VANCOUVER, British Columbia, April 24 (UPI) -- Failing to qualify for an Olympic team spot can be crushing, but the failure affects a part of the brain that plans actions, says a Canadian study.
Simon Fraser University psychology professor Mario Liotti, a team of researchers and Swim Canada psychologist Hap Davis found that a region of the brain that plans actions -- a part of the premotor cortex responsible for arm and leg movements required in swimming -- appeared inhibited when the athletes' brain activity was monitored, as they watched a video clip of their failed qualifying performance.
The researchers suggest that the results could explain why athletes have difficulty getting back on top of their game.
Functional magnetic resonance imaging of 14 Canadian swimmers who didn't make the 2004 Olympic team showed signs of heightened activity in areas that have been implicated with depression, suggesting feelings of emotional pain.
After a short therapy session with Davis, the swimmers reviewed their clip a second time and the researchers found the premotor cortex was more active during the second viewing of the failed trial -- providing evidence that the therapy works.
The study was presented to the Cognitive Neuroscience Society.
