THE BILES EFFECT OLYMPIC TRADITION & ATHLETE WELFARE

THE BILES EFFECT

&OLYMPIC TRADITION ATHLETE WELFARE

BY JOHN HEIL & LESLIE PODLOG

WHAT CAN THE FENCING COMMUNITY LEARN FROM THESE MENTAL HEALTH MILESTONES?

LESSONS FROM THE ELITE.

Simone Biles’ withdrawal from a key event at the Tokyo Olympics drew a phenomenal response from across the world of sport, driving a wide range of conversations focused on longstanding issues in sport that have been slowly percolating into public consciousness. The scope and scale of this response has created a “Biles effect” of sorts, providing a moment of reflection and an opportunity for change in sport in service of the welfare of all athletes — including those in our fencing family.

Although Biles’ decision was treated by the viewing public as without precedent, this moment has been coming for a long time. Just months before, tennis player Naomi Osaka withdrew from a major tournament, also for mental health reasons. This move sparked similar controversy and setting the stage for Biles. There has been a rising tide of interest in athlete mental health from all quarters of sport, with reports and policies developed by the International Olympic Committee and the NCAA. These calls are bringing attention to the severity of the problem with athlete mental health and organizations seeking solutions. The recent film Weight of Gold, produced by iconic swimmer Michael Phelps features several prominent Olympic athletes who reveal the stressors they face, the struggles they experienced and the personal costs they paid. To be clear, this article is not intended as an evaluation or judgment of Biles as a person but as an examination of the issues her actions have brought to light. While focused ostensibly on athlete mental health, Biles’ actions also call attention to controversial issues at the core of sport culture, including injury risk and readiness to return to play when injured; the effect of cumulative stress on both well-being and performance; the devastating impact of critical incidents like catastrophic injury; athletes’ rights and organizational practices; and the enduring impact of the ancient ideals of the Greek Olympics on contemporary sport. We conclude with a look at silver linings of athletic adversity and paired with remarkable recovery and post-traumatic growth.

Fencers and gymnasts are similar in that that they are primarily individual athletes who sometimes perform in team competitions together with athletes they are otherwise typically competing against. Individual sport athletes often tend to silo themselves emotionally and competitively, not revealing weakness to those they compete against, fearing those weaknesses might be exploited. The injury risk in fencing differs greatly from gymnastics. Whereas a failed action in gymnastics can result in a potentially catastrophic injury, the risk of such severe injury in fencing is far less. Nonetheless, the risk is there. For all athletes, injury is more likely when in a state of emotional distress, because of a variety of mind-body factors including distractibility, diminished emotional control and disruption of fine motor skills. Where negative emotionality is high, both health and performance can suffer.

INJURY & RISK TAKING.

At the root of Biles’ gymnastics talents is an exceptional sense of where her body is in space, what in sport science is referred to as proprioception. If feelings of worry and apprehension have overridden this sense of where her body is in space, and disrupted the synchrony of body and mind, then she is at risk, potentially for catastrophic injury. Risk is pervasive in sport, spanning the physical effects of injury and the emotional costs of poor performance. As such, there is an implicit risk-reward calculation baked in to the everyday choices athletes make, summed-up by the question: “Is it worth it?”

This is a complicated and deeply personal decision. Consider the risks faced and embraced by big-wall climber Alex Honnold, whose story is featured in the film Free Solo. On the day he was scheduled to climb, with all resources in place and a production crew ready to go, he decided he was not ready and called it off. Unlike Biles, he had the opportunity to reset and return another day, which he did with stunning success. In a situation where failure means death, he chose the moment when the risk-reward ratio was right, potentially averting failure and death. His achievement is without parallel in the history of climbing and regarded as one of the most extraordinary accomplishments in 21st-century sport. This is the reward that balanced the risk for him. At its core, the decision was about both ability and readiness for the moment.

