Sarah Conlon calls them the "smart decisions". The ones that can be easily glossed over - like whether to use social media or not - but in the end make or break Olympic Games dreams.
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Perhaps the most important pre-Paris meeting took place at the AIS this week, with more than 30 sports converging on the Bruce campus to discuss their plans.
The strange part? There were no athletes or coaches anywhere to be seen. Because this summit was about the secrets to success off the field, out of the pool or away from the track.
The summit was held as athletes start preparing for a medal mission, and weigh up whether to ditch social media, how to interact with fans and family, and bracing for the return of crowds to the Olympics.
"I don't think anyone can anticipate the added pressure of the Games until they're in that environment," Conlon said.
"The stress on athletes outside of sport is high. Financial stress, moving around and where they call home, how to find meaningful work ... it's so challenging.
"...There's lots of planning, lots of discussions around what leading into Paris looks like, what the experience will be like, and what post Paris looks like.
"What support they need, what their success looks like, trying to make smart decisions around who they connect with [and] when they connect with them to make sure they're at the best they can be."
Conlon, the Australian combat team's athlete wellbeing lead, knows better than most how milliseconds can win you a medal or shatter a dream.
She proudly showed footage of Katharina Haecker taking just 3.59 seconds to beat her judo opponent overseas this week in one of the Paris preparation events. It was the perfect result.
But Conlon will also be there to help athletes piece their ambitions and lives back together when things don't go according to plan, either on the Olympic stage or before they even get there.
Her role is one of growing significance in the sporting landscape, which was highlighted at the three-day conference in Canberra with wellbeing officers from a range of sports coming together to share their plans.
Everything from social media blackouts to avoid online trolls and unwanted distractions, to a "family and friends handbook" that Swimming Australia will share with the mums, dads, brothers, sisters and others who are travelling to Paris to support from the stands.
Each program is different. But they are all designed to give athletes the perfect preparation and environment to achieve their best.
Former Australian Diamond Eloise Southby-Boyle is working with the wheelchair rugby team to help them chase a third Paralympic gold medal in Paris.
"Wellbeing is an enabler for performance. You don't get performance without really good wellbeing. That resonates with me so much, in reflection, that I played my best when everything was actually settled in my life," Southby-Boyle said.
"For me as an athlete wellbeing manager, it's about the connection to the athletes. I feel that in my role, I'm that safe space. That person that's not really into the technical, tactical world.
"I certainly understand it and I understand the pressures, but I'm there for them to be a sounding board and you can see how far we've come."
Social media is one of the hottest topics. The Olympics captures the attention of the sporting world, which can be a double-edged sword.
Winners are lauded as national heroes. Those who fall short of their goal, or the public's expectations, are exposed to the brutal world of social media, where anonymous trolls target athletes when they're at their most vulnerable.
How to use social media will form a key part of individual athlete discussions over the next two months as teams ramp up preparations for Paris success.
Swimming Australia's athlete wellbeing manager Linley Frame has arguably the biggest job of all in that space. Swimming often gets the most attention given events in the pool dominate the opening week of competition.
She has been working with swimmers for the past six years to manage expectations and pressure, joining forces with former Olympic champion Jodie Henry to create a wellbeing buffer.
"Sometimes it doesn't come together, and they're completely human," Frame said. "Other times you get the most amazing performances, and you can't control what anyone else does.
"All of their preparation is to execute at the right time ... you try to minimise the noise around [that].
"We talk about having social media plans and communication plans ... Once every four years you get to an Olympic Games and you don't want to be distracted, you don't want to be emotionally exhausted by listening to chat or other people's opinions."
The other change to the Paris Games will be the return of crowds after COVID-19 restrictions grounded travelling support in 2021.
Australian Olympic teams have already reported a spike in interest from family and friends who want to be at events and in Paris to watch from the stands.
For swimming, that means adhering to the "family and friends handbook" to reduce distractions.
"We share that with the athletes and share it with family and friends so that they can have a discussion and understand what it takes to have that high-performance output," Frame said.
"We need to give their support network as much information as possible as well. Our roles are built around trust. It is the base of everything we do."