A few days ago I had the privilege of speaking to a reporter regarding this important mental health issue. Gabriel Medina, the number one ranked world champion surfer, withdrew from the 2022 World Surf League Season to focus on his mental health. His quote, “I’m not in a place where I believe I can perform against the world’s best surfers”. Keep in mind that Medina is not a “flash in the pan”. He is a three-time world champion surfer who recently competed in the Summer Olympics. His accolades speak for themselves. What makes this more salient is that Medina is one professional athlete, in a series of athletes, who has withdrawn or tailored their professional career to focus on their mental health. Should this come as a surprise to the greater population? There is often a commonly held misconception that athletes are machines who place their career and performance ahead of other aspects of life. However, to compete at the highest levels of sport, our mental health needs to be in a place where it does not impede performance. Elite athletes are human beings too. More importantly, there are increased demands and expectations placed on professional athletes to push through or compartmentalize feelings and compete. In my opinion, it takes a lot of courage for an athlete to reveal publicly that he is not in the best “headspace”. Gabriel Medina should be commended for going public with his feelings. Whether he knows it or not, he has taken away the stigma of seeking help for a mental issue that is impeding his athletic performance. Hopefully, this will “normalize” seeking help for other athletes and non-athletes.
