![]() Black female athletes are leading the narrative shiftįor Black female athletes, in particular, the experience of these external pressures is further exacerbated by the misogynoir that clings to sports and society at large. When players have platforms of their own, they're able to control the narrative around the version of themselves that they want to present to the world. But as Osaka showed earlier this year when she bowed out of these press conferences for the sake of her mental health, that traditional format is far from perfect. Before the advent of social, fans relied on the media and post-game press conferences to communicate with their fans off the field. “One pro is that have this connection with the fans and the media, and people can really understand who they are behind the scenes,” says Dr. And that really takes a toll,” says Carter. As Biles told reporters when she walked away from her Olympic competition, “I wanted it to be for myself when I came in, and I felt like I was still doing it for other people.” “For some reason, people feel like they own the athlete and like the athlete has to perform for them. This proximity has created the sense that athletes “belong” to their fans, as if they owe spectators a gold medal or game-winning goal every time they compete. Instead, all of that hard work gets boiled down to a 90-minute soccer game or a 90-second floor routine. “While that may be the case during competition, it’s not always the case when you get home.” How “couch criticism” weighs on athletes’ mental healthĪthletes work from a young age to be able to compete at an elite level however, we don’t see those years of sacrifice, because by the time most of us even hear about a new star, they’re already established. Ski Team who has partnered with Allianz to raise awareness about the mental health impact of competitive sports. “There’s that because we’re strong, we’re bulletproof and nothing can affect us,” says Lindsey Vonn, a former World Cup alpine ski racer on the U.S. When an athlete’s skills are superhuman-Biles’s Yurchenko Double Pike did defy gravity, after all-it’s easy to forget that they, themselves, are not. “It puts athletes under the spotlight and opens them up for criticism not only about their ability to perform, but also about their daily life, which absolutely impacts how they see themselves when they’re playing their sport.” "With social media, athletes have a closer proximity to fans, so they’re getting immediate feedback on themselves, their brand, and their ability to perform,” says Leeja Carter, PhD, executive board member for the Association for Applied Sport Psychology. What has changed, though, is the constant feedback loop they’re subjected to from social media and the 24-hour news cycle. ![]() Since the advent of broadcast television in 1927, professional athletes have competed on the global stage with millions of people watching their every move. ![]() The concept of performing in front of an audience is hardly a new one in the sports world. Social media has created a constant feedback loop between fans and athletes While, on the one hand, it’s given players a chance to connect with their communities in an entirely new way, it’s also created an added layer of pressure on top of all of the other expectations that have always been associated with competing at an elite level. Given that we have these behind-the-scenes looks, the gap between fans and athletes has become narrower and narrower. Our generation’s sports legends are at our fingertips, which means we can like, comment on, and critique their every move. We can follow Laurie Hernandez into the gym, see how Tom Daley trains (and knits), and double-tap photos of Serena Williams’s adorable daughter. Social media has granted us unfiltered access to athletes at all hours of the day. She is the current American record holder in the event with a distance of 20.63 m set at the 2016 Olympic Games. Michelle Carter, Michelle Denee Carter is an American shot putter. ![]()
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