Thomas International Launches In Sport

Thomas International, a global provider of people assessments, has launched a dedicated sports division, Thomas Sport.

The company, which has a long-standing history as psychometric assessment providers in the business and education sectors, has now created a dedicated suite of psychometric assessment tools tailored for the world of sport.

Ahead of the launch, the new division has been supported by a number of sports psychologists, elite athletes and professional sportsmen and women to ensure the products’ efficacy – including Paralympic gold medallist Naomi Riches, former sprinter Derek Redmond, Saracens’ Jackson Wray and Kent CCC’s Sam Billings.

Thomas International was founded in 1981 and now operates in 60 countries, over 20million Thomas assessments have been completed during this time, with 1.5million people completing one this year alone.

According to the organisation, Thomas Sport ‘enables coaches to understand their personal style and that of their athletes more fully’.

‘An increased self-awareness of communication style, motivation and emotional intelligence better places organisations, trainers and coaches to deliver more effective training programmes, supporting teams and helping athletes gain a real competitive edge.’

Martin Reed, CEO of Thomas International, said of the launch: ‘The first step to creating success whether on the pitch or in the workplace, is understanding the key motivators and fears, as well as strengths and weaknesses, of each team member or individual and from there knowing how best to manage them effectively for success. Our business insights apply direct to sport.’

This is supported by Paralympian Naomi Riches MBE, who firmly believes psychometric assessments helped her to become world champion.

The rower, who retired last year, commented: ‘Psychometric testing I believe is part of the fantastic formula that got me that gold medal in London. It made me realise that without losing sight of who I was, I could still modify the way I behaved in certain situations to allow the people around me to get the best out of me – and for me to get the best out of them.’

Thomas Sport is currently working with a number of sports teams, including Saracens rugby team, Kent County Cricket Club and Southampton FC Academy.

The academy’s lead sports psychologist, Malcolm Frame, uses Thomas tools as part of their research and training programme to develop its young footballers.

Frame concluded: ‘The tools help us to explain to our athletes and coaches about psychological and behavioural flexibility, improving their self-awareness and helping them to adapt their behaviour where possible.’