Inappropriate coaching such as violence and power harassment have occurred in competitive sports in Japan. These problems are thought to be caused by the characteristics of competitive sports, such as strong master-slave relationships and the virtue of perseverance. Previous studies have indicated that athletes accept inappropriate coaching in order to develop their careers and improve their athletic performance, including these characteristics. On the other hand, it is possible that athletes respond in various ways, such as by making accusations or rebelling, in light of problems such as neurosis and early retirement. Thus, when athletes are confronted with inappropriate coaching, they may not simply accept it obediently, but may choose various ways of responding to complex factors, but it has not been clarified how athletes actually judged and chose the ways of responding.

Therefore, the purpose of this study is to clarify how athletes respond to inappropriate coaching and the factors that influence their responses. The research method was an interview survey of top athletes at the end of their careers. Retrospective interviews were conducted with three former top athletes at the international competition level and analyzed by SCAT.

The results revealed three types of risk responses: risk aversion, risk reduction, and risk retention. In particular, the risk retention revealed a variety of factors, not only the obedience due to the master-slave relationship as pointed out in previous studies. Based on these results, it is necessary to pay attention to what factors athletes choose risk retention, rather than simply focusing on obedience, in order to improve inappropriate coaching in competitive sports. The results also suggest that inappropriate coaching may be increased when top athletes choose non-strategic retention.

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