The COVID-19 Pandemic Crisis-Transition and Its Influence on Sport

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the whole world, and sports have been no exception. This chapter is about how a world health crisis resulted in a crisis within sports and among athletes. We outline four sport-related pandemic phases organized around the International Olympic Committee (IOC) decision to postpone the Tokyo-2020 Olympic Games, which had an impact on all levels of sport and athletes’ preparation and development worldwide. Researchers have revealed that the pandemic affected athletes and their environments (e.g., lockdowns, cancellation of competitions, closed facilities), as well as coaches, managers, and sport psychology practitioners, stimulating coping efforts at individual and organizational levels. To complement the research summary, we include reflections of a sport psychology service provider (the second author) about athletes’, coaches’, and his own experiences of preparation for, and participation in, the Tokyo-2020 Olympic Games under the pandemic conditions. As a conclusion, we formulate lessons learned from the pandemic experiences that can provide useful guidance under similar conditions in the future.