This study investigated the predictive value of salivary cortisol for pre-event anxiety among elite athletes in three contact sports, to inform effective personalized psychological interventions tailored to sport and gender. Twenty-four elite university athletes (12 female, M = 36.40; 12 male, M = 35.38) participated, comprising 10 footballers (M = 37.64, SD = 4.03), 7 judokas (M = 34.91, SD = 4.17), and 7 boxers (M = 34.23, SD = 5.96). Saliva samples were collected at two time points, eight weeks apart at 9:00 a.m., to control for diurnal cortisol variation, and analyzed using the ELISA protocol. T-tests and ANOVA were used to determine statistical significance at the 0.05 level. Results showed that salivary cortisol level in unit per milliliter (U/ml) significantly predicted pre-event anxiety (t (46) = -12.03, p .05) or sports (F (2, 21) = 1.28, p > .05). Although females and football athletes reported slightly higher anxiety levels, the predictive utility of cortisol remained consistent. The study concludes that salivary cortisol is a valid, gender-neutral biomarker for assessing pre-competitive stress. Sport psychologists should be trained to recognize behavioural cues associated with elevated cortisol and HPA axis activation to inform individualized interventions.
Honawon et al. (Fri,) studied this question.