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[quote=Anonymous]I think gymnastics is insanely tough mentally, because even just attempting some of those skills takes a very specific mindset, and then to do them on command, with very little margin for error, AND have to deal with a complex judging system that may not reflect what you think your difficulty or execution was.

Imagine if when a baseball player struck out, he landed face first in the dirt. Or imagine if he had to take his at bat while standing on a 4 inch wide beam.

Batters are also in a head to head -- the pitcher is also facing intense pressure and they are battling it out. I think this is ultimately easier to deal with mentally than sports like gymnastics, golf, figure skating, diving, ski jump, where how are in a battle with yourself and if you fail, you have only yourself to blame.

Singles tennis has this too, with the added element of matches being grueling over time -- think about how hard it is to lose a match 6-7, 7-6, 6-7, for instance. You'll play for hours matching your appointment point for point and only to lose because your opponent eked out two extra points in tie-breaks.

And when you get into endurance element, look at sports like marathon or road racing, where a huge mental component is finding the will to keep going when your body is spent. Not being able to stop and rest for hours. That's a different kind of mental toughness that is less about performance under pressure and more about resilience.

So no, I don't think it's clear baseball is the toughest sport mentally, though yes I think batting is a very tough mental exercise because of how much you have to get used to failing when you do it. I've heard people describe pro baseball players as goldfish -- no memory of yesterday. That the key to mastering that mental part of the game is to learn how to forget your last at bat, your last strike out, even your last swing, and stay in the moment. That does require a very specific kind of mental toughness, but it's no tougher than many other sports that have a major mental component.[/quote]

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