1 . Recently, scientific research suggests that mental health disorders affect up to 35 percent of top athletes at some stage of their careers. This can range from tiredness and eating disorders to depression and anxiety. The causes can be highly varied, with studies pointing to a range of contributing factors from poor sleep to selection pressures and early retirement due to injury.
American Simone Biles is widely considered to be the greatest gymnast (体操运动员) in the United States. When the Tokyo Olmpics began, she was expected to win five gold medals. But on July 27th, she pulled out of the team final. She made the choice after having trouble landing her vault (跳跃) in the competition’s first round. Later she said her mind was not in the right place to let her safely perform the difficult moves she is known for. In other words, her mind was not letting her body do what it needed to do. Cameras caught her telling her trainers during the team final, “I just don’t trust myself.”
Biles is not the only Olympian in recent months to talk about the pressure and mental effects of competing at the highest level. Japanese tennis star Naomi Osaka lost in the second round of Olympic competition. She said she felt extreme pressure to win for Japan, where the Olympics are taking place.
Few coaches and officials in sports have an expert understanding of mental health and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) also recognizes that there is a great need for practical assessment tools that can be used by medical professionals and anyone looking after athletes to protect athletes’ mental health.
“Mental health issues should be discussed more openly in sport, because athletes are always concerned about selection, and they want to appear as strong as possible,” Scientific Director Dr Richard Budgett says. “But in the end this may have negative effects, so we need to recognize the symptoms so that athletes can get proper management and help when they need it.”
1. What is the scientific research about?| A．Athletes’ living habits. |
| B．Athletes’ mental health. |
| C．Causes of athletes’ injuries. |
| D．Ways to reduce athletes’ pressure. |
| A．She was in a bad state of mind. |
| B．She was badly hurt in the first round. |
| C．She was not good at the difficult moves. |
| D．She did not live up to her trainers’ requirements. |
| A．Recognizing the symptoms. |
| B．Discussing the issues privately. |
| C．Adopting suitable evaluation tools. |
| D．Offering professional training to coaches. |
| A．To introduce two outstanding athletes. |
| B．To warn athletes about the danger of anxiety. |
| C．To draw people’s attention to athletes’ menial health. |
| D．To explain the importance of hard training to success. |
