Professional athlete

JOB

Arts and entertainment| Teaching, recreation and pedagogy

Professionalism in sports involves developing skills in a certain field through extensive training. The working day is centered on the next training session and preparation for a tournament or competition. Professional athletes travel a lot, domestically and abroad, and engage in considerable communication with sponsors and others related to the sport.

In Iceland, professionalism in sports is growing and is most common in football and handball, but people also often work in sports in parallel with their own sports career. Most professional athletes are members in a particular sports club and are often in close contact with professions such as doctors, physiotherapists, masseurs and nutritionists.

Main tasks

– planning training with a coach
– making plans for rest, diet, etc.
– work with sponsors; promotions, advertisements, etc.
– training and competitions

Competence requirements

Professional athletes need to combine talent with a strong willingness to train. A strong work ethic is a key factor, as well as being able to work both independently and with others. In individual sports, the athlete often needs to organize the working day on their own, and organizational skills are therefore desirable. In team sports, it is necessary to be able to work with others and do what is best for the team.

Based on Utdanning.no – Idrettsutøver

Study

Formal education is not required for professionalism in sports. However, many secondary schools offer sports programs and there are other program that are organized with the needs of athletes in mind.

The career of a professional athlete is generally shorter than a traditional career, and it is therefore common for studies to be pursued partly in parallel with sports.

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