Bridging the mental gap between training and competition

In the context of track and field, athletes’ tenacity and resilience are frequently put to the test during training. Workouts based on preset times, exhausting intervals, and simulated race paces represent daily challenges that force athletes to draw deeply on their mental resources to maintain the required performance. In this way, key psychological qualities such as fatigue management, stress tolerance, and the determination not to give up become an integral part of the training process, systematically and directly developed through regular practice.

In contrast, in individual sports with a stronger tactical component (such as tennis, judo, fencing, etc.), training tenacity and resilience outside of competition is much more complex. During practice, emotional stress, uncertainty, and decision-making pressure are often only partially simulated and rarely reproduce the true tension of actual competition. As a result, athletes may arrive at competitions unprepared to handle critical moments such as a drop in performance, a crucial mistake, or intense pressure from an opponent. This “gap” between training and competition exposes athletes to the risk of mental breakdowns at decisive moments.

To bridge this gap, it is essential to integrate training situations that stimulate the emotional and psychological components of performance, by creating artificially stressful contexts or introducing unexpected variables that force the athlete to react, adapt, and maintain tactical clarity under pressure.

1. Simulate pressure and uncertainty

Training should include exercises where the athlete must manage:

• Simulated unfavorable scorelines (e.g., starting down a set or several points behind).

• Time- or constraint-based objectives (e.g., “win three consecutive points within two minutes” or “resolve an action within a few seconds”).

• Quick decision-making with changing options, similar to match conditions.

2. Introduce unexpected situations and variability

Training should not always be predictable:

• Change conditions suddenly (e.g., narrower playing area, different opponent, altered rules).

• Introduce controlled “distractions” (noise, interruptions, small errors to manage).

3. Train mental fatigue as well as physical fatigue

In competition, mental stress weighs as much as physical stress:

• Plan drills under fatigue conditions (e.g., work on tactics or technique immediately after intense efforts).

• Force athletes to make decisions under cognitive, not just physical, fatigue.

4. Work on self-efficacy and coping strategies

Integrate specific, even brief, sessions where:

• Stress management techniques are taught (breathing exercises, positive self-talk, mental reset routines).

• Confidence is built through training-based “problem solving” (“What do you do if you lose confidence? How do you react under pressure?”).

5. Measure mental aspects

Do not evaluate only technical or physical results, but also:

• The ability to react to mistakes.

• The readiness to change strategy.

• The quality of decision-making under pressure.