Sports psychologist Dorian Martinez looks back at the mental difficulties that high-level athletes may encounter after the Olympic Games.
- After the Olympic Games, many top athletes tend to get depressed.
- “This problem is too often underestimated in professional sport,” says psychologist Dorian Martinez.
- “This phase of emotional emptiness and loss of meaning observed at the end of the Olympic Games can be explained in particular by the many years of intensive training, to which is added maximum concentration on a single objective,” he explains.
“This problem is too often underestimated in high-level sport.” As the last big parade of French champions takes place in Paris on Saturday, sports psychologist Dorian Martinez explains to us why these professional athletes can have a very difficult time in the period that begins after the Olympic Games.
Post-Olympic Depression: “A Strong Feeling of Emptiness”
“A strong feeling of emptiness. This is how many athletes can describe their deep feelings at the end of the Olympic Games, an event that often marks the peak of their sporting career,” first indicates Dorian Martinez, founder of the training organization Devenir Meilleur. “This phase of emotional emptiness and loss of meaning observed at the end of the Olympic Games can be explained in particular by the many years of intensive training, to which is added a maximum concentration on a single objective,” he develops.
There is no shortage of examples of this phenomenon. “Swimmer Michael Phelps has spoken publicly about his post-2012 Olympics distress, sharing suicidal thoughts and how his identity seemed to be exclusively consumed by swimming, leaving no room for other aspects of his life,” recalls the sports coaching expert.
“And he’s not alone. Three-time Olympic snowboarding champion Shaun White has described similar feelings, admitting to feeling “incredibly empty” after every major competition,” he continues. “The Olympic Games represent the pinnacle of a sporting career, but the real challenge lies beyond,” he summarizes.
Post-Olympic Depression: How to Avoid It?
It is nevertheless possible to counteract this post-Olympic blues. To do this, the psychologist invites health professionals close to high-level athletes to train on the problem mentioned in this article and professional athletes to surround themselves well. “A coach cannot limit himself to the technical aspect; he must be a guide in the athlete’s life transition by accompanying him on an emotional level. Today, my role is to provide coaches with the tools necessary to support their athletes in their quest for meaning and balance, both on and off the field,” judges the specialist.
“Serious training in the mental preparation of high-level athletes allows: to understand the brain mechanisms that influence both performance and well-being; to help set post-competition goals in order to maintain lasting motivation in athletes, even after the euphoria of the Olympics; to offer neuropsychological tools to help athletes manage their emotions, bounce back after a failure and continue to progress in their career and personal life”, he explains.
More generally, recent studies have revealed that around 35% of professional athletes suffer from mental disorders at some point in their career, a considerable figure and much higher than for ordinary mortals (13% of French women and 6.4% of men, Editor’s note). “This worrying data highlights a public health issue. There is an urgent need to put the mental health of top athletes at the forefront to prevent self-destruction and even suicide,” concludes Dorian Martinez.
