It takes an army to build and maintain good mental health and well-being.
As I’ve said many times before, we can only effect real change with help at every level, including down here at grass roots. At least, that’s what I believe.
Helping those around you and being actively aware of mental struggle being endured by friends, family or total strangers is the first and most important step in promoting a less stressful life for us all. The interventions needed from the NHS are impossible to achieve because the volume of patients can’t be matched by the number of staff. Waiting lists are long and patients are falling victim to prolonged stress and undiagnosed health problems. Where do you turn?
You need people around you that you can trust, and they need to be able to trust you in turn. Not everyone knows your story, so it’s the people who’ve gone through it by your side who are best equipped to listen and/or provide advice. It’s even more robust when accompanied by essential professional support, but that can take time to engage.
But this dynamic seems to change when you’re successful.
I’ve noticed a pattern recently where high achieving athletes are reacting badly to failure, which makes me ask – who is providing their support and advice when things don’t go to plan?
Even the top-level athletes must have a day where they learn a lesson. Maybe the competition was faster, slicker, better prepared, younger, fitter, had more money, had better technology…whatever. But surely it’s healthy to accept a loss from time-to-time? Sometimes you have to lose in order to find the drive and determination to succeed once more. It builds resilience and determination…in some cases, a loss can force the drive for improvement, which leads to another win.
But if you’re a championship athlete, how do you find the balance of winning mindset vs. unexpected loss mindset? Surely it’s even more difficult when you have to surround yourself with a team who are constantly confirming your greatness, and drilling in to your brain that losing isn’t going to happen.
So when you do lose, how do you react?
Championship Mindset – Anthony Joshua
I wouldn’t call myself a boxing fan, but my partner enjoys fight night and sometimes enjoys it as a luxury in lieu of a night out. By the time we’re getting close to the main event, I’m often engrossed in the action too.
I like the mindset of boxers, but I’m not as keen on the fight itself. This is a sport where, despite punching each other until someone falls over, rivals show nothing but respect to their opponent and his or her team. I’ve listened to interviews with boxers and boxing promoters and their values seem to be unexpectedly old-school. They place huge importance on family, respect, the next generation of athletes and honour amongst opponents. Of course, like any other pro athlete, they also have a competitive mindset and good attitude towards health and fitness.
These guys care for each other even when they are trying to knock each others teeth out.
A recent fight night was focussed on Oleksandr Usyk vs. the infamous Anthony Joshua. AJ is a fighter I’ve always admired. His love of sport, commitment to being the best, positive mental attitude, charitable donations and fundraising and self-deprecation make him a handsome man both inside and out.
But he lost on Saturday. This was the second time he’d faced Usyk, and the second time Usyk was the victor.
I found it incredibly difficult to watch what unfolded after the match. AJ seemed to meltdown in front of the cameras and his characteristic charm went out of the window. Usyk won the fight fairly, and his country is currently fighting for survival. Ukraine probably needed this win just as much as Usyk himself. Out of respect for the fighter and his country, the only response AJ needed to give was a congratulatory handshake.
That’s not what happened.
Instead, AJ took the microphone and, before Usyk himself had been able to say a word, started to ramble about his backstory, swearing, cheering for Usyk, and insisting it was amazing he’d managed to defeat him. Modesty and respect were completely annihilated. He threw the championship belts on the floor, stormed out of the ring and became threatening towards other people, although I’m not sure who.
He had a huge team of colleagues with him throughout, people who’d known and trained with him for many years, all of whom knew this was out of character. I can’t help but wonder why no one saved AJ and his reputation from what appeared to be an uncharacteristically self-centered, tantrum-esque moment.
There’s every possibility he had a concussion, every possibility he was in shock, every possibility the pressure of being so revered and so pressurised was starting to get inside his head.
But no one stepped in, and his reputation (for now at least) has unquestionably been damaged.
Championship mindset – Adam Peaty
Although I’m not as athletic as I used to be, I still get consumed by athletics competitions and the Olympics and Commonwealth Games always occupy our evenings when they’re on. I find it inspiring.
Adam Peaty is a man who’s grown up as a champion. In 2014, aged just 20, he won 4 gold medals at the Commonwealth Games including the 50m and 100m breaststrokes. He won his first Olympic Gold Medal 2 years later, aged just 22, and blowing previous world records out of the water (pun intended!).
Since Rio in 2016 the UK has placed an expectancy on Peaty, believing without question that if he’s swimming, he’s getting gold. He continued that pattern in Tokyo at the covid-delayed Olympics, where he managed another 3 golds.
