{"id":1325,"date":"2011-08-15T14:33:31","date_gmt":"2011-08-15T14:33:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/?p=1325"},"modified":"2025-08-07T02:30:18","modified_gmt":"2025-08-07T06:30:18","slug":"secrets-from-the-sports-mom-of-olympic-athlete-summer-sanders","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/secrets-from-the-sports-mom-of-olympic-athlete-summer-sanders\/","title":{"rendered":"Secrets From The Sports Mom of Olympic Athlete Summer Sanders"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"600\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/how-one-teen-uses-sports-psychology-to-excel-and-stay-calm.jpg\" alt=\"Youth Sports Psychology\" class=\"wp-image-3451\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/how-one-teen-uses-sports-psychology-to-excel-and-stay-calm.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/how-one-teen-uses-sports-psychology-to-excel-and-stay-calm-300x150.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Parents_Supporting_Your_Athletes_Goals\"><\/span>Parents: Supporting Your Athletes&#8217; Goals<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2><div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_83 ez-toc-wrap-center counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/secrets-from-the-sports-mom-of-olympic-athlete-summer-sanders\/#Parents_Supporting_Your_Athletes_Goals\" >Parents: Supporting Your Athletes&#8217; Goals<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/secrets-from-the-sports-mom-of-olympic-athlete-summer-sanders\/#Where_does_the_sports_parent_fit_in\" >Where does the sports parent fit in?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/secrets-from-the-sports-mom-of-olympic-athlete-summer-sanders\/#Related_Articles_on_Youth_Sports\" >Related Articles on Youth Sports:<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/secrets-from-the-sports-mom-of-olympic-athlete-summer-sanders\/#Help_Young_Athletes_Boost_Confidence_in_Sports\" >Help Young Athletes Boost Confidence in Sports!<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<p>Barbara Hopewell, the sports mom to Summer Sanders&#8211;a swimmer who won four medals at the 1992 Olympic games&#8211;recently told us some of her sports parenting secrets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Hopewell, who was the subject of Sanders\u2019 book, <em>\u201cChampions Are Raised, Not Born: How My Parents Made Me a <strong>Success,\u201d<\/strong><\/em> says it\u2019s critical for parents to support their kids\u2019 goals. But parents should not try to establish the goals for their young athletes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Goal setting<\/strong> was important to Sanders, says Hopewell. <em>\u201cEvery year the goals would change, depending on what was going on,\u201d<\/em> she says. With one coach, in high school, Sanders and her team would set long-term and short-term goals once a year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>\u201cThe coach would sit down with them and go over their goals, asking, \u2018Is this realistic or is this too easy for you?\u2019 He was comfortable letting them make their decisions based on his input.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>The bottom line:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>\u201cIt was important that the kids learned to coach themselves. In sports like swimming, you have to be <strong>self-motivated,<\/strong> you have to set your own <strong>goals,<\/strong> know what you want and not rely on coaches telling you this.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Where_does_the_sports_parent_fit_in\"><\/span>Where does the sports parent fit in?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Hopewell felt it was her job to support her daughter\u2019s efforts. That meant taking her to practices and being involved in her sports life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>\u201cIf you tell your child, \u2018I\u2019m not taking you to practice\u2019 or if you\u2019re not involved, it will make it difficult for your child to reach her goals and it\u2019s discouraging,\u201d<\/em> Hopewell says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Again, for sports parents, providing support means supporting the child\u2019s dreams&#8211;not your own, she stresses. In swimming, Hopewell saw coaches and parents push kids really hard. These kids often excelled when they were young, but burnt out, she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>\u201cThese swimmers tend to be very fast, very young. But they don\u2019t make it to their <strong>ultimate goal<\/strong> of the Olympic team. They can\u2019t take the pressure and the workload.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And while you\u2019re working hard at making sure you don\u2019t exert too much pressure, what do you do when your young athlete loses interest in sports, even when she\u2019s clearly a winner? That\u2019s what happened to Sanders when she was 14.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A family friend asked Sanders why she was putting so much time into swimming, at the expense of friendships and other parts of her life, and Sanders replied, <em>\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>\u201cI couldn\u2019t believe it,\u201d <\/em>says Hopewell. Later, Hopewell talked to her daughter.