Elite shooters always need to adapt to their environment, since external factors can potentially have an impact on whether you hit your target or not. Surprisingly, researchers found that environmental temperature drops do not have an effect on shooting performance [3]. However, it has been suggested that a temperature shift in any direction can be detrimental to sensory perception, which can potentially worsen shooting performance [4]. Additionally, it is even important to consider how a change of layers in clothing affects the hold of the rifle [5]. Wind speed and direction is another important factor that needs to be considered as even little effects on bullets are enough to change their path slightly enough so that you miss your target. Reading the wind correctly takes lots of experience and is a skill that is necessary to become great at shooting [6].

”I think pressure is a privilege and I have earned the right to feel that pressure. That is the way I try to view it and not to overcomplicate it too much“– Ludvig Åberg [3]

During our training together, Ludvig captured the essence of an elite mindset under pressure. But why does pressure in golf intensify so quickly, often leading to the notorious “choking under pressure”? One reason lies in the extremely tight margins in professional golf, where many players may be tied in rankings, sharing prize money for a given position. When the tournament reaches its climax, it often comes down to the final putts. Since professionals excel in their long game, a single missed or made putt can determine the difference between winning a title or losing hundreds of thousands of dollars. That there is truth behind this saying in golf ”Drive for show, putt for dough“ proves a dataset from the 2022 PGA Tour, that putting is more important in earning money than driving off the tee [4]. The pressure professionals are feeling with so much money on the line for one single shot can be overwhelming and shows that even elite athletes can be susceptible to pressure. This showed a study using a dataset from the PGA Tour from 2004 to 2012, that on the last hole of a tournament, the likelihood of making a putt significantly reduced, the more money, making the putt, could be earned [5].

Most people, whether involved in sports or not, are familiar with the concept of choking under pressure, where heightened stress leads to underperformance [3]. However, another perspective on performance under pressure is called social facilitation [4]. This well-established social psychology theory suggests that performance in front of an audience can either improve, decline, or remain unaffected, depending on the task. Specifically, simple, well-rehearsed tasks tend to improve with an audience, while complex or less-practiced tasks may suffer. Although throwing darts requires finely tuned motor skills, the repetitive nature of nearly identical movements from the same distance creates a highly standardized, automatic action—making it closer to a “simple task” than, for example, putting a golf ball.

Research shows that professional darts players, on average, do not choke under pressure [5,6]. However, individual differences remain, with some players thriving under an audience’s gaze while others struggle, supporting the social facilitation theory in darts. This variability underlines the importance of self-awareness: Knowing the conditions under which you perform best. It’s why many professional players either engage with the crowd to build energy or signal for calm to maintain focus, adapting the environment to their own optimal performance style.

Our bipedal locomotion allows for efficient long-distance movement, enabling feats like ultramarathons covering distances of 100 km or more [2]. A key factor why Laura Philipp became the women’s ironman champion of 2024 was identified by her coach as her ability to combat mental fatigue and hold good running posture during the final marathon stretch of her 8+ hour race [3]. Studies have shown that mental fatigue is a major limiting factor in endurance sports [4, 5]. Specifically, the authors state that maintaining speed in a race or stopping for a break is merely a mental decision. It likely occurs because mentally fatigued athletes perceive the effort as greater and feel they reach their physical limits earlier [6]. While physical training is essential to extend the body’s physical limits, the mentioned research highlights the importance of mental preparation and fatigue management to push athletes close to their true physical limits on race day [7].

It is also assumed that a basketball player’s brain works more efficiently than the brain of non-athletes. In a brain scanner (MRI) study, it was found that some areas of the basketball player’s brain are less active in perceptual and cognitive tasks, despite still performing at their best [4]. Fewer resources and therefore less energy is used to perform such tasks. The brain works more efficiently, which frees up resources for other tasks that are urgently needed in such a highly dynamic and complex sport.