Olympic athletes experience high peaks of highs and lows of lows. After practicing for years, the spotlight shined brightly for nearly three weeks of competition. Then it’s time to go home, and returning can be difficult.
Sebastien Bozon / AFP via Getty Images
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Sebastien Bozon / AFP via Getty Images
Olympic athletes experience high peaks of highs and lows of lows. After practicing for years, the spotlight shined brightly for nearly three weeks of competition. Then it’s time to go home, and returning can be difficult.
Sebastien Bozon / AFP via Getty Images
LAKE PLACID, NY – Maddie Phaneuf says she’ll never forget the first time she felt like an athlete. It was at the 2018 opening ceremony in Pyeongchang, South Korea. The stadium was packed and the music boomed.
Biathlete Maddie Phaneuf of the United States trains during a preview of the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympic Games on February 6, 2018.
Image Lars Baron / Getty
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Image Lars Baron / Getty
Phaneuf, a two-sport athlete from the small town of Old Forge, NY, was once on one of the biggest sports stages in the world.
“It was like the best part of the whole experience,” says Phaneuf.
However, what Phaneuf and many Olympic athletes learn pretty quickly is that things don’t always go according to plan. For some athletes at the Beijing Olympics, it was COVID-19 that elevated their experience.
For Phaneuf in 2018, it was granulomatous pharyngitis. She was quarantined alone at the Olympics and was never allowed to participate in the race. The excitement from the opening ceremony faded quickly.
“It was really depressing and very sad,” Phaneuf said.
Holly Brooks says that’s a common feeling among Olympic athletes. Brooks is a two-time Olympic cross-country skier and currently works as a therapist in Anchorage, Alaska.
Since most Olympic athletes don’t win medals and many don’t even qualify for the finals, returning home from the Olympics can be difficult.
“A lot of athletes fall into depression after the Olympics,” says Brooks. “Athletes after the Olympics or after retirement need a lot of support, a lot of people reminding them of their worth beyond their athletic achievements and results.”
Holly Brooks, who competed here in the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics, is now a licensed therapist. “Athletes after the Olympics or after retirement need a lot of support, a lot of people reminding them of their worth beyond their athletic achievements and results.”
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Holly Brooks, who competed here in the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics, is now a licensed therapist. “Athletes after the Olympics or after retirement need a lot of support, a lot of people reminding them of their worth beyond their athletic achievements and results.”
Al Bello / Getty Images
The U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee has established a mental health task force ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. American athletes at the Olympics now have access to a dedicated team of mentors and other mental health resources, such as meditation and wellness apps.
Jessica Bartley, USOPC’s director of mental health services, said they also provide support to athletes after the Olympics.
“We have groups that are getting together after the game,” Bartley said. “It’s just an extra source for you to be at your best, so I think that’s something we’ve really tried to normalize.”
Athletes like gold medalists Simone Biles and Chloe Kim have also helped normalize mental health issues, talking openly about anxiety about their own Olympic ambitions.
For biathlete Maddie Phaneuf, that pressure is overwhelming. At the height of his career, just a few months before the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, Phaneuf retired from the sport. She said that some people have wondered why.
“‘Well, why are you retiring? The Olympics is this year, can’t you last longer than that?” And it was like no, you don’t understand, I can’t even get out of bed,” Phaneuf said.
A lot has changed in the past few months. On a recent day in early February, Phaneuf went out for a biathlon in Lake Placid, NY Wearing a blue vest with the words ‘USA’ on the back, Phaneuf shot one round. She inhaled and then fired another shot.
Phaneuf is not at the level of an athlete, but rather a coach. She works with 13-18 year olds, helping them with shooting and skiing skills.
Coaching helps her connect with sports. Regarding mental health, Phaneuf will go to therapy once a week. But it’s still a struggle. She’s happy that other athletes are opening up about their struggles as well, and it seems more people are listening.
“People are finally realizing that these athletes aren’t superhuman and cyborgs like everyone thinks. It’s like, ‘Oh, they’re a regular person with mental health issues. their own.'”
For many athletes in Beijing, experts say, those problems could really return once the excitement of the Games wears off.
