Professional Athletes are People too: a look into the culture of mental health in high level sports

As I sit to write this article, the Olympic Games play on the TV in the next room. Surfers, skateboarders, and soccer players battle for gold as what happens to be the 2020 Olympics occurring in 2021 finally plays out in Tokyo. The Olympic Games, a global tradition continued since the late nineteenth century, house only the crème de la crème of a nation’s athletes. The strongest of bodies, most determined of minds, and above all, the best of the best, do the impossible and receive the hard-earned honour of representing their country... along with what is proving to be a sacrifice of mental health. 

For Simone Biles, the highly decorated artistic gymnast and Vogue cover star (among other things), withdrawing from the Olympics in the middle of the games was a choice of necessary measures. “It’s been really stressful, this Olympic Games,” said Biles in an interview with The New York Times. Similarly, Naomi Osaka, one of the top female tennis players in the world and co-chair for this year’s Met Gala, withdrew from the 2021 French Open for the same reasons. Is there a culture shift happening in professional sports? Are athletes seeing the importance of mental health in the game? Or is mental health just an excuse? If all is true, or none, one thing is for sure: mental health in professional sports is on the verge of a major shift.

For the longest time, the idea of taking a break on the grounds of mental health would have sounded crazy in competitive athletics. Athletes are strong, they are resilient, and they certainly do not need time off to focus on their mental health. This narrative was first disrupted in 2015 when the N.C.A.A started a mental health initiative on behalf of professional athletes and again recently in Naomi Osaka’s statement regarding her battle with anxiety and depression. Before Osaka it was Rafael Nadal, two-time Wimbledon champion, who withdrew  from the Tokyo Olympics in the name of his health and his future as an athlete. Afterwards,  Simone Biles’ withdrew from the Olympic final rounds due to immense pressure. Other athletes to bridge the divide between mental health and competitive sports include swimmer Micheal Phelps and basketball player DeMar DeRozan. As more and more professional athletes come forward with their human struggles and claim the rest and solitude that is theirs to take, it is apparent that a revolution in athletics is emerging. 

There are many factors that contribute to a person’s mental health and wellbeing: childhood experiences, relationships, genetics and heredity, to name a few. In addition, for the professional athlete, there is an immense load of pressure to perform and compete as well as the stress of being in the public eye and under constant media scrutiny. Although receiving much praise from fans, followers, celebrities, and athletes alike for her wise and courageous decision to withdraw from the Olympic Games, Simone Biles has also received a fair amount of dismay from critics claiming her mental health was used as an excuse to exit the Olympics gracefully. The same goes for Naomi Osaka’s withdrawal from the French Open.  Not only was there criticism like that of Biles’, Osaka was also plagued with the anxiety-provoking and ever-demanding task of battling the press. With the stress of a large social presence and contempt from critics everywhere, the decision to step back from competition in order to preserve good mental health will continue to be ever-prevalent and ever-difficult for an athlete.

With competitive sports continuing, it is important to understand that the sport is nothing without the athlete. Just as how a broken leg impairs a hockey player from competing in the game, anxiety, depression and other mental illnesses are also real and serious issues in an athlete’s life that affect their ability to play safely. With each withdrawal from the likes of Simone Biles, Naomi Osaka and other high-level athletes, the way is being paved for a new generation of athletes to become more conscious of their mental health, and for coaches, fans and teammates to support them along the way.