Time: 14:15 – 14:35
Session: Academic Talk

They Knew What to Do; But Didn’t See It: Training Perception Before Performance

Speaker Profile

Lee Waters is an applied practitioner, lecturer, and researcher specialising in visual perception, decision making, and performance under pressure. He has over 20 years of experience working across elite sport, education, and high-performance environments, including professional team sports, international officiating, and emergency services.

He is a Chartered Scientist, a BASES Accredited Practitioner, a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, and a CIMSPA Chartered Senior Manager. His applied work includes innovative projects using tools such as eye-tracking and cognitive load analysis to better understand how performers perceive, decide, and act in complex environments.

Alongside his applied work, he lectures in sport and exercise psychology and is completing doctoral research focused on perception, decision making, and learning design.

Overview

Coaches often describe moments where athletes appear to “know what to do” but fail to act in time. While these breakdowns are frequently attributed to confidence or decision making, this session highlights how many performance errors originate earlier, at the level of perception.

Drawing on applied research and case studies from elite sport and high-pressure environments, the session explores how visual perception, attentional control, and cognitive load influence decision making under pressure. Through practical examples, including eye-tracking data and real coaching scenarios, it demonstrates how athletes can appear focused while missing critical information.

Attendees will be introduced to accessible frameworks for understanding visual search behaviour and attentional demands, alongside practical strategies for designing training environments that improve perception, decision making, and adaptability.