INTELLIGENCE AND

SPORTS
PREPARED BY DR. N.DEBALA CHANU
 INTRODUCTION

• Sports activity is traditionally considered from the standpoint of motor aptitude, the implementation of
which enables to achieve outstanding results and provide the self-fulfillment of a personality via sport.

• However, the impact of sports activity is largely determined by the ability of an individual to implement
and understand in detail the objective rules of growth of results, the effect of sports exercises on the
body, including its biological and social aspects.
• This has stipulated for an intensification of researches in the field of sport, a significant
expansion of the material and technical base, search and development of innovative
technologies of achievements of outstanding world-class athletes.

• At the same time, one is to look for new ways to improve and implement the kinesiologic
potential to cope with the strong competition with developed sports powers.

• The enhancement of the role of intelligence in sports training is assumed to be one of these
directions. 
 SPORTS INTELLIGENCE

• Sports Intelligence was first conceptualised in 1984 by Fisher, who suggested that a sports
intelligent athlete had the ability to search and detect relevant cues, identify patterns of play and
behaviours, use short- and long-term memory and recall, make effective decisions and possess a
baseline level of knowledge about sport specific tasks.

• About a decade later, Tenenbaum and Bar-Eli (1993) built on this by adding that cognitive
processes such as the ability to select, process and retrieve information during game time,
facilitated better decision-making.
• Gould, Dieffenbach and Moffett (2002) researched the psychological characteristics of
Olympic champions with sports intelligence again emerging as a clear theme.

• They indicated that sports intelligence consisted of “raw data responses such as the
ability to analyse, being innovative, being a student of the sport, making good decisions,
understanding the nature of the elite sport, and being a quick learner.”
• Zhang Li-Wei (1999) : “Sports Intelligence is the psychological conditions or characteristics in the
course of mastering and performing motor skills.”

• A recent investigation by Blue (2009) into Sports Intelligence within golf indicated that it was made
up of a competitive and developmental intelligence with the latter including self-knowledge,
regulation, a developmental attitude and understanding elite sport processes.

• The former includes information processing, environmental perceptions, self-knowledge, self-

awareness, course management, cognitive control and understanding the nature of golf.
• The main manifestations of intelligence: perception, attention, logical and creative thinking, memory, analytical
skills are a primary component of sports activity.

• At the same time, experience shows that many trainers and experts underestimate the role of intelligence when
raising the fitness level; highlighting the biological aspect of sports training:
 enhancement of the level of motor-coordinating qualities that provide general physical, special and technical skills,
 improving tactical training via more effective use of the kinesiological potential.

In this case, an athlete is usually not involved as an active subject in the process of sports training, he plays the role of
an executor of the program developed for him. Such an approach does not facilitate intellectual development and
integral implementation of his potential.
• As pointed out by M.K. Akimova, 2003; G.Yu. Eysenck, 1995, et al, intelligence is the key quality of
personal development, that determines the area of activity and mental attitude of an individual, it forms a
system of his values. In this regard, we consider intelligence as a set of important para meters of the cognitive
area, which are manifested in its various forms.
• In accordance with the views of I.M. Sechenov, 1952, S.L. Rubinstein, 1972, et al. intellectual qualities are
displayed during vigorous activity, at its different stages a person learns necessary concepts, mental
actions, creates their algorithms and theoretical models of implementation, depending on the purpose of
activity.
 MODEL OF INTELLIGENCE

• Garrath Rosslee assessed the limited sports intelligence literature with a comprehensive review of
orthodox and unorthodox theories of intelligence, applied psychology and sports psychology.

• He hypothesized that sports intelligence would theoretically include constructs like memory, reasoning,
problem solving, decision-making, knowledge management, learning, relationship competence,
achievement orientation together with specific personality characteristics and emotional make-up.

• The hypotheses were then considered by 15 credible athletes and coaches, all of whom had international
or national experience. Garrath completed a content analysis that elicited 73 key themes. These were
clustered into a six tier systemic model of sports intelligence. 
 THE SIX COMPONENTS ARE:

1. Neurophysiological Intelligence sub-system: The neurophysiological sub-system refers to the

physiological, biological and neurological processes including reaction time, physical
preparation, input, processing and execution.
2. Cognitive Intelligence sub-systemThis refers to the rational, logical processes including
decision-making, learning, clarity, process awareness, game data processing, knowledge recall,
mistake management and judgement.
3. Emotional Intelligence sub-systemThis important component refers to handling pressure, self-
control, response management, instinct, comfort, arousal, psychological stability, self-
understanding, regulation and confidence, amongst others.
4. Team Intelligence sub-systemBeing able to be a part of a team, understanding group dynamics, being able to
effectively engage with others and communicate are cornerstones of this sub-system.

5. Societal Intelligence sub-systemSport participants experience all kinds of pressures and challenges from society
including relationship, peer and competitor pressures in addition to expectations, extraneous influences, hype and
sacrifice. These need to be mastered.

6. Metaphysical Intelligence sub-system: The metaphysical sub-system refers to “higher order factors” and includes
beliefs and values. Important values are trust, sacrifice, standards, expression, boundaries, integrity, habits and intangibles.
 The investigation suggests that the sub-systems run in parallel and are of equal significance.
• Sports activity has specific requirements for intelligence, requiring learning the nature of the
influence of physical exercises, the patterns of development and improvement of qualitative
aspects of motor activity, that enhance fitness, and finding the ways and techniques to
harmonize intellectual and motor activities to achieve high results.
• Intelligence is displayed in sport as the ability to assimilate the technology of comprehensive
coordination, multidirectional exercises; learning the laws of growth of sports skills, achieving
a high level of stability and reliability of competitive activity, objective, critical analysis and
synthesis of personal achievements and failures during competitions, actively seeking the ways
to correct them.
OWN EVALUATION CRITERIA

• It has its own evaluation criteria, the most important of which are:

 amount and level of learnt knowledge, skills and abilities, and the extrapolation ability in new
conditions;
 speed ​of perception of incoming information and its processing ability;
 understanding and clear statement of the essence of issue or problem;
 ability to choose an effective method of solving complex problems;
 standards of speech, behavior, establishing interpersonal relationships