Why Great Athletes Struggle Under Pressure at the Olympics

Each Olympics brings at least one moment that leaves spectators stunned.

An athlete who has been dominant all season suddenly appears tight, hesitant, or out of sync. Commentators search for technical explanations. Viewers wonder how someone so talented could struggle at the most important time.

But in many of these cases, nothing about talent has changed.

The difference lies in access.

The System Responds to Significance

The Olympic environment is not neutral. It carries meaning — for careers, families, countries, and personal identity. Even when athletes try to treat it like another competition, the body recognizes the magnitude.

Arousal increases.

With it come predictable adjustments: breathing becomes shallower or faster, muscles prepare for action, attention reorganizes toward potential threat or error.

If these shifts exceed what the athlete has practiced managing, precision begins to fade.

Not permanently.

Just in that moment.

Why Trying Harder Can Interfere

When execution starts to feel unstable, the instinct is often to apply more effort. Control gets tighter. Movements become guided rather than released. The athlete attempts to secure the outcome.

Unfortunately, this usually disrupts rhythm and adaptability — the very qualities elite performance depends on.

The person may be working harder than ever, yet producing less of what they want.

Different Athletes, Different Needs

It is important to recognize that not all Olympic struggles come from the same source.

Some competitors possess the necessary skill but lose availability when activation spikes.

Others encounter a level of speed, strength, or complexity that simply exceeds their current development.

Both provide information.

Both can be trained.

What Mental Performance Training Builds

Our work is to help athletes function effectively inside rising demand.

We study how pressure alters their attention and physiology. We practice returning to useful focus faster. We widen the window in which intensity can be present without overwhelming coordination or judgment.

Over time, the athlete becomes familiar with high activation. It stops feeling like an emergency and starts feeling like part of competition.

As reliability increases, confidence follows.

Again, not because it was forced — but because it was earned through repeated access.

A More Generous Way to Watch

When we understand performance this way, we watch differently.

We are not witnessing someone fail.

We are witnessing a system reaching its current edge.

Sometimes it holds. Sometimes it reveals where growth is next required.

Both are valuable.

Great performers are not those who avoid pressure.

They are the ones who have trained their response to it.

We build the skill and train it to hold when the moment gets loud.

And when that happens, athletes don’t need to become extraordinary.

They simply get to be themselves.

If you want help preparing at that level, that is the work we do inside our private coaching programs and The Athlete Within app.

Stay steady.

Kate

About: Kate Allgood is educated in the field of applied sport psychology. She holds two Masters degrees in psychology where she graduated with distinction. After a very successful hockey career, she has spent the past 14 years working one on one with high school, college, Olympic, and professional athletes to help them with their mindset, mental performance and mental skills training. Kate has also been a consultant for professional teams, including the Anaheim Ducks primary minor league affiliate the San Diego Gulls, to help the team and players develop their mental game. It is important to note that while Kate has graduate school training in applied sport psychology and general psychology, she does not diagnose or treat clinical disorders, and is not a licensed psychologist. 

**The information provided is not to dispense medical advice or prescribe the use of any technique, either directly or indirectly, as a form of treatment for physical, emotional, or medical problems, without the advice of a physician. The information provided is only to offer information of a general nature to help you in your quest for high performance. If you know or suspect you have a health problem, it is recommended you seek your physician's advice.

Frequently Asked Questions About Olympic Performance Under Pressure

Why can an athlete dominate all season and still struggle at the Olympics?

Season-long success shows capacity. The Olympics test whether that capacity remains available in an environment of higher emotional, cognitive, and social load.

When arousal rises, attention, muscle tone, breathing, and perception all change. If those shifts exceed what the athlete has practiced managing, access to skill can temporarily drop.

Is this what people mean by “choking”?

What many call choking is usually a change in how the system is functioning under stress. Movements may become more controlled than fluid. Attention may narrow toward error. Decisions may feel urgent instead of natural.

The ability is still present, but the athlete is no longer interacting with it the same way.

Do athletes just need to relax?

Relaxation is rarely the solution.

High performance often requires intensity and activation. The key is not lowering energy — it is learning to operate effectively with energy in the system.

Why do some athletes look calm in huge moments?

They have typically expanded their tolerance for activation.

They still feel significance and nerves, but those sensations do not overwhelm coordination, awareness, or judgment. What you see is familiarity, not absence of pressure.

Can mental performance training prevent this from happening?

Training can significantly reduce how often access deteriorates.

Athletes learn how pressure affects their attention and physiology, and they practice returning to useful patterns faster. Over time, the window in which they can function well becomes wider.

Does struggling in a big moment mean an athlete isn’t mentally strong?

No. It means the demands of that environment exceeded current preparation. That is information, not identity. It shows where training can evolve next.

What is the goal of mental performance work at this level?

To make skill more consistently available. We improve stability, adaptability, and decision trust so that when intensity rises, execution remains usable.

Confidence follows from that reliability.