Athletic adversity

Sports will expose the character of an athlete especially when they face adversity

International goalkeeper coach Zuriel Z Lozano

By Zuriel Lozano, international goalkeeper coach, MS Sport & Health Science. UEFA lic, Mental coach & Mentor.

No child, human or living thing should suffer & face adversities in this World. We should all live in peace, love each other and have no more pain for the rest of our lives. 

However, If you live in reality & have some common sense then you know people will suffer and will face adversities everyday for the rest of our lives. This is called being a human being!!

Adversity is a state or instance of serious, continued difficulty, mishap, tragedy or misfortune”. This can happen to anyone to include young athletes in any sport.

Our minds are not designed to suffer. We ALWAYS look for ways to avoid confrontations, discomfort & suffering. This is just a natural reaction.  In fact, all of us would rather do things that are easier, more comfortable and do things that causes the least amount of pain.

Another example, people want fast results so they skip steps to accomplish things quicker and we love instant gratification. In addition, some people constantly search “other people’s approval” to feel fulfilled & satisfied. These are all examples of people trying to avoid adversity in their life.

“Most young athletes are not trained to endure games or life’s adversities. In fact, when adversities hit in their young adult life, many of them will simply quit & blame others”

Sport adversity

One of the beautiful things about sports, such as soccer, is that sooner or later the REAL CHARACTER of an athlete will show in times of adversity during games.

For example,  Some soccer players will simply crumble when they are losing, when they make mistakes or when they get scored on. In other words,  when things do not go their way, some athletes cannot handle it.

In school, kids can make good grades by simply studying and applying themselves, they have FULL control of their success in school.  However, when they face real adversity in sports, they cannot control game results & outcomes. This is why the unpredictability in sports is frustrating for some young athletes.

On the other hand, there are a number of athletes who THRIVE when adversity comes. They actually anticipate when adversity is coming their way and they’re able to handle things professionally. Some people call these athletes ” a clutch player“. In other words, they have powerful & game changing performances during critical moments of the match.

Can you be trained to handle adversity?

Absolutely!!!  However, your attitude & the type of training you receive is the key of success.  For example, soldiers, policemen, firemen or even Doctors are trained to handle stressful situations. Their training is very similar and as realistic as possible to what they will face in real life. 

Another example, when US Air Force pilots are training to go to war, they train under the worse case scenarios and they have contingencies plans.  Pilots train on engine failures, fire, emergency landings and even train for captivity.  This is as REAL as it gets.

However, as stated before, sports tends to expose athletes in very interesting ways. So if the training you are currently receiving does not match the level of competition and speed of play you will face then you are simply creating an “illusion”.  In other words, you are NOT getting ready for tough competition nor ready to handle adversities.

So how do you handle adversity?

Is not simple, but again, the type of training you receive is crucial.  As an adult, you are able to recognize your stress levels almost immediately because you understand who you are. However, for young or even teenage athletes is a bit harder to understand why they behave  or feel a certain way because they are still growing up.

FIRST you must recognize symptoms people face when dealing with adversity:  some people REACT or OVERREACT,  PANIC, CONSTANTLY COMPLAIN,  some cry for no reason & blame others all the time , some hyperventilate, cannot think clearly, they freeze, get unusually quiet or behave hysterically and in most extreme cases, some will FAINT.

Do not let these symptoms go out of control. Remove all feelings & emotions when confronting adversity. Refocus to find a sensible & common sense solution.  Next, have a plan as to what you are going to do. Last, be CALM.

When handling adversity, things will go FAST. So don’t just stand there & do NOTHING. There is something that you can do to alleviate the situation at least temporarily. So start by, refocusing your energy on what you can handle, such as a great execution on the next play, pay attention to your technique or encourage others to help etc.

Every problem has a solution. If there is no solution to a problem then this is NOT a problem.