Abstract

The interplay between emotion regulation and optimal athletic performance is a key area of investigation in sport psychology. This chapter explores how emotion regulation contributes to peak performance states in athletics drawing on perspectives from cognitive psychology, neuroscience, social psychology, and sport psychology. Athletes' ability to perform at their best, often described as being “in the zone,” involves complex psychological and physiological processes where emotions are crucial. These states are characterized by enhanced decision-making, focused attention, and optimal arousal levels. Understanding how athletes regulate their emotions during training and competition is vital for researchers and practitioners. This chapter synthesizes theoretical frameworks and empirical evidence on the relationship between emotion regulation and performance, discusses the neurobiological and neurocognitive basis of emotion regulation, and offers strategies for emotion regulation in competitive contexts, identifying gaps in knowledge and suggesting future research directions.