ABSTRACT
Sport is the locus of varieties of athletic experience. In this paper, I focus on anxiety as a felt experience in sport. Anxiety is often experienced as a form of psychological distress. It is a common experience and one that is arguably a frequent companion of sports participants. By exploring the underlying nature of anxiety, we may gain a better purchase on both why anxiety occurs in sports participation, and what contours it takes. I posit that the experience of anxiety in sport is informed by a variety of factors: biopsychological, social, and ontological factors. Each factor provides insight into the nature of anxiety in sport and beyond. I also explore some of the reasons why human beings pursue competitive sporting endeavors that give rise to anxiety and examine the possibility of ameliorating anxiety in sport.
