The Olympic Mindset

WHAT SEPARATES THE BEST FROM THE REST?

TEXT: RYAN TEHINI

Athletes all over the world dedicate themselves tirelessly in the pursuit of one common goal: to win a medal at the Olympics. The dream of competing at the Olympic Games is one that is had by many, but realised by a very select few. Athletes from all different sporting arenas, ranging from skateboarding to golf, push their bodies past what was previously thought possible, as every year athletes are getting faster, stronger, and more capable than before.

MENTAL CONDITIONING

In the age of information, sport competition has taken on a whole new dimension as the athletes have the best equipment, coaching, and physical preparation that science can provide. More and more athletes are in peak physical condition and studies have struggled to find physical differences that accurately separate athletes. Indicating that, while the Olympic Games require immense physical ability, it is not always the deciding factor between who wins and who doesn’t.

With the physical conditioning of every athlete being top tier, the difference often lies in their mental conditioning. This proposition is supported by researchers from Michigan State University, who discovered distinct differences in the mental conditioning of Olympic gold medallists, when compared to silver medallists. The researchers noted that the gold medallists were more likely to score high on resilience, confidence, sport intelligence, emotion management, and focus/mindfulness when compared to other Olympic athletes.

The clear importance of mental conditioning in high level competition raises the question: What are Olympic athletes doing to improve their psychological skills, and distinguish themselves from other athletes, at the Tokyo Olympics? In this article, we are going to look at a few of the athletes to watch this year, and what they do to psychologically prepare for the highest level of competition.

ISABELL WERTH – EQUESTRIAN

Isabell Werth

A veteran of equestrian competition, Isabell Werth is the most decorated dressage rider of all time. Hailing from Germany, she has competed in five Olympic Games since 1992, and the 2020 Tokyo Olympics will be her sixth appearance. She has 10 Olympic medals under her belt, the most by any equestrian athlete, and is a great example of how psychological conditioning can develop through experience. Isabell’s main consideration leading up to the Olympic Games is to not over train in the days before, but rather rely on her years of training and work solely on her mental conditioning. Through her years of competition, she has come to love the pressure arising out of big competition and has curated a few ways of thriving under pressure. Firstly, in the warmup arena she focuses solely on the horse, which allows her to tune out the noise, set her mind before the competition, and take a moment of calm where it is just rider and horse, alone. Secondly, in the small hours leading up to her ride, she keeps to herself, away from the other competitors. This affords her a moment of calm and avoids the invasive thoughts arising from outside opinion and comment. Lastly, she emphasises the importance of flexible focus in the arena. Allowing herself to not fixate entirely on one aspect, but to select a few goals for the ride and shift focus between those as needed. These psychological techniques have been honed through decades of experience and coaching, and they are sure to make her formidable competition at this year’s games.

SIMONE BILES – GYMNASTICS

NOTE: We are aware of Simone Biles' withdrawal from multiple events at the Olympics and will be discussing the relevance of this in our next issue.

A relatively young, but incredibly tenacious competitor in the field of Gymnastics, Simone Biles from the USA is definitely someone to watch at the Tokyo Olympics. Growing up under difficult circumstances, Simone learned early on the importance of mental toughness, and credits a lot of her success to therapy and sport psychology. At the age of 16, she was competing at an international level. However, she battled a serious crisis of confidence as she found herself competing against women who were her heroes when she was growing up. This caused her to make several mistakes during her routine at a national competition, and ultimately withdraw from the competition altogether. Following this event she sought help from a psychologist, who taught her how to rely on her talent and enjoy the competition. The greatest adjustment for this world class gymnast, was to recognise that she was good enough to compete with the best. Through continued psychological work, her confidence increased, her mindset shifted, and she has become one of the greatest gymnasts of all time, even inventing a new gymnastics move - now known as the Biles. Her confidence has only continued to grow as she goes from strength to strength. In fact, nowadays she is considered one of the most confident athletes in the sport, and it is not uncommon to see her don a bedazzled goat on her clothing - a common term used to refer to the Greatest of All Time (G.O.A.T).

ELIUD KIPCHOGE - ATHLETICS

The only man to run a marathon in under two hours needs no introduction. Kenyan athlete Eliud Kipchoge is a sporting legend, and one of the favourites to win in Tokyo. Eliud is a firm example of putting research into practice. When he broke the 2 hour marathon barrier in 2019, he actively employed a recent psychological technique discovered by researchers at Ulster and Swansea University. The study found that runners who smiled while running used less oxygen, ran more economically, and had a lower perceived rate of exertion. While this may sound bizarre, the science behind it is sound, as it was discovered that runners were 2.8% more economical when smiling than when frowning. This may seem like a minor margin, but in a marathon it equates to an average time improvement of 5 minutes. The reason Eliud uses this technique, is because he believes a relaxed runner is an efficient runner, and the science would agree. When we make a facial expression, we tend to experience the emotional state that we associate with the expression, and we associate smiling with relaxation and enjoyment. The act of smiling while he runs, allows his body to consciously relax, which increases his physiological performance. So, at this year’s Olympic marathon, it is likely that you will see him smiling before, during and after the race.

APPLYING PSYCHOLOGICAL TECHNIQUES TO YOUR RIDE

One of the more notable aspects of this write-up, is that all the athletes have tailored psychological techniques that assist them in their performance. The one-size-fits-all approach has never worked in the world of sport. While one athlete might thrive under pressure, the other might need complete relaxation in order to perform. Alternatively, your area of concern may not be the stress of performing, but rather anything from a slow cognitive reaction time to difficulty focusing. While the general psychological techniques may provide a fair degree of performance enhancement, it is important to consider what your biggest concern is and address that directly. In the coming months, this section will take a look at some of the newer psychological techniques that have been shown to assist directly in an equestrian environment.