The+Sports+Theory

**How Does An Athlete's Personal Life Affect His Achievement on the Field?**

The correlation between an athlete's personal life and his performance on the field have been compared by using The Multi-Dimensional Sports Theory.

The Multi-Dimensional Anxiety Theory is based on the two different types of anxiety: cognitive anxiety and somatic anxiety: looks at distractions which involve not being able to concentrate, disruptions in attention, and negative performance expectations __**Somatic Anxiety:**__ looks at perceived physiological excitement(like an elevated heart rate or increased perspiration)
 * __Cognitive Anxiety:__**

The Multidimensional Anxiety Theory hypothesizes that as cognitive anxiety increases, athletic performance decreases.

According to a model created by A.F. Sanders, one thing that may affect a player's cognitive functions is excitement level.

Sanders observed that stress usually results from a person’s failure to correct a level of excitement that is too high or too low. So, high levels of stress are followed by increased anxiety.

To examine influences on successful athletic performance, Greenleaf interviewed Olympians from the Atlanta and Nagano Olympic Games. Although positive factors existed, the Olympians said many negative factors influenced their performance. One big factor was media distractions. It was found that factors are psychological in nature, which shows the importance that mental factors play in an athlete's performance. //Tiger Woods has faced a tough loss in his career due to all the drama of his personal life. Since the news of his scandal and divorce came out, he hasn't won a single match//

__Kenny Rogers__ Baseball player Kenny Rogers has had an interesting relationship with media. During the 2005 season, Rogers refused to talk to media after they published a report saying he would retire if the Rangers did not give him a contract extension. Then on June 29, 2005, while walking onto the field for a pre-game warm-up, he had a fight with two cameramen. Rogers shoved Fox Sports Net photographer David Mammeli, yelling at him to get the cameras out of his face. Then, Rogers went at cameraman Larry Rodriguez, wrestled the camera from him, threw it to the ground, and then kicked it. Because of the event, Rodgers was suspended and fined. Before all of his problems with the media, Rogers was having his best season. However, following the suspension, in his August 11, 2005 return to the mound, Rogers allowed five runs and seven hits in five innings, on the way to a 16 to 5 loss. He also gave up a two-run homer in the all star game where he was booed by the crowd

This indicates a relationship between stress and the media influence on Rogers. His bad relationship with the press caused him to publicly lose his temper and become violent, which cost him playing time, salary, and the respect of the fans. Moreover, it affected his performance and his season’s statistics declined. Tony Dorsett, legendary NFL halfback, said: “You can turn the negative around and use it as a motivating force in your life. One of my biggest desires has always been to prove certain people wrong-to prove to them that I can do it despite what they think or say”.

[|Kenny Rogers incident (view at 3:12)]