demands encompassed producing strong results for major competitions in a socio-cultural context distinct from Japan, adapting to local work cultures, and negotiating differences in team members` motivations. Second, Job Resources included the coach`s personal competencies, high levels of work engagement and self-efficacy, and organizational resources such as scientific support and full-time assistant coaches. Despite these supports, limited staff welfare benefits for foreign coaches posed a challenge. Third, the coach`s capacity to Balance Job Demands and Resources allowed him to craft challenging tasks—beyond his employer`s immediate expectations—to promote a more sustainable coaching and player development system. These findings underline the importance of fostering cultural adaptation, clarifying role expectations, and offering sufficient resources to foreign high-performance coaches. They further highlight how coaching expertise, autonomy, and proactive job crafting can enhance both individual well-being and team performance. Ultimately, the study offers insights for policymakers, sport organizations, and practitioners seeking to optimize cross-border coaching and global coaching systems.
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