While catastrophic injuries are infrequent. they do occur with a predictable regularity, especially during high-risk activities — like the vault skill that Biles was not ready to

do and avoided. If it were not for proper equipment, practical safeguards, sensible coaching and good decision-making, life-altering injury would be more frequent. The impact of catastrophic injury would be devastating, rippling outward through the athlete’s social circles, affecting teammates, family and friends.

Biles’ actions placed the athlete’s choice at the center of the risk-reward calculation — exactly where it should be. Her focus on mental health made it easier for the rest of us in sport to take pause for our own well-being. The importance of placing mental health considerations above performance ones is better received when coming from a charismatic and highly successful athlete, like Biles or Phelps. We all owe them gratitude for having the courage to speak and act for the well-being of all.

CUMULATIVE STRESS & TRAUMATIC INJURY.

To understand Biles’ decision — or that of any athlete to take themselves out of competition — it is not enough to examine just the incident itself. Instead, it is necessary to consider what led to the moment, what created the mindset that made a familiar skill suddenly so challenging and thus so dangerous. Over the course of a season or a career, stress can accumulate and build. Research has revealed a well-documented but perplexing relationship between general everyday stressors and injury risk. Among high-risk athletes, there is evidence of the development of traumatic stress disorder over time. While cumulative traumatic stress may seem to appear suddenly, it slowly builds over time, eventually reaching a tipping point.

Most likely, the triggering event was the Olympic Games themselves and the abundance of media attention directed at her and a sport that otherwise lives in relative public obscurity. By comparison, professional athletes are used to more media attention and intrusion and are better adapted to that, having more organizational mechanisms in place to cope with and manage it. Given the lengthy four-year Olympic cycle, media scrutiny can create a “now-or-never feeling,” further amplifying the pressure.

SPORT CULTURE & ATHLETE WELFARE.

Sport is a culture. There is a common set of values, shared expectations, customary practices and even a sport-specific language with words and phrases that may be unknown to those outside the sport. Figure skating Olympic gold medalist Kristi Yamaguchi wrote Figure Skating for Dummies to help fans understand the language of her sport. Who outside of fencing understands terms like right of way or

simultaneous action, or even knows the weapon names foil and epee? Within sport and its many cultures, there are expectations that bear directly on athlete health and welfare including risk taking, playing with injury and tolerating pain.

While a focus on performance and achievement is essential to success, there is a downside when athletes unquestionably internalize or uncritically accept the norms about pushing through pain, playing injured and not letting down teammates, coaches and parents. Why would an athlete do something they feel is unsafe and risk injury? They may do so out of fear of letting others down, of being shamed by those in the sport or based on the belief that losing a spot on the team is greater than the fear of being injured.

For all the suffering it may entail, sadly, injury can be a graceful way out: “At least I tried. I’m mentally tough. I didn’t succeed, but I gave everything.” Mental health concerns are often regarded as a flaw, a sign of weakness. Injury is honorable, quitting is not.

Gymnastics culture has high expectations about risk taking with its high-flying skills and related risks. The goldmedal performance of Kerri Strug while injured during the 1996 Atlanta Games, endures as one of the iconic moments of Olympic sport. Ironically, her performance was not necessary, a failure of the team leaders to realize the team had already accumulated the points needed to win. Biles received harsh disapproval for her actions, with critics stating she wasn’t mentally tough, didn’t appreciate the opportunity of competing in an Olympic Games and was not really as good as she was said to be. In the face of such high-profile criticism, it takes courage to stand up for her own welfare. No one loses more by not competing then she. In so doing, Biles has made it easier for many others to make similar, sensible choices on their own behalf. The best athletes set the standards in their sports. If the best can do it, then so can the rest.

CULTURAL ROOTS & THE HEROIC IDEAL.

The sport norms of mental toughness and pain tolerance can be traced to the ancient Olympics, which celebrated warrior skills and personal sacrifice in the service of society.

