The aim of the study was to compare the strategies of coping with stress during the COVID-19 epidemic in athletes involved in Olympic preparations (57 potential Olympians) and students of physical education (54 extramural students), and to determine their depending on the variable gender. The research was conducted in the form of an on-line survey in the period of April 7–28 during the COVID-19 pandemic. Four standard psychological questionnaires were used. Elite athletes and physical education students practicing sports most often dealt with the stress of the COVID-19 pandemic using cognitive and behavioral coping strategies. The sports level depended on the strategies of coping with the stress of the COVID-19 pandemic more strongly than gender. The relationship between the sense of coherence (mainly comprehensibility) and the hope for success treated as a generalized immune resource with coping strategies in the case of the COVID-19 pandemic postulated by Antonovsky was confirmed.

The aim of the study was to identify coherence, hope for success and coping strategies as predictors of mood among this year’s Olympians in the context of coronavirus events. The relationships between the above variables and the mood of athletes were analysed. The study group consisted of 57 athletes – women (29) and men (28) between 18 and 39 years of age – representing various sports disciplines who were preparing for the Tokyo Olympics. The research was conducted in the period of April 7-28, 2020 during the first threat of COVID-19 pandemic, following the decision to move the Summer Olympics to the year 2021. It was time of the greatest national restrictions and information about the postponement of the games had been received. As a result of the step regression analysis, three predictors of vigour were established: sense of meaningfulness, coping with stress through positive reframing, and not using the self-blaming strategy. A positive predictor of anger was the use of substances. Confusion was predicted based on the frequency of behavioral disengagement. Behavioral disengagement predicted the severity of depression. Predictors of fatigue were the sense of meaningfulness, and the strategies of positive reframing and self-blaming. The results obtained emphasize the importance of positive reframing as a factor contributing to maintaining a positive mood state. In contrast, behavioral disengagement and self-blaming were strategies that lowered the mood of elite athletes. The results confirm the importance of factors included in the salutogenic model (sense of coherence, coping strategies) as predictors of athletes’ mood during a pandemic.

This comprehensive case analysis aimed to identify the features enabling a runner to achieve championship in 24-h ultramarathon (UM) races. A 36-year-old, multiple medalist of the World Championships in 24-h running, was assessed before, one and 10 days after a 24-h run. Results of his extensive laboratory and cardiological diagnostics with transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) and a one-time cardiopulmonary exercise test (CPET) were analyzed. After 12 h of running (approximately 130 km), the athlete experienced an increasing pain in the right knee. His baseline clinical data were within the normal range. High physical efficiency in CPET (VO2max 63 mL/kg/min) was similar to the average achieved by other ultramarathoners who had significantly worse results. Thus, we also performed genetic tests and assessed his psychological profile, body composition, and markers of physical and mental stress (serotonin, cortisol, epinephrine, prolactin, testosterone, and luteinizing hormone). The athlete had a mtDNA haplogroup H (HV0a1 subgroup, belonging to the HV cluster), characteristic of athletes with the highest endurance. Psychological studies have shown high and very high intensity of the properties of individual scales of the tools used mental resilience (62–100% depending on the scale), openness to experience (10th sten), coherence (10th sten), positive perfectionism (100%) and overall hope for success score (10th sten). The athlete himself considers the commitment and mental support of his team to be a significant factor of his success. Body composition assessment (%fat 13.9) and the level of stress markers were unremarkable. The tested athlete showed a number of features of the champions of ultramarathon runs, such as: inborn predispositions, mental traits, level of training, and resistance to pain. However, none of these features are reserved exclusively for “champions”. Team support’s participation cannot be underestimated. The factors that guarantee the success of this elite 24-h UM runner go far beyond physiological and psychological explanations. Further studies are needed to identify individual elements of the putative “mosaic theory of being a champion”.

Introduction. Sports activity involves experiencing affective states, which have a substantial effect on actions taken by the athlete. The results of previous studies on the relationship between emotional states and sport performance outcomes are ambiguous. The aim of the study was to establish the relationships between affective states (both emotional states and moods) and performance in swimming. Material and methods. The study examined 9 female swimmers and 22 male swimmers competing at the national level aged from 15 to 23 years (M = 18.1; SD = 2.397). Affective states were evaluated by means of the Profile of Mood States (POMS) completed once a day before the competition and the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS) completed before each race. The subject’s life record was divided by the time obtained in each race and expressed as a percentage. Results. Immediately before the races where the best results were obtained, the swimmers experienced the strongest positive emotions and the lowest level of negative emotions. The lowest level of positive states was recorded before the races with the worst performance. The lower the level of negative moods (fatigue, depression, anger, and tension) and the higher the level of positive moods (vigour and kindness) were, the better the results obtained by swimmers were. One exception was confusion, which unexpectedly correlated positively with the swimmers’ results. Preliminary analyses showed no indication of statistically significant differences between the women and men surveyed. Conclusions. The results of the study suggest that affective states influence performance outcomes in swimming. This influence may vary according to the valence and content as well as duration of affective states (emotional states vs. mood). On the basis of the results obtained, guidelines for coaches and their athletes can be formulated. A properly prepared trainer can choose training tasks in such a way as to optimise the intensity and content of the emotions experienced by athletes. Emotions seem to be important not only with regard to athletes’ well-being, but also as indirect and direct predictors of the results they achieve. Expression of emotion and emotional awareness in persons connected with sport should be included in training work.

AbstractThe aim of the study was to evaluate the correlation between temperament and stress, to assess the stress level and perform comparative analysis of feeling of stress before and after the race. The test group consisted of 30 competitors from Mazovian cycling clubs between the ages of 15 and 16 (M = 15.5, SD = 0.50). Standard psychological questionnaires were used for the study. The level of stress was tested using the PSS 10 questionnaire by S. Cohen, T. Kamarck and R. Mermelstein. In addition, temperament was studied with Formal Characteristics of Behaviour – Temperament Inventory by Zawadzki and Strelau (1997). Measures were used to determine the constant predisposition of cyclists to feel the level of stress, as well as to show the intensity of stress during sports competitions (before and after the start). Statistical analyses carried out with the Wilcoxon test showed a significant difference between the initial and final value of the stress level as a condition in the subjects. It was found that in the same people, stress reached a higher average level after the race (M = 17.8, SD = 6) than before the performance (M = 11.83, SD = 5.9). The results show that the state of stress does not decrease after the start, as occurs with other variables (including emotional arousal). The results showed that stress measured before and after the start of a competition positively correlates with perseverance and emotional reactivity, while stress before the start negatively correlates with briskness. Observations from the analyses carried out may broaden the understanding of the phenomenon of stress, especially in aspects of sport competition and track cyclists.