In the aftermath of the Australian Swimming Team’s damning performance report after the 2012 Olympics, we now have the British Badminton leadership under the spotlight. It comes with five times National Champion Jenny Wallwork announcing her retirement from the sport. With the finger being firmly pointed at the leadership of her sport. Jenny pulls no punches when he describes her lack of confidence in those at the top. The 26-year-old aimed a series of strong criticisms at performance director Jens Grill.”There wasn’t one positive thing actually said to me from the performance director. I think the sport is being led […]
Read More...Sports Psychology Blog
Welcome to the Sports Psychology blog. Here you will find insights on current sporting events, from the perspective of a sports psychologist.
The purpose of this blog, is to get inside the sporting drama…why the player or team do what they they do…their thinking…mindsets…attitudes…their fluctuating state of confidence…and all the other mental and emotional pieces that create the psychology of sports.
The most recent articles are at the top of the List Of Sports Psychology Blogs Index.
Swimming Psychology: Australia – The Lust For Gold!
It’s damning! Critical! Condemning! The 2012 Olympics were an abysmal one for Australia swimming. A measly haul of one gold medal, was all that this proud nation had to show for their work in the pool. The just released report into this dramatic under-performance by the sports governing body makes grim reading. Here are some of the key points: Participants reported that in the zealous and streamlined attempts to obtain gold medals, the delicate management of motivation, communication and collaboration were lost. There was an increasingly desperate emphasis on gold Management appeared unprepared to tackle the absence of success, leaving […]
Read More...Football Psychology: David Bentley – Underachievement!
He is one of the great under-achievers of English football in recent times. Blessed with talent and natural ability, but not a lot to show for it. Yes Im aware that seven England caps sit on the Bentley sideboard. And that is something to be proud of. But why only seven caps. Why not seventy? Why did David Bentley not go on to make a name for himself? Why is his career shrouded in a sense of what might have been? When David Bentley played for England U21’s early in his career, as the teams came out onto the pitch, […]
Read More...Football Psychology: Rafa Benitez – Frustration!
So Rafa Benitez finally lets off steam. The pressure that had been building on him since first arriving at Stamford Bridge, finally came out at The Riverside. Yes it made great headlines for the tabloids. But was his public frankness wise? All leaders experience pressure and stress. But they generally learn to keep it private. They deal with things quietly in the background, refusing to show signs of weakness or emotional fraility to their team or group. For example, if Benitez didn’t feel a group of Chelsea supporters weren’t getting behind the team, then he should have met with them […]
Read More...Sports Leadership: Dave Brailsford – The Marginal Gains
In a week that has blown the lid off the murky goings on inside the world of Lance Armstrong, one man has emerged as the undisputed leader in the sports post-Armstong future. Dave Brailsford took a principled stand against drug cheats some time ago, and it has informed his leadership. He recognised that drugs gave a rider and team a 15% advantage. And thus to make good this shortfall, he set about creating a leadership strategy called Marginal Gains. Marginal Gains is all about the 1%. The tiny things which on their own make little difference. But when added together, […]
Read More...Golf Psychology: Ian Poulter – Failure Is Not An Option!
It’s Ryder Cup Saturday. Europe are heading for what looked likes certain defeat in the Chicago heat. Then up steps Ian Poulter. Not since Stuart Pearce in Euro 96, has an Englishman showed such courage and defiance in sporting adversity. Poulter refused to accept the inevitable. Defeat for him, was not an option. He had already declared to his captain Jose Maria Olazabal, that he would return to base with a point. By confidently declaring his intentions, Poulter left himself with no options. He had to win. And thus under this personal pressure, he drew on all his ability, experience, […]
Read More...Sports Psychology: Jonathan Fox – In The Zone!
Paralympic gold medal winner Jonathan Fox has an interesting pre-race routine to help him get into the zone before his races. He plays with a Rubik Cube. Fox looks to block out any distractions in the final minutes before his races by turning to the Rubik’s cube that has accompanied him across the world for the past six years. The 21-year-old was given a cube by his grandmother before his first World Championships in South Africa in 2006. Since then, it has travelled the world with Fox, who has honed his skill at solving the puzzle to the extent he […]
Read More...Tennis Psychology: Andy Murray – The Wimbledon Final!
So Andy Murray is one game away from his first Wimbledon title. In the past there would be plenty of reasons of doubt whether he could take the final step and secure his first Grand Slam. But this time feels different.And the sense that destiny awaits Murray comes from the presence of Ivan Lendl in his corner. Murray has brought Lendl in for one thing. To help him win Grand Slams.Lendl was an interesting choice as coach. He had run a junior tennis academy before, but had no portfolio of successful stars to show his coaching credentials to Murray. But […]
Read More...Tennis Psychology: Andy Murray – The Wimbledon Final Hysteria!
So it’s all over for Andy Murray for another year. Despite his best efforts, he was found to be not good enough against the masterful Grand Champion Federer. Yet this morning the story was not about the seven times Wimbledon champion, but about Murray. How his tears had endered him to the nation. How he ‘did us proud’, and other cliches. The outpouring of hysteria around Murray is strange. Images of men crying in the Wimbledon stands simply look wrong. Murray doesn’t represent them; their hopes; dreams and ambitions. He is a multi-millioniare playing for himself and his close group. […]
Read More...Sports Psychology: Tom Maynard – A Warrior Spirit!
This morning Surrey cricketer Tom Maynard passed away. I had the pleasure of knowing Tom for three years, and he was a truly special individual. Tom had an unwavering sense of principle and deep rooted values, that he always held to, allied with a warrior spirit that loved a challlenge. Tom had no fear of failure, and loved to test himself against the best. I will always remember the joy on his face, when he leapt into the Lord’s crowd last summer after Surrey had won the CB 40 final, to hug his mother and gran. He had a quality […]
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