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Abstract

The two studies presented in this paper, focused on the predictive value of coping and mood on performances in 50 elite adolescent athletes preparing for National Championships. Inactive coping was hypothesized to be negatively related to mood and to be predictive of low performances. Study 1 monitored 24 adolescent swimmers (11-18 yrs) during 6 months with maximum swimming performance as outcome parameter. Study 2 monitored 26 adolescent middle-long distance runners (age: 12-18 yrs) during 9 months with low and high intensity run performances as outcome parameters. Both studies used regression analyses. Results showed that the hypothesized relationship depends on how performance is measured. Categorized intra-individual performance development could not be predicted by coping and mood in both studies, but study 2 proved that high-intensity performance did. Inactive coping has a negative relationship with performance. Anger and depression also had negative relationships with performance whereas fatigue showed a positive one. End-seasonal high-intensity performance was predicted by active coping. Practical implications: 1. high intensity performance is an adequate monitoring tool, 2. inactive coping is a limiting factor of performance, 3. mood is an additional useful parameter to predict?performance, 4. active coping facilitates high-intensity performance.

Keywords

Adolescent; Coping; Overexertion; Mood; POMS; Performance; Sport; Stress-regulations; Stressors; ;Zoladz-test;

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Last updated on 12 February, 2015.