Quote(s) of the Week

"I got frustrated and I apologize for that. It was a situation where he kept bugging me and getting in my face."

-Terrell Owens on Saturday after the Cowboys game with the Falcons, apparently admitting and apologizing for spitting in DeAngelo Hall's face.

"When it happened, we were jawing in each other's face, so it wasn't anything intentional...I didn't intentionally spit in his face."

-Terrell Owens on Monday denying spitting in Hall's face during the game. It was revealed on Monday that no video replay can prove that Owens did spit.

From ESPN.com.

Kicker's confidence?

What is the effect of confidence on at athlete's performance? We all know how important it is to believe that we will succeed during competition. Many of us have even felt the power of knowing we will be victorious. Of course, many of us have been down the opposite road as well - feeling like we just can't do it.
Just ask Cowboys kicker Mike Vanderjagt who has struggled all season. Or new star Tony Romo who entered his first game trailing at halftime to a standing O and left with three picks.
How does confidence impact your game? SPINw's mental game training packages can bolster your confidence and performance!

Read the rest of the Cowboys article from the
Dallas Star-Telegram.

Sport Warfare Part 2: Psychological

Anyone who thought psychological warfare tactics were limited to the CIA and KGB needs to think again. Check out this story from the December 10 issue of the New York Times Magazine:

In Cal’s last basketball game of the season, in March, a win vs. USC was necessary for a tourney bid. To neutralize USC star Gabe Pruitt, Cal rally committee members created a fictional Cal co-ed, “Victoria”, and began IMing Pruitt a week before the game. After a period of online flirting, Pruitt agreed to meet “Victoria”, who never really existed, after the game. Upon Pruitt’s first trip to the free-throw line in the game, Cal fans chanted “Victoria” over and over. Pruitt missed the free throws and went on to have his worst game of the season. Clearly, the Cal tactic worked. By getting Pruitt’s head out of the game, he was completely neutralized and Cal won by 11.

From NYT Magazine, 12/10/2006. N.C.A.A. Psyop by Joel Lovell, p. 62.

Sports Warfare Part 1: Physical

As we move deeper into the holiday season, the sports world is certainly not filled with cheer and good will towards men. One need only look to T.O.’s spitting in DeAngelo Hall’s face on Sunday and Saturday night’s Knicks-Nuggets brawl for confirmation. Both stories swirl with controversy – Did Isaiah Thomas warn Carmelo Anthony to not go in the lane? Was George Karl simply protecting a lead, or running up the score on the Knicks in retribution for the Larry Brown situation? Regarding T.O., did he intentionally spit, or was it accidental while jawing with Hall?

In basketball, the League has spoken, most notably with 15 game suspensions for Carmelo and 10 games for Nate Robinson and J.R. Smith. What will be the psychological affect on the two teams? Surely, the Nuggets are hit harder with the loss of league scoring leader ‘Melo. Or, will it be a source of motivation for the team? Time will tell.

In football, response has been mixed to the spitting incident. Should Hall have retaliated? Should T.O. have been punished beyond his $35,000 fine? What is the impact of being spit upon on a players mindset? Here is Michael Irvin’s take, as heard on the Dan Patrick Show on Monday: “[Spitting] is as low as it gets…There’s no excuse for it, there’s no reason for it, there’s no talking around it…I let another man spit in my face you take away my integrity as a man. I’m no good to you as a player because I’m no good as a man.” According to Irvin, physical retaliation is necessary to preserve the confidence and self-worth necessary for competition. However, if the retaliation leads to an ejection, how can the player be any good to his team on the sidelines?

Keep checking with SPINw for more news as these stories develop.

Here the Michael Irvin interview on ESPN radio here.

Quote of the Week

It took me seventeen years to get 3,000 hits in baseball. I did it in one afternoon on the golf course.

- Hank Aaron

From BrainyQuote.com

The Mind-Body Connection

What is the source of physical pain during athletic competition? Injury or muscle stress is always a reliable answer. However, research has been demonstrating more and more that pain experienced in athletics may be a physical representation of mental stress. For example, take the story of a young English golfer who experienced intense lower back pain immediately before making contact with the ball in his swing. A series of sessions with a sport psychologist using kinesthetic imagery (the athlete’s visualization of their own body during performance) revealed three probable causes, none of which were physical – preoccupation with perfect technique which ruined the flow of the swing, fear about the quality of the outcome, and frustration with his caddie’s negative comments before tee shots. As a result of his sessions with the sport psychologist, the golfer is seeing a new caddie, playing great, and using advanced imagery techniques to swing freely and without interruption.

Read the whole fascinating story here.

The Pressure to be Thin

As we are bombarded daily with advertisements and programs promoting weight loss and skinniness, it’s not hard to realize why many feel an unhealthy pressure to be super-thin. Now, imagine combining day-to-day cultural pressures to be thin with the drive of athletic competition and enter the world of the anorexic athlete. Sports whose athletes are significantly at risk include skating, gymnastics, running, swimming, and rowing. Females athletes are at a higher risk than males for eating disorders – in fact, a USA Today study reported that 1/3 of its female participants experienced disordered eating. The unrealistic pressures both to be thin and perform at a high level can take a disastrous toll on athletes at all levels in the forms of anorexia, bulimia, low self-esteem and poor self-image. To learn more about eating disorders in athletics visit Anred.com or click here to read about an athlete's personal experiences.