Sport Psychology Quotes

You can be a little lonely because it's an individual sport.

Every time I reach a major milestone in my career, I expect it to make more of a difference than it does, and I guess that means I'm in the sport for the right reasons. I'm not in it to win it because winning can only last for so long, and it's a very fickle thing, sport.

As a gymnast, I've always compartmentalized my life, which is a blessing and a curse. But over time, I've learned that my sport doesn't fully define me, and I think that's where a lot of the joy in my routines comes from now: I'm not compartmentalizing as much, and I know who I am beyond my sport.

You dream about the Olympics for so long and you have that one day, then it's over, and when you don't run well there is this huge letdown. It took me years to deal with that. I feel like I almost had to cleanse myself of that experience.

Golf is so selfish - it's so much about how do we get better and get to the next level.

In my opinion, the power of the mind in sport is vital. If you can overpower those physical risks mentally, you can get your body round it physically. I've made my body do things because of my mind that it shouldn't have been able to do.

There are two kinds of climbers, those who climb because their heart sings when they're in the mountains, and all the rest.

I hit a grand slam off Ron Herbel and when his manager Herman Franks came out to get him, he was bringing Herbel's suitcase.

Clearly, when you win everything, it's fun. That doesn't necessarily mean you love the game more.

With athletes, it's never fully understood the level to which we push ourselves. Especially in an endurance sport.

People say you should go out at the top but I was enjoying my football so much. Robbie Fowler's exactly the same: he's not playing for money any more, he's playing for enjoyment. Why go out at the top if it's going to make you miserable? I just wanted to play as long as I could.

Belief is such an important aspect of sport.

When I was in grade school and we had to write papers about what we wanted to be when we grew up, I wanted to be a social worker or a missionary or a teacher... Then I got involved with tennis, and everything was just me, me, me. I was totally selfish and thought about myself and nobody else, because if you let up for one minute, someone was going to come along and beat you. I really wouldn't let anyone or any slice of happiness enter... I didn't like the characteristics that it took to become a champion.

If you lose the nerves, you lose the sport.

The thing with physical preparation is I have tons of friends who train at a really high level and who can give me advice. But with mental training, I don't really know anybody who has a much better mind for climbing, I guess, so I don't really know where I would go. It's not really a limiting factor for me.

Sport is singularly able to give us peak experience where we feel completely one with the world and transcend all conflicts as we finally become our own potential.

The psychology of sport is so important. When you are standing at the crease, in front of a stadium full of people, it's a pretty intense experience. So you need to have the psychological tools to control your mind and deliver your best performance.

When I'm away with England, I don't think about anything to do with club football.

Golfers have a tendency to be very masochistic. They like to punish themselves for some reason. A lot of them like tough courses.

The mental aspect of golf is what makes golf such a great sport.

The Bible is my sport psychology manual.

There is a fear of emotion in tennis.

In terms of the sport itself, I think we need to stop talking ourselves down.

There was many who had some doubts over me regarding my position in this sport, but I've always believed in myself and that's the way it's always been.

MMA is pretty tough on your mind because it's a sport that's not just about winning. You really want to win bad, but it's tough when you lose. You get beaten. And it really messes with your ego, because nobody wants to get beaten by other people physically. It's not just a game. You get beaten physically.