When we talk about motivation, we can focus on different areas, because motivation is not only an important factor in sports. Motivation also plays an important role in school or in life in general.⁣
We encounter sports every day. Some engage in sports professionally, others recreationally, and some prefer to turn on the television and follow and cheer for our promising athletes. Although we are a small country, our athletes compete as well as possible with other stronger nations. Behind the scenes of every athlete is a huge amount of physical and mental preparation. Each athlete has their own way of motivating themselves before a competition.⁣
Motivation for sports is key to everything that affects sports performance: physical and mental fitness, technical and tactical training, and general lifestyle, including sleep, nutrition, work, and relationships. When it comes to achieving results, motivation for sports is the only element over which the athlete has control. This is also why motivation in sports is so important.⁣

There are 3 things that influence the outcome of sporting achievements. First, ability, which includes physical, technical, tactical and psychological abilities. Ability is something we are born with and cannot change, so it is beyond our control. Second, the difficulty of the competition, which includes the ability of the opponent and external factors such as weather conditions, the influence of fans and the like. Even these factors are beyond the athlete's control. The third factor is motivation, which directly affects the level of success and over which the athlete has complete control. If an athlete is highly motivated to improve their performance, then they will invest a lot of time and effort in it. If two competitors with almost equal abilities compete at the same time, the final outcome will be influenced by the amount of hard work, perseverance and the best performance. In other words - the athlete who is more motivated to win will win.⁣

There is usually a big gap between athletes who want to achieve great things and those who actually work hard to achieve them. It is quite easy to say that you want to become a successful athlete, but it is much harder to make it happen. ⁣
Every athlete reaches a point in their career where they no longer enjoy training and competing. It is called the point of exhaustion, which begins when things become tiring, painful and boring for them, and it is also a point that is very important in a sports career. It separates successful athletes from those who never achieve their goals. Most athletes give up or even give up at this point. Truly motivated athletes, however, reach the point of exhaustion and continue despite it. Most athletes hate the point of exhaustion, there are only rare exceptions who look forward to it. This point is by no means pleasant, but the ultimate success outweighs the sacrifice of hard work. The best option on the path of a sports career is for an athlete to accept the point of exhaustion as part of progress towards their set goals.⁣
Among the situational factors that also significantly reduce motivation is the importance of winning at all costs. Focusing on winning as the most important goal brings something external.

In competition, the athlete adopts an external locus of control, which again reduces feelings of self-determination and thus intrinsic motivation. An important situational factor is competition. We find that under the influence of competition, intrinsic motivation for activity decreases. In the long term, it can happen that an individual performs an activity only if he is competing, and not otherwise. The results of later studies confirm that competition has the same negative effect on motivation, and not only in motor tasks such as sports.⁣

In athletes, intrinsic motivation, the desire to achieve a certain goal, has a great influence. If only extrinsic motivation is present, the athlete usually does not reach the exhaustion phase, or in the exhaustion phase, he usually gives up everything, because it does not represent any value to him. ⁣
True motivation for sports means 100% investment of time, effort, energy and focus in all aspects of the sport. It includes doing everything necessary to achieve the set goals. In order for true motivation to develop in an athlete, three turning points must be overcome: direction, decision and dedication.⁣
Before an athlete can gain motivation, they need to consider the different directions they can take in their sport. They have three options: they can stop participating completely, they can continue at their current level, or they can strive to become the best. Of the three options offered, they must choose only one.⁣
His choice predicts the amount of time and effort he will put into the sport and his ultimate success. Once he makes a decision, he must dedicate himself to it completely. If his choice is to become the best athlete, then commitment will determine whether he has primary motivation or not. His decision to be the best and his dedication to the sport must be key priorities. Only by fully committing to his direction and decision will he ensure that he is truly motivated.⁣

Everyone longs for victory, but it is necessary to realize that behind every medal, team victory, national record, ..., there is a lot of sacrifice and hard work, which is paid off in some way. Of course, failure and defeat of the team in a match affect morale and we can only get out of it if our internal motivation is strong, because with the help of it, we will build and try to eliminate our mistakes that led us to failure.

The article is supported by facts and research from literature by experts in the field of sports psychology:⁣
• Kajtna, T. and Tušak, M. (2007). Coach: sports psychology and coaches. Ljubljana: Faculty of Sports.⁣
• Tušak, M. and Faganel, M. (2004), I am an athlete. Ljubljana: Faculty of Sports⁣
• Tušak, M. and Tušak, M. (1997), Sports Psychology. Ljubljana: Scientific Institute of the Faculty of Arts⁣
• Vodeb, R. (2005), Interpretation of Sport. Trbovlje: Fit⁣

Author: Urša Kralj
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