Washington Week: Student Voices (O)

Olympians face unique training challenges
By Chris Huntemann
The Daily Athenaeum (West Virginia U.)
02/21/2006

(U-WIRE) MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — The 2006 Winter Olympics are currently being held in Torino, Italy. Since the Olympics do not occur on a yearly basis, athletes who compete in this event have a lot more time to train specifically for their event of choice, according to Samuel Zizzi.

"They have a lot more exclusive focus," said Zizzi, an assistant professor at the West Virginia University School of Physical Education. "They can train exclusively for that event for a longer period of time, whereas other athletes, such as basketball players, have to repeat their preparation on a weekly basis.

"But Olympic athletes also have a tendency to over-train, which can mean that they might not do as well as they hope," he added.

When asked how much more demanding physically competing in the Olympics is compared to other sports, Zizzi said the demand is pretty relative.

"Competing in Olympic events does require skill and mental precision, but it varies dramatically depending on the sport," he said. "Someone who competes in the luge competition is not going to put forth the same kind of preparation as someone who is competing in cross-country skiing.

"Olympic athletes have more time to prepare so they tend to be well-prepared and very confident," Zizzi added.

"Most Olympic sports have their own World Cup or World Championships, so athletes in that sport are always competing in international competition," said Jack Watson, an assistant professor at the School of Physical Education. "Most of the sports have a lot of stress because they have more exposure to the rest of the world.

"Olympic athletes experience the same trouble as other athletes but tend to be better equipped to deal with it. They learn how to deal with the stress by either trial and error or they are simply taught how to deal with it.

"Some athletes are just born with better coping skills," Watson said.

Ed Etzel, an associate professor at the School of Physical Education, competed in the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, Calif., where he won a gold medal in rifle shooting.

"I kind of walked the path so I know what it's like," said Etzel. "I was highly trained in what I did, and I had been competing for a long time. I learned the necessary mental skills and self-management to compete in the Olympics, and I went through the same training as the other athletes."

Etzel said the stress that comes with competing in an event such as the Olympics can be both a positive and negative.

"It can be a mix of the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat," he said. "It is difficult to generalize because each athlete experiences it differently.

"It can vary from having the exhilarating experience of completing a run or the disappointment of not living up to your standards. It just varies from individual to individual" he said. "They have hopefully dealt with similar experiences before that can help them deal with the situation."

"They should be professionals because they wouldn't be competing in the Olympics if they didn't know how to deal with the stress that comes with competing in such an event," he added.

The 2006 Winter Olympics will run through Sunday, Feb. 26, and can be seen on NBC as well as cable networks including USA and Bravo.

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