Between those Olympic and Commonwealth events he was receiving awards, dancing on Strictly, and adding to his medal cabinet almost every year.
This year was another Commonwealth Games hosted in Birmingham, UK. He’d broken his foot only a few months prior to his swim, but still the championship mindset had been drilled into him. Nothing but gold was acceptable, and it seemed no one had told him how to manage if it wasn’t achieved.
So it was clearly a shock when he was defeated in the 100m breaststroke, coming 4th and passing his previous gold medal to another English athlete – James Wilby.
Like AJ, Peaty is well respected for his attitude towards fans, training, the media and his family. He always seemed to balance everything well with a good attitude towards remaining in the spotlight whilst retaining his privacy. While juggling all that he was still managing to train at every possible moment. It’s admirable to be able to focus your attention on such an incredible barrel of achievements, especially when dealing with an injury and the world changes after covid.
So when he lost the commonwealth 100m earlier this month, although we were all surprised, the winner was a teammate and we expected Peaty to graciously step back, congratulating his opponent and blaming his injury for the loss as he went. All of which seems perfectly believable and perfectly acceptable.
Instead he spoke to the media immediately after the swim and talked about the Commonwealth Games not being important to him. It was all about the Olympics in 2024.
“I’m backed into a corner now but I’m OK with that,” said Peaty. “You think ‘do I want to be here? Do I love the sport as much as I did?’ I don’t know. Those questions, I have to address.
“I haven’t really had a winter block where I’ve reset. I haven’t even had a chance to know where I’m going, it’s almost like you get in a car without a destination.”
I believe this is where he should have stopped, but he didn’t…
“It will probably be my last [Commonwealths] attempt tomorrow. But I am not bothered because, Commonwealths? For me? In the grand scheme of things, it is about two years’ time [the Olympics]. And that is no disrespect.”
It’s the penultimate sentence that caused so much upset, and it’s understandable why. This is a games event that helped lift him to his place in the history books. Yes, it’s his training and commitment that make him a successful athlete, but it’s the games that give him a platform and silverware for his cabinet.
Again, like AJ, I wonder why he wasn’t better prepared to concede with grace. He’d been injured, so it was very possible the usual gold would be challenging. Why wasn’t he told how to react to a loss without upsetting the people who’ve supported him?
Changing the Championship mindset
In the end, regardless of whether these moments were mistakes, a result of illness or injury, or just plain old bad judgement, the impact of reacting so badly will be felt by these champions mentally for years to come. Probably for life. Despite paying a team of colleagues to help them train, work hard and build confidence, there was not one person who helped them with the possibility of defeat.
I can’t imagine how difficult it is to be at the top of your game, the top of EVERY game, and eventually meet the moment where you topple. It has to be hard to process and mentally you must feel huge anxiety, anger and possibly grief for the version of you that seems to be gone.
I’ve never been more convinced that robust psychological support, possibly from a neutral source, is necessary for athletes competing at a high level. Win or lose you must be faced with a million thoughts, feelings and people who all want a piece of your pie. How do you react? How do you keep your reputation? How do you remain a role model when you feel you’ve failed?
In the cases I’ve mentioned above it felt like these incredible athletes weren’t psychologically prepared and as a result, they are now in a compromised mental state because of words they probably didn’t mean to say.
If nothing else, these similar events should prove to organisers that the mental health and wellbeing of competitors has to be managed not just after a game, but before too. Preperation for all eventualities is essential, especially when a well-known, well respected, well decorated champion has the potential to experience a bad day.
I don’t know if AJ or Peaty will come back from these moments, but the chances of a successful comeback have been limited by what happened.
In both cases, this makes me incredibly sad.
Supporting Athletes
In researching this article I found some useful information, so if it’s is resonating with you these places might be worth a visit –
Athletes for hope has a useful page covering mental health called the Whole Being Athlete program, and is well worth a visit if you are a struggling sportsperson.
Mind – one of the UK’s leading mental health charities – also has a useful document on ‘Mental Health and Elite Sport‘ that has useful information and support ideas.
The picture
As with many of my written posts lately, this one needed a picture that was less hard-hitting than the prose.
I’m using another picture from my growing catalogue of ‘DTIYS challenges‘ on Instagram. This time I’ve opted for a picture posted online a couple of weeks ago. The glass jar is a good representation of the feeling of isolation an athlete must experience when they do meet with a loss. Not knowing how to escape the negative questions and intrusion must be incredibly taxing.
So I hope, eventually, they’ll get out of their jar and enjoy some relaxed time to themselves, just like the bunny who’s glad to be sitting on the lid. We all need space, no matter how well-known.
Thanks for reading 💜
Creative Steph 