Caroline Burckle Discusses Mental Health and Well-Being for Olympic Athletes

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2008 Olympian and Olympic medalist Caroline Burckle sat down to discuss one of the biggest topics of the 2020 Olympic Games: mental health for athletes. This was brought to the forefront of the Games when Olympic gymnast Simone Biles withdrew from the team competition. Burckle emphasizes that when she was competing, it would have been helpful to merely have someone to talk to consistently about struggles she was going through in or out of the pool, and cherishes the times she did get to have those conversations.
Burckle is no stranger to lending that listening ear, having started RISE Athletes with Co-Olympian Rebecca Soni, a business that provides young athletes with mentors who have been at the top of their sport and know the ups and downs that come with it.

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Eisenheim
2 years ago

Didn’t she accuse Bob Bowman of sexual misconduct?

ArtVanDeLegh10
2 years ago

I wonder how the media would react if Lebron decided that after game 2 of the NBA finals to sit out due to his mental health?

good memories beat the bad ones
2 years ago

OK…I will take the down votes…I agree mental heath is an issue and glad when athletes get help they need

but for me it is hard to sorry to feel bad for millionaires and pro athletes who have Olympic talent and have used that to make a lot of Bank.

Me….Left home at 16 from an abusive home, (yes I was beaten, stabbed, kicked and mentally abused) I walked out with a Safeway brown bag of clothes to my name …lived with my swim coach for Jr and Sr year in high school …..1 year sleeping in a recliner chair in my coaches living room. Thank God he took me in! No money, no family support. only way to swim… Read more »

Taa
2 years ago

How popular would it be to have mental health experts determine if the athlete was well enough to enter the competition. If you are taking drugs to allow you to compete then isn’t the best treatment to stop competing. My opinion is that athlete with moderate to severe mental health issues should be excluded from high level competitions. I’m sure some can handle it but how do you know which ones?

Itsyaboi
Reply to  Taa
2 years ago

Do u realize how many high level athletes have “mental health issues”… lots of ppl then would be excluded. With proper medication and therapy, for many the proper treatment is not to stop competing.

Steve Nolan
2 years ago

ooh time to check in on the comment section real quick and…
comment image

Eric the eel > Phelps
2 years ago

Handling pressure and keep going despite mental struggles and injuries is what makes an olympic athlete, I respect Simone Manuel because even with OTS , she stepped up and race individually and relay for USA.

Some other examples :
Campbell – Hernia in Rio
Sjostrom – Broken Elbow
Shields – Suicide Attempt
Phelps, Thorpe – Depression

Last edited 2 years ago by Eric the eel > Phelps
Breezeway
Reply to  Eric the eel > Phelps
2 years ago

Campbell – Hernia in Rio” – 🤣. My Gawd, thats a new one. That’s about 4-5 excuses now.

Do you understand the difficulty of Simone’s skills and the physical danger involved if she has no idea what is up or down when she lands? But hey, let’s compare that to a muscle strain or bruise.

Gogo bibi
Reply to  Breezeway
2 years ago

She had surgery after rio games fyi. Why did Simone participate then ?

Last edited 2 years ago by Gogo bibi
Eric the eel > Phelps
2 years ago

Simone Manuel > Simone biles

Alex Dragovich
Reply to  Eric the eel > Phelps
2 years ago

Why is it necessary to rate or judge how they’ve dealt with their respective struggles?

Gogo bibi
Reply to  Alex Dragovich
2 years ago

Yes

Taa
Reply to  Eric the eel > Phelps
2 years ago

Yeah of course swimmers > gymnasts

Lead by Example
2 years ago

Where is the discussion about Bile’s TUE for Ritalin/Adderall and how they are explicitly banned in Japan? If you bring any d-amphetamine and l-amphetamine (including Adderall) into Japan for any reason, you risk arrest and imprisonment. Does this not correlate to the lack of focus we saw with Simone’s performance?

swimlikefishdrinklikefish
Reply to  Lead by Example
2 years ago

I’d be curious if she’s holding off to confirm this until after the games.

Coach
Reply to  Lead by Example
2 years ago

Athletes were allowed to bring ritalin/ adderall with proper documentation. National team swimmers were told this in March. They could only bring enough doses to equal the number of days that they would be in Tokyo. I assume that USA Gymnastics also communicated this message to their athletes, but I know the swimmers were notified this spring.

Alex Dragovich
Reply to  Lead by Example
2 years ago

Your “gotcha” moment fell flat.

About Coleman Hodges

Coleman Hodges

Coleman started his journey in the water at age 1, and although he actually has no memory of that, something must have stuck. A Missouri native, he joined the Columbia Swim Club at age 9, where he is still remembered for his stylish dragon swim trunks. After giving up on …

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