One of the things that has been good for me I think
besides training has been my sort of mental
preparation. When you have that powerful brain
stuff going I think it translates into performance.
There are different approaches to managing
your nerves before a competition, as we will
hear from some of the best athletes on the planet. After listening to them Ill give you
a helpful metaphor and a link where you can download for free some of these drawings I
made. You can use them as a screensaver on your phone or wallpaper on your computer.
And then he will go through scenarios: what if things don’t go well. you know if my
suit ripped or if my goggles broke what would I do? So he has all of this in his data base
so when he swims the race he already programmed his nervous system to do one of those. and
he’ll just pick the one that happens to come up. If everything is perfect he’ll
just go with the perfect one, if he has to make a change he’s go it in there.
All I try to do is just relax really. For me is just try and compose myself, try to
not think about anything because as soon as something comes in your mind you are going
to be in a lot of trouble, so I try to clear my mind as quickly as possible. And just take
some deep breaths really.
Do you still get nervous on the court? Yeah, you know every time I go out for a first match
I get so nervous. and that just goes to just how much I really enjoy being out there. I
do I look really intense but that is my job. You know I got I there and I, I I my job is
to win and to focus you know that 2 hours or that 1 hour or those three hours of the
day and that is it. Right. Am I kinda try to do that I try to just zone out and be in
that moment and in the time and just do the best that I can.
I don’t think aiming for a specific state is bad. I think when it comes to performances
I can continue growing, continue doing great things, continue changing history books.
Your have that one thing. and you are going for just that one centimeter. There is that
one hundredth. you are trying everything you can to get it. Some days you are not gonna
get it. You do your best when you relax in dynamic. When you have that feeling of fluid
dynamicism that when things just start flying.
I’m never scared to do thing in the basket ball court. Sure I’m nervous because of
the challenges maybe the events that’s happening
around the game them-self but once I am out
there in the motion of playing, I have total confidence in my basketball skills, and that
is going to get me confortable once the game
starts. but, once the game started I am not
nervous, before the game I am not nervous. I am pretty much nervous at every game, but
once the ball goes up for the jump ball i think all that nervousness just goes away
and I revert back to things that I practiced, things that are very
routine, and I am very comfortable in that environment.
Focus on what my own goals are and not what
every body else’s goals for me are or their
expectations. I just know that my family will always be supporting me and my friends and
my coaches. As long as I put in the ward work and know that I am giving it my best effort
I’ll always be happy.
And I just thought about I know what I have done in training, this is what I am supposed
to do here. just to be able to concentrate.
Of course I was overwhelmed by so many people
because it was a big arena and a lot of noise
from every direction. I think I was prepared
for that. I was telling to myself all the time, you know this is the Olympics. I cannot
make a mistake, this is One Shot. 10 she’s got, she’s got another ten. It is quite
incredible.
Am I felt a lot different going in to London. I felt like, I felt like I have done everything
i could. Like if it wasn’t going to happen now it’s not meant to be because I worked
as hard as I could. I completely dedicated myself. I just trained
as hard as I possibly could and so I don’t think I could’ve done anything more to accomplish
my goals. I felt really peaceful and calm going into the race. I didn’t feel too anxious
about it because I was as prepared as I could’ve been.
I think it was a very much of a mental match.
As much as we are talking tactically about
the match at the end, Severin and Evan and me we said it’s all mental you have to go
out there and and believe that point for point whatever
happens is nothing is going to change. You just gotta believe and keep coming at Rafa
and then if he’s to good that’s to good, you know. But, I’m not going to get down
on myself. And it was easy to tell myself. You have nothing to lose Roger. Like i said
on the court, it’s ok to lose. like him probably too, it’s ok to lose. But when
you want it badly I think that combination got me to win tonight.
It’s completely different you gotta think positive all the time, you gotta know everything
has been going well, the training has gone well. When you are ready to go you are as
good as anybody else. and once you go down the ten thousand because you got twenty five
laps you do the first lap I don see, or 24 laps to go, I say I’ll do this one and then
23 and do this one and then think. You always try to think in a positive way. I’ll get
nervous even if it is like a pushy time trail or is a small race I get nervous.
Being nervous
I think is a good thing, it makes you think about the race. And once the gun goes off
then you are up.
In my mind I am always the best. I don’t care what people think, in my mind not just
here but I’m always, always the best. Because I think we have to think we are the best in
our area. So in my area I think I am the best.
No, I was not calm. No I was…
I was nervous but all the body language that is not in a
positive way is stupid because it is going against you, no? so.. Is one of the thing
I try to do all my life that the body language helps me not go against me, no? because is
one of the things that depends just on me not on the opponent. You are going to be nervous,
you are probably going to miss some opportunities with the break point, I missed a couple of
returns, he played well, but that is part of the game and I have been ready to accept
all these moment and like i said to compete well all the tournament.
As you heard some athletes use visualization or rituals. Some use thoughts of growth instead
of outcome, some just try to be calm and others use their body language to their advantage.
One thing I saw they all have in common is Confidence. Confidence in their training,
in their body language, their skills or in themselves.
I think of it like being on an airplane where the passenger is your worried mind, the plane
is made up of the hard work you put in before the event and the pilot is your nervous system
that activates with the command “take your marks”. And all you can consciously do is
sit down, buckle up and be confident.
I’m bad! I’ve been chopping trees. I’ve done something new for this fight!
I’ve wrestled with an alligator. That’s right!
I’ve wrestled with an alligator,I’ve tussled with a whale.I done handcuffed lightningthrow
thunder in jail.That’s bad.Only last week, I murdered a rock,Injured a stone, Hospitalized
a brick.I’m so mean, I make medicine sick. Bad!
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see you next time! swim fast!
Fast! Fast! Fast! Last night I cut the light off my bedroom,
hit the switch, was in the bed before the room was dark. Incredible. Fast!
I know you got him picked, but the man is in trouble I’m going to show you how great
I am!