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Mental preparation for those who compete.

Mental coaching for athletes, coaches and teams, from young athletes to professionals. Based in Lugano, I work in Switzerland, in Italy and internationally.

Let’s talk about your goalHow to start

The first introductory conversation is free of charge.

Sport mental coaching with athletes
Since 2000
In person also in Italy and abroad, by arrangement
Based in Lugano
Individual coaching, available internationally
Online
Working languages
Italian, English
Experience with athletes from different sports
19 disciplines

Professional information as stated by Fausto Donadelli. Athletes’ sporting results are not presented as a consequence of the coaching.

Intelligenza AgonisticaA framework for mental performance in competition

Talent is what you have. Preparation is what you build. Intelligenza Agonistica is what allows you to use them when it really matters.

Intelligenza Agonistica is the working model I have developed through my experience in the mental preparation of athletes.

Having talent and being prepared does not automatically mean being able to express them in competition. The work is about how you read the competitive situation and how you regulate your resources when it really matters.

Read the full definition

“Intelligenza Agonistica is the athlete’s ability to read, interpret and face competitive situations, regulating their own cognitive, emotional, physical and behavioral resources to produce responses that are effective, adaptive and consistent with the demands of performance.”

Read the full text on Intelligenza Agonistica

The six dimensions

  1. Competitive clarity
  2. Emotional and physiological regulation
  3. Decision-making adaptability
  4. Managing mistakes and regaining effectiveness
  5. Attention management
  6. Competitive identity and the relationship with results

Who I work with

Athletes, coaches, teams, young people and organizations: each arrives with different questions.

  1. Professional and amateur athletes

    Individual mental coaching, in person or online.

  2. Coaches and technical staff

    A professional sounding board for those who lead athletes and teams, in training and in competition.

  3. Teams, clubs and organizations

    Work with groups and sports clubs, at their own facilities.

  4. Young athletes and parents

    Programs for young athletes, with parents involved from the start.

  5. Workshops, seminars and training

    In person, for staff, clubs, academies, parents and federations.

All services in detail

How to start

  1. Introductory conversation

    We get to know each other and talk about your sporting situation.

    The first introductory conversation is free of charge.

  2. Setting objectives

    Together we decide what to work on.

  3. Personalized sessions

    The work is built around your needs, without a fixed protocol.

Let’s talk about your goalThe method in detail

Testimonials

The words of athletes and coaches. They wrote in Italian; the English translations are labeled as such.

“Thanks to Fausto I learned to believe more in myself and in my potential. Before working with him, I’d start races already mentally beaten just by looking at the start list. He gave me the competitive edge I needed to compete with the best in the world.”

English translation of the Italian original

Read the original (Italian)

«Grazie a Fausto ho imparato a credere più in me stesso e nelle mie potenzialità. Prima di collaborare con lui partivo alle corse già sconfitto mentalmente solamente guardando l’elenco iscritti. È riuscito a darmi la giusta cattiveria agonistica per riuscire a competere con i migliori al mondo.»

Andrea Bagioli racing in his cycling team’s jerseyAndrea BagioliRoad cyclingSoudal Quick-Step Pro Cycling Team (at the time of the testimonial)

“Thanks to him I learned mental strength, to keep moving forward, and to hold on to the focus and consistency that allowed me to achieve my biggest dream: playing in the National Hockey League. So I can honestly say he’s an excellent mental coach and I absolutely recommend him.”

English translation of the Italian original

Read the original (Italian)

«Grazie a lui ho imparato la forza mentale, a muovermi in avanti, imparando a mantenere quella concentrazione e costanza che mi hanno permesso di realizzare il mio sogno più grande: giocare in National Hockey League; perciò posso tranquillamente affermare che è un ottimo mental coach e che lo consiglio assolutamente.»

Elvis Merzlikins in goal, in goaltender gearElvis MerzlikinsIce hockeyProfessional Hockey Player @ Columbus Blue Jackets, NHL (at the time of the testimonial)

“Fausto has a deep ability to read and understand people and a strong desire to really help them. He doesn’t tell you how you should feel or how to deal with things. It’s up to you to reflect deeply, trusting that he’ll take you exactly where you need to go, because the problem is inside you and it’s up to you to solve it. Thank you, Fausto!”

English translation of the Italian original

Read the original (Italian)

«Fausto ha una profonda capacità di leggere e comprendere le persone e un forte desiderio di poterle concretamente aiutare. Non ti dice né come ti devi sentire né come affrontare la cosa, sta a te riflettere profondamente, fiducioso che lui ti porterà esattamente là dove devi andare, perché il problema è dentro di te e sta a te doverlo risolvere. Grazie Fausto!»

Portrait of Eric WalskyEric WalskyIce hockeyHead Coach U20 @ Genève-Servette Club (at the time of the testimonial)

Translated from the original Italian testimonials, which are available under each translation.

Read all testimonials

Mental preparation knows no borders.

Lugano is my base, not a boundary. I work in person and online, in Italian and in English.

  • In Lugano

    In-person meetings at my base in Ticino.

  • In Switzerland, Italy and abroad

    In person at clubs, academies and sports centers. Arrangements and travel are agreed case by case.

  • Online

    Individual mental coaching at a distance, available internationally.

Workshops and seminars take place in person.

Collaborations

Current collaboration, since 2024

GoAcademy

Tennis and padel academy, Agno

Area: sport mental preparation.

Previous experience and collaborations

  1. 2014–2016HC LuganoIce hockey. Mental Performance Coach
  2. 2016FC LuganoFootball. Mental Performance Coach
  3. 2022IHC MalcantoneInline hockey. Mental Performance Coach

Past collaborations. Alongside the GoAcademy collaboration, I work independently with individual athletes.

About me

Fausto Donadelli sitting outdoors in a dark T-shirt

Fausto Donadelli

Sport Mental Coach and Mental Performance Coach

I have been working with athletes in sport mental preparation since 2000.

I have worked with athletes in 19 disciplines, from ice hockey to cycling, from tennis to skiing, and I work with coaches, teams and young athletes. My work is mental preparation for performance, not therapy: when needed, I refer people to healthcare professionals.

Profile, training and collaborations

Let’s talk about your goal

Tell me in a few lines about your sport, where you train and what you would like to improve. Together we will decide whether to work in person or online.

Write to me through the contact form

Or write to info@sportmentalcoaching.org

The first introductory conversation is free of charge.