Consider the marathon, which, according to legend, celebrates the run of the soldier Pheidippides from the plains of Marathon to Athens. After announcing victory of the Greeks over the Persians, Pheidippides collapsed and died. The length of the marathon, 26 miles, 385 yards, is believed to be the distance from the battlefield to the city.

Over two millennia later, we continue to value that act as a definitive example of toughness, pain tolerance and personal sacrifice. As such, the marathon stands as a defining moment in sport in Western society. From the point of view of sociology, this event is the foundation of a cultural schema, a deeply embedded belief widely shared

in society. Cultural schema set expectations, influencing thinking in such a subtle way that it operates outside clear awareness.

DANGER, FEAR & DISTRACTION.

Even the very best athletes can be subject to moments of debilitating fear, worry and apprehension. When these feelings are legitimized and open to discussion, they can be dealt with more effectively to benefit both health and performance. Fear sets up a self-fulfilling prophecy in that what is feared becomes more likely. In a worst-case scenario, fear can fix focus on failure. While positive thinking is beneficial, it alone doesn’t remedy all problems. Ample research reveals that, for a variety of reasons, holding a negative image makes a negative outcome more likely. The higher the stakes, the greater the challenge. Fear undermines both mind and body, resulting in excess muscle tension, disruption of timing and coordination, undermining visual focusing and driving athlete intensity levels up and out of the zone of optimal performance.

ATHLETES RIGHTS-WHO DECIDES?

Did Simone Biles do the right thing? She’s regarded by most as the greatest gymnast of all time and one of the best athletes of the 21st century. As such, it’s fair to say she is an expert on her sport and her own body; that is why she excels. If she says she is not ready to compete, that she is not safe to compete, that needs to be accepted. She is the expert. She knows best.

This is true of all athletes: Their health is their right. Athletic success is undermined if the athlete is always questioning the coach’s decision or judgment. Conversely, if athletes don’t stand up for themselves when they are unable to compete, whether it be for mental or physical health, then a problem is in the making.

THE SILVER LINING.

There’s a saying that “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.” Evidence shows this is more indicative of a false sense of optimism than reality. Ample research suggests that trauma all too often leaves people debilitated, experiencing disrupted lives or even post-traumatic stress. As destructive as injury and other trauma in sport can be, there is also evidence these experiences may be recoverable and lead to personal growth. But athletes neither automatically nor inevitably grow because of trauma.

Growth begins with a willingness to reflect on and face the impact of that experience, as bad as it may be. The athlete needs to retake control of their life and move forward instead of remaining stuck at the point of the trauma.

In rebuilding a sense of personal autonomy and of competence, the athlete can return to sport mentally stronger and smarter, more confident in their abilities and better able to make better critical decisions. But support from others is also essential, including family and friends, with teams and organizations playing an essential role.

WHERE WE STAND.

When athletes like Biles, Phelps and Osaka reveal their struggles, insecurities and vulnerabilities, they pave the way for other athletes to do the same. With the perception of invincibility shattered, their accomplishments seem more remarkable rather than less so. The takeaway message is that a focus on athlete welfare does not shortcut excellence, but actually feeds it. Hopefully, the lessons of this moment can be sustained and important changes made.

As noted, there are many factors that can make it difficult for an athlete to speak on their own behalf. Of these, the influence of sport culture is the most vexing. But it is changeable. In fencing, let’s learn from the lessons we’ve seen and make mental health a priority for not only for athletes, but also coaches, officials and administrators.

Dr. John Heil is a sport & clinical psychologist who served as chair of USA Fencing Sports Medicine & Science for 15 years and as a sport psychology consultant at three Olympic Games. He is the founding editor of the Sport Science column.

Dr. Leslie Podlog is an Associate Professor in Sport and Exercise Psychology at the University of Utah. He has over 100 peer-reviewed research articles and book chapters and has presented his injury work to researchers, coaches and sport scientists across the globe.

Dr. Podlog and Dr. Heil discuss the “Biles’ effect” in the Mettle Minds Podcast (Episode #54), which can be accessed here.