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Causes of stress

There are many causes of stress that are general to all sports performers, which can be identified as:

Type of stress Explanation
Internal stress This is something that the athlete has no control over, the thoughts in their head e.g. about other athletes' abilities. As a result they may feel fear and worry about.
External or situational stress It is the level of importance an athlete places on an event. An event which is perceived as extremely important by the athlete they may feel more stressed and less uncertain about the outcome of the event.
Personal stress This is linked to personality and how athletes' perceive themselves e.g. performers with low levels of self-confidence and self-esteem will have higher levels of stress.
Occupational stress Athletes' that perceive that other athletes' are much better at their sport than what they are and perceive themselves as 'not as good' are more likely to have higher levels of stress.


There are then additional stresses for elite athletes which are sometimes known as 'organisational stresses' or sports environment stresses:

Type of stress Explanation
Environmental stress This can be linked to the training and competition environment including the following: selection process e.g. being a sub, weather e.g. being too hot, crowd e.g. are they a home crowd, travel e.g. travelling a long way, accommodation e.g. noisy hotel.
Personal stress These are very individual and include: nutrition, injury goals and expectations all of which can lead to frustration.
Leadership This is linked to the leadership style of the coach or manger, is it the correct style for the athlete? A referee's decision can make a significant difference within a game.
Team This is linked to the atmosphere within the team; is there any conflict between team mates? Does everyone know their roles and responsibilities? Is there good communication? Is there are strong support network for the team?