BPS trainee Sport Psychologist

MSc in Applied Sport Psychology at St. Mary's University, Twickenham, London, UK

Originally from Italy with a classical studies background, in 2012 I moved to London, where I kept on training Kung Fu Wing Chun and I worked as a qualified Sport & Remedial Massage Therapist and Gym Instructor, both privately and in physio/sport clinics.

Whilst studying for my BSc in Sport Psychology, I founded Martial Attitude C.I.C. to create a new type of training and support informed by BPS's best practices and perspectives.

In Spring 2024, I have attended the European Network of Young Sport Psychologists annual conference in Tallin, Estonia, and the International Sport Psychology Conference in Bucharest, Romania, to present my study on fear and anxiety in professional boxing.

After conducting the MSc exploratory qualitative study on "touch exchange", confidence and blindness, I am now researching on the effects of training techniques derived by Kung Fu Wing Chun on visually impaired and blind people's confidence levels and overall well-being.

My role as a trainee Sport Psychologist is to support athletes and sport organisations identify their needs and fulfil their potential, for a healthier living and outstanding performance.

If you think you might benefit from starting a conversation with me, please do keep in touch.

What if you were blind and someone unknown touched you?

How is sight loss affecting your attitude, your movement and your posture and your relationships with others?

How could a physical training program be specifically tailored, also psychologically, for you?

Applying some of the tactile techniques of Kung Fu Wing Chun combined with my experience as Sport & Remedial Massage Therapist and Gym Instructor, I have found that visually impaired and blind people can increase their confidence in controlling their immediate surroundings.

Martial Attitude Training offers a safe and supportive environment to foster the integration between visually impaired and fully sighted people through the progressive acquisition of transferable skills in spatial navigation and body posture, particularly important in social settings, for greater physical and psychological well-being.

If you are visually impaired or blind, or if you know someone who is, and would like to be involved in our workshops, please do keep in touch.

Picture credits: Sifu Storari, Lok Yiu Wing Chun Italia

Martial Attitude Voice Podcast explores the meanings and applications of discipline across multiple sports to better understand how we can apply some of the best principles in our everyday life.

For instance, what is fear for a professional boxer and how different that is to anxiety? Do different boxers have different ways of understanding fear and of coping with it?

Also, the podcast give voice to the personal experiences of visually impaired and blind people to rise awareness about their issues to a wider audience, and to advocate for future psychology research on the topic.

In this regard, how do visually impaired and blind people make sense of their sense of touch when in contact with other people? How do they think this “touch exchange” contribute to their overall confidence? Is their sense of confidence somewhat related to participation in physical activity?

If you know your sport discipline has given you important insights of you way of living and would like to share your experience, please do keep in touch.