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T
he love a sports player receives from the fans can
basically be attributed to a combination of two factors:
how well they play, and how hard they play. Indeed, it
is in the second area that true heroes are forged. Skills
are nothing compared with guts for most fans.
A willingness to play through pain is something the average
fan can understand and appreciate far more than sporting
ability, perhaps because this is an attainable experience. Most
fans play, therefore they all know what a pulled muscle or a
dead leg feels like.
Playing through the pain barrier may cement certain
performances into the hearts of fans, but it is worth considering
the damage encountered by the players and just what are the
mental processes behind injured players carrying on. Are they
really heroes, or is something more sinister at play?
A player can be sick or injured previous to competition, or they
can be injured during the match. Either way, they need to make
a choice. Should they sit it out or do they power through with
a cocktail of drugs and adrenaline? The majority play. Many
players feel an intense pressure to play unless it is absolutely
impossible.
The reasons for this go beyond the classic explanation, namely,
the fear of letting someone down: whether it be the team,
friends or supporters.
Naturally, this motivator is a significant factor in why players
risk their fitness. But some sport psychologists now claim
that this “warrior” mentality is more closely tied to self-
identification.
Sports people have such a prominent role in society, are so
valued and so rare, that many in this field see themselves
solely in terms of their sporting achievement. Regular people
have a multiplicity of aspects of their lives which bring them the
required self-esteem to not get too down when one segment
of their life is not meeting their expectations.
PLAYING THROUGH
P A I N
HOW SPORT S HEROE S ARE MADE
By Timothy Mottram
14 | Touchline issue 24 | September 2016
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