<em> \u201cDo not be doing this for anyone but yourself,\u201d <\/em>she told Sanders.<em> \u201cWe won\u2019t be upset with you if you decide not to swim anymore.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Again, she let Sanders be her own coach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"related-articles-on-hockey-mental-game\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Related_Articles_on_Youth_Sports\"><\/span>Related Articles on Youth Sports:<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/sports-parents-top-dilemma-program\/\"><strong>Helping Young Athletes Kick Perfectionism and Fear of Failure<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/how-to-support-your-athletes-coach\/\"><strong>How To Support Your Athlete\u2019s Coach<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/help-athletes-improve-confidence-for-the-new-season\/\"><strong>Help Athletes Improve Confidence for the New Season<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p id=\"block-f49818fa-7c7a-4ee3-b5ee-66581aad2c71\">*Subscribe to\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/sports-psychology-podcast-by-peaksports-com\/id152566009\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>The Sports Psychology Podcast<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0on iTunes<br>*Subscribe to <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/0ynyaalKxbnNmsoeL8gF5X?si=8224669de9b3435b\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>The Sports Psychology Podcast<\/strong><\/a> on Spotify<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Help_Young_Athletes_Boost_Confidence_in_Sports\"><\/span>Help Young Athletes Boost Confidence in Sports!<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-full is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/ultimate-sports-parent-small.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"225\" height=\"250\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/ultimate-sports-parent-small.jpg\" alt=\"The Ultimate Sports Parent\" class=\"wp-image-11157\" style=\"width:167px;height:auto\"\/><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>Every day, we receive letters from parents like you who want their children and teens to excel in sports. However, these parents can <strong>see fear, doubt, and frustration on the faces of their kids<\/strong> who struggle with the \u201cinner\u201d game of sports. But these parents have no idea how to help their kids <strong>overcome the worries, expectations and self-defeating thoughts<\/strong> that prevent their young athletes from feeling confident and successful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You can benefit from our 1<strong>5-plus years\u2019 of work in sports psychology and sports parenting research<\/strong>. Now, you can <strong>tap into our secrets to sports success<\/strong> through a cutting-edge, 14-day program that helps young athletes overcome the top \u201cmental game\u201d challenges that sports parents face\u2014and the top <strong>challenges young athletes face<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"gb-container gb-container-fbab03ed\">\n\n<a class=\"gb-button gb-button-fa7bf2e7 gb-button-text\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/ultimate-sports-parent-workbook-cd-program\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">GET DETAILS<\/a>\n\n\n\n<a class=\"gb-button gb-button-33bcee1d gb-button-text\" href=\"https:\/\/shop.peaksports.com\/products\/the-ultimate-sports-parent-digital\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">BUY NOW<\/a>\n\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Parents: Supporting Your Athletes&#8217; Goals Barbara Hopewell, the sports mom to Summer Sanders&#8211;a swimmer who won four medals at the 1992 Olympic games&#8211;recently told us some of her sports parenting secrets. Hopewell, who was the subject of Sanders\u2019 book, \u201cChampions Are Raised, Not Born: How My Parents Made Me a &#8230; <a title=\"Secrets From The Sports Mom of Olympic Athlete Summer Sanders\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/secrets-from-the-sports-mom-of-olympic-athlete-summer-sanders\/\" aria-label=\"Read more about Secrets From The Sports Mom of Olympic Athlete Summer Sanders\">Read Sport Psychology Tip<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3450,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[39,468,469],"class_list":["post-1325","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-youth-sports-psychology-blog","tag-kids-sports-psychology","tag-parent-of-athlete","tag-parents-helping-their-kid-in-sports","resize-featured-image"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1325","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1325"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1325\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3450"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1325"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1325"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1325"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}