Athletes from around the globe will soon converge on Paris for the 2024 Olympic Games and, for many of them, it will be the pinnacle of their careers after years of meticulous training. But a handful of them will be participating in the Games as ‘favourites’ in their discipline, making them the target of expectancies from avenues including media, coaches, officials, opponents, teammates, the public, family and national governing bodies.
Speculation about the performance of athletes often dominates media coverage in the build-up to Olympic and Paralympic Games. Research I have conducted alongside colleagues from Leeds Beckett University demonstrates that these expectancies can boost an athlete’s confidence, motivation and profile, as well as attract sponsors.
However, prolonged and pervasive expectancies from multiple sources can become intolerable, leading to detrimental consequences such as fear of failure, reduced confidence, impaired decision-making and magnification of the athlete’s own expectancies which, ultimately, impacts wellbeing and performance.
The consequences can be long-lasting too. A competition favourite at London 2012, who I spoke to for our research, reported experiencing symptoms similar to those associated with post-traumatic stress disorder long after London, and expressed a perceived inability to talk about the expectancies due to fear of being seen as weak. These findings highlight a dark side to high-performance sport.
The consequences can extend to the athlete’s wider support network. One mother who took part in the research described watching her child, who was widely expected to succeed, compete at a Games as “worse than the pain of giving birth”. As a sibling of a retired double Paralympic gold medallist, I have experienced first-hand the challenges of watching someone you love suffering due to such intense expectancies.
There are strategies that can help both athletes and their networks navigate such pressures. For example, athletes are advised to control the controllables by focusing on factors under their direct influence, such as sleep and pre-performance routines. This can increase their focus on stimuli that are relevant to the task and centre their attention on the present moment, boosting self-determination as people thrive when feeling in control of their actions and environment.
Reducing or suspending social media use and avoiding sports media reports in proximity to the Games will provide less exposure to ‘outside noise’. Some national governing bodies enforce media lockdowns for this very reason. Instead, athletes are advised to embrace distractions by engaging in activities like socialising, reading or watching films.
An athlete’s surroundings and immediate network are important when it comes to feeling comfortable discussing their emotions, thoughts, behaviours etc. Sports personnel should promote a non-judgemental environment where athletes feel safe and won’t be considered weak for sharing their experiences. Although often referred to as ‘superhuman’, athletes should recognise their humanity and the normality of struggling with expectancies.
Coaches are likely to be the target of expectancies too, so a shared approach to coping where transparent dialogue between a coach and athlete is encouraged can be a valuable management resource. Sport psychology practitioners can cultivate a nurturing environment, promoting coach-athlete relationships to support this.
The support of a psychologist should also be extended to an athlete’s family members. The integral part they play in the careers of athlete’s is often overlooked, but they will witness the effects of expectancies first-hand, which can lead to their own cognitive and emotional difficulties.
As we watch and admire those participating in the Games this summer, we, and personnel involved in high-performance sport, should be mindful of our own expectancies and how they influence our behaviours towards athletes. Whether we intend to or not, we could be adding to the pressure on their shoulders, so let’s try and alleviate this and help them maximise this monumental moment in their careers.
Dr Helen Heaviside is a Senior Lecturer in Psychology at Leeds Trinity University.