Abstract
International travel is a feature of an athlete's competition schedule, however staying in another country has the potential to change food intake. However, appropriate nutrient intake is important to athletic performance. This study identified the challenges that exist for athletes when eating from a self-select buffet within a large dining hall environment at The Delhi 2010 Commonwealth Games. Athletes who sought nutrition advice from dietitians located in the dining hall were asked to report factors that assisted with, or made it more difficult to follow a nutrition plan. In addition, the athletes selfreported assessment of their confidence in nutrition knowledge (5 point scale of 'not confident' to 'very confident'), and ability to put into practice their nutrition knowledge ('poor' to 'excellent') was recorded. Dietitians rated the athlete's nutrition knowledge and dietary intake on a scale of 'poor' to 'excellent'. Of the 52 athletes who requested a consultation, 35 (67%) reported themes of; variety, availability of culturally suitable and familiar foods, dining hall layout, nutrition information, food composition or flavour, and special dietary requirements as influences on food choice. Although not significant, athletes from non-Western regions rated their level of confidence ('somewhat confident') and ability to use knowledge ('average') lower than those from Western regions ('reasonably confident', and 'above average'). Dietitians rated athletes dietary intake and knowledge as 'average' to 'good' (M = 2.9, 2.5, range 1-4). Food selection can be challenging for athletes in this environment and further investigation into factors that influence food selection is warranted