Sweden shows us the value of mental training
Aug 11, 2023 11:21 am
Happy Friday,
Did you catch the crazy finish to the USWNT vs. Sweden FIFA Women's World Cup game on Sunday?
I was asked if anxiety played a role in the USWNT loss ... here was my reply:
"Well that was certainly an incredibly high pressure situation. Every player had to have anxiety ... not the pathological kind. But the kind that is to be expected under such tremendous pressure. It is certainly possible that there was a performance decline on some of those PK misses.
I found it interesting that once the goal was missed, there was a bit of a run on misses on both sides ... I wonder if there was a bit of a focus on what not to do (which leads to doing it)?
I also wonder how much extra pressure and expectations were added given their status.
I can't say specifically, I don't know them. And I know these are real issues in the sports world.
But ultimately they lost by the narrowest of margins. They didn't choke. Sweden has a team of mentally tough athletes too. Maybe it was a battle of two excellent teams and just because someone had to win doesn't mean the loser made a shameful huge mistake they "shouldn't have".
I find it interesting that these same mistakes are easily forgotten when we win.
Imagine the last PK was an inch further on the goal line. And the US wins on the next PK. The narrative would be very different because of the outcome, while the process of almost the entire game would be exactly the same."
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Mental training is an essential part of success at this level. ESPN wrote a great article about Sweden goal-keeper Zecira Musovic, "Away from the on-field training, Musovic worked on the mental side of her game. 'I do a lot of visualising and mental training, brain training,' she said on Wednesday. 'So a lot of hours of extra work that I think you don't realise if you're not in this body.'
That mental strength has been a constant reference point throughout her career."
Excellence is not normal. By definition, it is extra-ordinary. If you want to be in the top 5%, you have to be able and willing to do what 95% of the others either can’t or won’t.
In this article I give you 7+ reasons why you need a performance coach ...
Enjoy!
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Dr. Eddie O’Connor
