{"id":6702,"date":"2020-07-16T19:00:50","date_gmt":"2020-07-16T19:00:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/?p=6702"},"modified":"2025-07-31T01:35:48","modified_gmt":"2025-07-31T05:35:48","slug":"overcome-pre-competition-nerves","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/overcome-pre-competition-nerves\/","title":{"rendered":"Overcome Pre-Competition Nerves"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"600\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/when-kids-worry-about-others-judging-them-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-5195\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/when-kids-worry-about-others-judging-them-1.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/when-kids-worry-about-others-judging-them-1-300x150.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Do_Your_Sports_Kids_Get_Nervous_About_Competing\"><\/span>Do Your Sports Kids Get Nervous About Competing?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2><div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_82_2 ez-toc-wrap-center counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/overcome-pre-competition-nerves\/#Do_Your_Sports_Kids_Get_Nervous_About_Competing\" >Do Your Sports Kids Get Nervous About Competing?<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/overcome-pre-competition-nerves\/#Dealing_With_Nerves\" >Dealing With Nerves<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/overcome-pre-competition-nerves\/#Related_Articles_on_Youth_Sports\" >Related Articles on Youth Sports:<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/overcome-pre-competition-nerves\/#The_Composed_Sports_Kid\" >The Composed Sports Kid<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<p>Some young athletes believe they can\u2019t be successful if they\u2019re <strong>nervous<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But this isn\u2019t always true.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Those who get nervous believe there\u2019s nothing they can do to control these feelings. As a result, they often perform tentatively and don\u2019t do well. They then use that experience to tell themselves they won\u2019t be successful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We often think that elite <strong>athletes<\/strong> can rise above their nervousness, sink the winning shot or perform perfectly every time they compete.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But this view isn\u2019t helpful to sports kids; it makes younger athletes set high expectations, hoping to emulate the pros.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Truth is, it\u2019s not possible to perform all the time without being nervous. The best athletes in the history of sports have had to deal with nerves. It\u2019s human. If kids are nervous, they can still be mentally tough. They can continue to perform even if they\u2019re feeling uncomfortable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For example, PGA golfer Rory McIlroy, at the age of 30, already has Hall of Fame credentials as a 15-time major winner. Yet, McIlroy said in a press interview that he experiences some degree of nervousness before  every tournament.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m pretty truthful with you guys. Look, I was nervous on the first tee but not nervous because of [the expectation of hometown crowd]. Nervous because it\u2019s an Open Championship. I usually get nervous on the first tee anyway, regardless of where it is,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>McIlroy identified the reason he gets <strong>nervous<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI think I was making [the Open] a little bit bigger in my head than it needed to be,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Athletes<\/strong> often feel nervous when they focus too much on the importance of a competition. When they make the event bigger than it is, it increases the pressure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Dealing_With_Nerves\"><\/span>Dealing With Nerves<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>McIlroy treats each competition as \u201cjust another competition\u201d no matter who he\u2019s playing with. He reminds himself that he\u2019s done this before and can do it again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m just treating this like any other Open Championship. I\u2019ve played well here for the last few years. I\u2019ve played well on this golf course. So I\u2019ve just got to go out and hit the shots and stay in the present.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This is one important way to deal with nervousness: Kids need to remind themselves they\u2019ve done this before, that they need to stay in the moment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To help kids learn how to cope with nervous feelings, parents can also ask them to rate the importance of their next competition on a scale of 1 to 10. If young <strong>athletes<\/strong> rate the competition at the high end of the scale, they should find similarities to other competitions in the past that they haven\u2019t rated so high. Making comparisons to other competitions that didn\u2019t seem as important can help them lower their expectations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Sports kids need to avoid thinking about the outcome and what the outcome might mean to them. Many kids experience fear about how they think others will respond to their performance. Help them identify those fears and tell them to focus on the task at hand&#8211;not on others\u2019 opinions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Athletes of all ages get <strong>nervous<\/strong>, but mental game skills will help them cope with these feelings and ensure the nervousness doesn\u2019t overwhelm them. Help sports kids follow the example of McIlroy, and try to put games in perspective. As he said, he was making the Open a little bigger in his head than it needed to be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"related-articles-on-hockey-mental-game\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Related_Articles_on_Youth_Sports\"><\/span>Related Articles on Youth Sports:<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/kids-who-struggle-with-pregame-nerves\/\"><strong>Kids Who Struggle with Pregame Nerves<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/how-choking-hurts-athletes-performance\/\"><strong>How Choking Hurts Athletes\u2019 Performance&nbsp;<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/athletes-who-get-nervous-during-tryouts\/\"><strong>Athletes Who Get Nervous During Tryouts<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p id=\"block-f49818fa-7c7a-4ee3-b5ee-66581aad2c71\">*Subscribe to&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/sports-psychology-podcast-by-peaksports-com\/id152566009\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>The Sports Psychology Podcast<\/strong><\/a>&nbsp;on iTunes<br>*Subscribe to <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/0ynyaalKxbnNmsoeL8gF5X?si=8224669de9b3435b\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>The Sports Psychology Podcast<\/strong><\/a> on Spotify<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_Composed_Sports_Kid\"><\/span>The Composed Sports Kid<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"225\" height=\"250\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/03\/composed-sports-kid-small-1.jpg\" alt=\"The Composed Sports Kid\" class=\"wp-image-11173\" style=\"width:170px\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>&#8220;The Composed Sports Kid&#8221; audio&nbsp;and workbook digital download program for young athletes and their parents or coach helps kids cope with frustration and anger in sports. Help your sports kids learn how to manage expectations and let go of mistakes so they can keep their head in the game.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em><strong>The Composed Sports Kid system<\/strong><\/em>&nbsp;is really two programs in one\u2013one program to train parents and coaches how to help their kids practice composure, and one program that teaches young athletes\u2013<em>ages 6 to 13<\/em>\u2013how to improve composure, let go of mistakes quickly, have more self-acceptance,&nbsp;<strong>and thus enjoy sports more<\/strong>!&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"gb-container gb-container-26bcd9b3\">\n\n<a class=\"gb-button gb-button-903b6244 gb-button-text\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/the-confident-sports-kid-cd-program\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">GET DETAILS<\/a>\n\n\n\n<a class=\"gb-button gb-button-3275f4fd gb-button-text\" href=\"https:\/\/shop.peaksports.com\/collections\/confident-sports-kid-series-digital-version\/products\/the-confident-sports-kid-bundle-digital\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">BUY NOW<\/a>\n\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Do Your Sports Kids Get Nervous About Competing? Some young athletes believe they can\u2019t be successful if they\u2019re nervous. But this isn\u2019t always true. Those who get nervous believe there\u2019s nothing they can do to control these feelings. As a result, they often perform tentatively and don\u2019t do well. They &#8230; <a title=\"Overcome Pre-Competition Nerves\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/overcome-pre-competition-nerves\/\" aria-label=\"Read more about Overcome Pre-Competition Nerves\">Read Sport Psychology Tip<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5196,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30,6],"tags":[380,213,267,560],"class_list":["post-6702","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pregame-nerves","category-youth-sports-psychology-blog","tag-nerves-about-performance","tag-nervous-athlete","tag-pregame-nerves","tag-youth-sports-nerves"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6702","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6702"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6702\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5196"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6702"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6702"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.youthsportspsychology.com\/youth_sports_psychology_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6702"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}