Maria Paseka talked to a psychology blog about aggression and negative emotions in an athlete’s life.
Q: Maria, how aggressive can you be in the sport? Does aggression help to win?
A: In the sport, I channel my aggression to the apparatus with the only goal – to win. It has nothing to do expressing aggression in real life, I’m against it. The world is already very angry, people are eaten from inside by aggression. On my Instagram, I talk a lot about how important it is to be kinder and not to turn into a wild crowd.
Q: Do you encounter aggression from colleagues often?
A: No, nothing like that from colleagues, everyone is friendly with me. Perhaps, the secret is my smile, people say it brings joy. And I try to avoid conflicts if I feel tired or irritable, I just distance myself from everyone in order to get it together.
Q: Can you excuse aggressive behaviour in sports? How ethical is to strive to win at any cost?
A: It’s completely unethical to strive to win at any cost. No matter how hard it was for me after injuries and surgeries, I never allowed myself to break doping rules. If you took it upon yourself to defend the country’s honor, don’t bring shame upon yourself or the country!
Q: Could competitive aggression cross into other areas of life? How can it be avoided?
A: It could cross [into other areas] or it doesn’t – it all depends on the person. You have to know how to separate the sport and life. If an athlete cannot do that, they are going to have a very hard time after retiring. It’s important to stay human above all.
Q: Which sport do you consider the most aggressive and why?
A: Every sport is aggressive in its own way because there are many difficulties that need to be overcome.
Paseka is currently taking a break from gymnastics. She has not yet decided whether she wants to continue training.
Photo: Russian Artistic Gymnastics Federation
