Sports Psychology enables the athlete to access a state of mind which will enable him or her to achieve and maintain peak performance under all conditions.

Sports Psychology utilises and focuses the principles of psychological therapy applied to sports performance. The Sports Psychologist adds the third element of sports performance, that of mental skills. Traditionally, sport coaching has placed its emphasis on what were seen as the primary sporting requisites: physical fitness and technical skills. Within any given group of athletes having equal physical fitness and technical skills, the athlete with the finer mental skills will emerge victorious.

Sport Psychology is neither an exercise in psychological analysis of the individual nor is it a magic wand which when waved produces a transformation. The mental skills the athlete learns to use are there to be accessed in his or her mind; the Sports Psychologist provides the insight and trains the athlete to access and practice those skills. In fact, we all have these skills but often fail to knowingly access and use them; the Sports Psychologist opens up these skills to the athlete. Having learned to use these new skills, they must, like technical skills and fitness, be constantly practiced and refined to maintain the ability to achieve peak performance.

Gavin Gough has developed a series of interventions specific to motor racing, each being tailored to the requirements of the individual driver. He uses hypnotic and semi-hypnotic interventions to enable the client to develop his mental skills at a subconscious level to specifically:

• Identify and correct driving errors by means of mental imagery and rehearsal.

• Think of the car as being an extension of his mind and body.

• Develop exceptional recall and feedback corner by corner, lap by lap, by means of accessing the data recorded in the driver's mind.

• Mentally practice and rehearse the perfect lap, particularly in preparation for qualifying laps.

• Maintain a positive mindset and remain in control at all times.

• Mentally practice and rehearse good technique.

• Mentally practice and rehearse good, controlled and effective overtaking.

• Establish a prerace (in car) routine to ensure mental focus and access the zone of peak performance.

• Develop such confidence and self belief in the car and himself to enable to driver to be quick on cold tyres.

• Self hypnosis to enable the driver to rest mind and body quickly without sleep.

• Change performance limiting beliefs and habits.

For more information on how Motorsport Psychology sessions can improve your performance please contact Gavin Gough.