Why do some athletes thrive and shine in decisive moments under immense pressure, while others collapse and see their performance fall apart entirely?
This phenomenon is known in sports psychology as "choking under pressure," defined operationally as performing far worse than would be expected given a player's actual abilities, in situations where the athlete recognises the importance and high stakes of the event.
In a comprehensive research study delving into the depths of this vital problem, Dr Theresa Fletcher, professor and director of the Sport and Human Performance programme at Adler University in Chicago, presents an integrated psychological study in which she deconstructs the concept of psychological pressure, which takes varying forms and manifestations from one person to another.
Fletcher asserts that the ability to navigate critical moments with exceptional fluency and to exceed expectations is a phenomenon worthy of deep exploration, given its far-reaching dimensions — not only in professional sport, but in the details of everyday life as well.
Dr Fletcher's study explains that the key to sustaining peak performance under intense and demanding conditions intersects directly with a precise combination of psychological and physical skills. Individual perception of pressure or stress varies clearly between people, situations, and events. For example, speaking in front of an audience may seem perfectly natural to one person, while representing absolute terror to another.
In the world of sport, taking a free kick in the final seconds of a decisive match with the team trailing by a single point may drive one player to the peak of mental focus to score, while the same situation may cause another player to shrink and tense up under the weight of pressure, causing him to lose the ball.
The study reveals that recurring competitions — such as the annual knockout rounds of professional teams — give players a chance to make mistakes and compensate the following year. But major tournaments and finals are more taxing, given that reaching them is not guaranteed, making it critical to seize the opportunity.
Fletcher notes that tournaments or events held every 4 years, such as the World Cup, sharply amplify the sense of psychological pressure and push levels of arousal and anxiety to their extreme, contributing to physiological and functional disruption in the body that prevents a player from executing even the basic skills he performs successfully and confidently under less pressured conditions.
In contrast, a category of athletes emerges who are capable of excelling and surpassing the ceiling of expectations in those very same environments — a reality that drives mental performance consultants and researchers to focus their efforts on understanding how athletes absorb pressure and formulate strategies to prepare them for the demands of high-stakes performance.
To deconstruct this mechanism, Dr Fletcher drew on several theories explaining the relationship between emotion and performance, foremost among them the "biopsychosocial model of challenge and threat."
This theory posits that when a player interprets a competitive situation as a direct threat, he automatically perceives his resources and ability to compete or win as insufficient, and tends to attribute outcomes to luck rather than skill.
This mindset places the athlete in a zone of biological danger, leading to: a sharp increase in heart rate and negative physiological changes that impede the execution of motor skills (such as taking a penalty kick or making a precise pass).
Additionally, the narrowing of focus and attention alongside an accelerating heart rate leads to catastrophic and disorienting decision-making.
Fletcher gives the example of a goalkeeper: if the goalkeeper does not internally believe in his ability to stop a shot from the opposing team's leading striker, he may misread movement cues and rush out too early, giving the attacker an easier scoring opportunity. Conversely, a goalkeeper who maintains his focus and composure remains agile and capable of responding with speed and precision.
While athletes in individual sports (such as golf, swimming, or shooting) are accustomed to solo performance whose outcomes are directly tied to their personal ability to manage tension, team sports involve enormous, immediate pressures that frequently concentrate on specific positions — such as goalkeepers or players tasked with taking penalty and deciding kicks.
In the decisive moments of matches, all eyes and media attention turn to these individuals. The pitcher in baseball or the penalty taker in football faces intense internal pressure linked to a sense of complete responsibility for the fate of their team or organisation. Although winning and losing depend on the team's collective performance, the individual here bears the greatest psychological burden — one that can lead to total collapse if not addressed psychologically.
Dr Theresa Fletcher cites the famous words of coach Herb Brooks to the United States ice hockey squad in 1980 before facing the Soviet Union: "Great moments are born from great opportunities." This philosophy means that skills executed amid challenges and fears are in fact opportunities to test how far an athlete can exceed his own expectations and honour his sacrifices.
The Adler University study concluded that athletes who believe they possess the psychological and physical resources to succeed are less susceptible to choking and collapse. It affirmed that players can learn to endure these intense conditions and flourish within them through 3 core pillars:
Deeply rooted physical competence: Athletes must develop exceptional proficiency in their motor skills, because confidence is reinforced by the quality of repeated execution. Continuous physical and mental preparation, and converting tactical skills into habits ingrained in the subconscious mind, form the first line of defence protecting a player from sudden collapse under pressure.
Life skills and psychological resilience: Professionals need to acquire flexible and transferable skills, including self-efficacy, initiative, and the ability to solve problems flexibly and make decisions under positive pressure. These tools, when combined with positive and productive self-talk, give the athlete the capacity to adapt to the surrounding environment and focus fully on tactical strategies. The player learns mental skills just as he learns physical skills — through practice and application in training until they become automatic and instinctive.
Normalising the competitive environment: Simulating and normalising competitive atmospheres is the most prominent option for reducing the anxiety that precedes choking and collapse. The study proposes that athletes train regularly under conditions that simulate intense stress and high stakes. If every training session is imagined and practised as though it were the final seconds of the FIFA World Cup final, then when the actual day of the real contest arrives, the athlete's mind will treat it as "just another ordinary day at work."