How Olympic hopefuls are coping with the wait for the 2021 Olympic Games
The rescheduling of the 2020 Olympic Games due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) might mean that athletes have more time to train, but quarantine conditions and the spread of the virus have also made it harder to train in the traditional manner to which these athletes are accustomed.
Olympic hopefuls have been forced to get creative with their training, and many have posted the results to social media. Some of these videos are legitimate training sessions, while others are just a bit silly. A lot of them include items found around the house.
With much of the world now facing a COVID winter-—and the potential for further surges in cases and shutdowns—Olympic athletes may again need to rely on Spidey sense and pets and backyard contraptions as the postponed Games approach. With such creativity, however, comes the potential for crippling uncertainty. Olympic sports often offer a single shot at glory. Careers hinge on an event that occurs every four years, so any tweak to carefully crafted training routines can send the minds of elite athletes spiraling.
In a May 2020 International Olympic Committee survey of more than 3,000 athletes worldwide, 50% of respondents labeled “keeping myself motivated” as a major challenge; nearly a third said “managing my mental health” was difficult too. U.S. judo hopeful Angelica Delgado was in the best shape of her life when the lockdown hit, leaving her depressed in the aftermath. Social distancing is not an option in combat sports, so she fretted about falling behind. “I’m not going to slam my fiancé onto our concrete floors, you know?” she says. In late July, she returned to the gym to work with her coach and training partner: they all got COVID-19 and had to cease training for a few weeks, but have since resumed Olympic prep. For now.
Sources:
- https://youtu.be/FUd-y_T6SpE
- https://www.sportingnews.com/us/other-sports/news/olympians-training-postponed-olympics-covid-19-pandemic/yahchp19vqnw13iuxswqq0um4
- https://time.com/5928901/tokyo-olympics-athletes/
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