Paris Olympics: psychologist warns Hong Kong stars of being ‘hijacked’ by Games ‘circus’

A leading sports psychologist said athletes who prevent their Olympic campaigns being “hijacked” by the “circus” of a Games increase their chances of striking gold in Paris this summer. Dr Andrea Furst, who is poised to work with Olympians for a sixth straight Games, has detected a notable increase in stress affecting elite performers. The Hong Kong delegation in France will have 24-hour access to sports psychologists, after a number of the city’s stars related difficulties managing expectation and pressure. Cyclist Ceci Lee Sze-wing and Vivian Kong Man-wai, the world No 1 fencer, have voiced concerns over letting people down. The foil gold medallist from Tokyo, Cheung Ka-long, is on unfamiliar and uneasy territory as defending Olympic champion. Furst said consulting a sports psychologist aids performance if the practice is “integrated into training”. Lee and Kong both talk openly about accessing help. “The athletes who are committed to [learning mental techniques] continually work on it – they don’t just switch it on before a marquee event,” Furst added. “Sports and big events do interesting things to people. There is so much of a circus at the Olympics … it is very different from other major events. “It is a huge multi-sport Games, with so much going on around the competitions. “If preparation is hijacked by those things, or what is happening in the athlete’s own mind, they run their race before getting to the start line.” Furst said sports psychology was already “in the system” in her native Australia when she began working in the field in the late 1980s. “I don’t know if it was having an impact,” she said. “Now, there’s a desire to integrate it … society is more aware of mental health. At the top level of sport, nowadays, there is so much more stress, but the mind has more impact [on success], because the percentages are smaller. “Look at Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic: they have technical, tactical and physical skills, but also the ability to continually wipe the slate clean and start again. That takes incredible discipline. Tiger Woods was the master, he had the [mental] resources to think about how what he was doing might affect someone else.” London-based Furst, who has her own Mental Notes business and counts England Rugby, the Singapore Sports Institute and Surrey County Cricket Club among past and current clients, still sees misconceptions around the purpose and employment of sports psychology. “Some people think it’s for those with weaknesses or problems, others think it’s a form of magic dust,” she said. “It’s neither of those things. Also, there can be misunderstanding around the fact different individuals and different teams need different services.” Furst said an athlete trying to eradicate pre-competition nerves, stress and anxiety is “barking up the wrong tree”. “Those feelings are all part of elite performance,” she added. “We talk about how the individual wants to respond to nerves, whether they embrace them or want to calm them down. I work with athletes on lifting their mental intensity in training, so it’s not such a big jump for competition.” Some athletes remain sceptical over the value of sports psychologists. Furst advocates everyone “having exposure” to the practice before drawing conclusions. “With [former employer] Australian Kayaking, I wanted us on a par with other disciplines, like physiotherapy, exercise physiology and nutrition,” she said. “By having a consultation, I could get a handle on each individual. Then it might start a relationship, or they never do anything more. Professional sports people can be guarded about what is happening inside – it is part of their tough exterior.” Furst is “passionate about getting the basics right”. “I like [former tennis player and coach] Brad Gilbert’s saying about the importance of the meat and potatoes,” she said. “Scenario planning” is among the key ingredients for Olympic athletes. When a judoka client qualified for Paris, the pair speedily designed a Games itinerary to liberate “mental resources” around competition time. When Furst worked with the Great Britain women’s hockey gold medallists in 2016, the players were given “a couple of days of being like working cocker spaniels, scooting around sussing out the Olympic Village”. “Then we drew a line in the sand and said it was a business time,” Furst said. “There are lots of strategies for getting that stuff out the way, rather than battling it. “Some people get lucky and don’t have to worry about the mental element, but we are seeing that less and less.” Five previous Olympics spent witnessing first-hand the athletic and psychological prowess of elite competitors has taught Furst “how tough it is to win a medal”. “If you get on top of the podium, that is some rare air,” she said.

Paris Olympics: psychologist warns Hong Kong stars of being ‘hijacked’ by Games ‘circus’

Competitors such as Cheung Ka-long and Vivian Kong have voiced worries before Paris, where the team will have 24-hour access to psychologists