Not even the best in the world are safe from pressure and fear

Three years ago, just after the Tokyo Olympic Games began, the sports world witnessed a real media shock. None other than Simone Biles, the mega-champion, the woman capable of installing artistic gymnastics techniques with her own name that are impossible to replicate for her rivals, was lost in the middle of one of her jumps, precisely that device in which no one seems able to match her. Wrapped in a number of controversies - some journalists went so far as to accuse her of abandoning her teammates in the team that, paradoxically, finished second behind the Russian team - Simone explained to the world that even those who seem unbeatable can feel the pressure; all of a sudden, the infallible failed. And too many media, fanatics and specialists refused to accept it naturally.

For several days, given the usual news of a competition that, just to begin with, distributes more than ten gold medals in a single day, the Olympic universe seemed to discover that brain strength or weakness influences as much or more than physical power or talent.

Was Biles an extraordinary case?

As for the media impact, without a doubt. In terms of background, not so much.

Not even if we draw a dividing line between High Performance champions and those who, like the North American one, are on an even higher scale, that of the invulnerable geniuses of stadiums.

Like Diego Maradona, considered by many to be the greatest soccer player of all time, who in one of his last seasons as a professional, failed a long series of penalty kicks, of those that he used to solve like few others.

The news about pressures, fears and anguish has come down these days to the figure of the phenomenal Kenyan marathon runner Eliud Kipchoge, who in an interview ended up crying while confessing the anguish to which he was being subjected to the hunt triggered mainly through social media by people who accuse him of having been responsible for nothing more or less than the accident that cost the life of his colleague and compatriot Kelvin Kiptum, owner of the world record for the specialty.

Fear for his life and that of his family and the threats to burn his investments are just some of the things that began to invade the daily life of the man who aspires to become the first to win three consecutive Olympic marathons in Paris.

This is neither competitive pressure nor stage fright but another type of emotional disturbance that powerfully affects the head of a sports phenomenon.

By the way, the fact that at 39 I don’t know how to handle the violent side of social media is still another lesson for us mere mortals.

It’s not just sports icons who feel pressure to compete. Also, no matter how mature they are and no matter how borderline situations they have experienced, they are as vulnerable as you and me to the lack of control of cyber assassins.