SB&W | Vol. 1 | Issue 3 - FEBRUARY, 2024

Page 12

SPORT THE CORNERSTONE OF ACADEMIC SUCCESS AND THE HEART OF THE KINGSMAN | R. BEGG “Successful leaders balance pride with humility: absolute pride in performance, total humility before the magnitude of the task” - James Kerr

Can I not use this time to study? To get that 99 ATAR?

However, this is not why we play sports. As much as sport is certainly a very physical activity, the mind and sports psychology are of equal importance. Sports psychology is what makes elite athletes world class, and binds great teams together. And as I will discuss in this article, it is the same psychology that is perhaps the pathway to academic success.

Spending eight or more hours in the sun playing cricket, spending eighty minutes being pummelled by props in Rugby, and waking up at 4 in the morning for a full day of rowing. Battling on the ergs, battling in the sun, battling in the mind. For many, sport is merely a physical challenge that inhibits our time for studying and to achieve academic excellence.

Elite sports performance is the amalgamation of confidence produced by strenuous and consistent training, and having the mental toughness to replicate these acquired and obvious skills in a game environment. Yet, how often do we hear of incredibly gifted, diligent athletes ‘choking’ on the biggest stage?

Why on earth do we do sports?

SB & W

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