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Motivation is the level of enthusiasm or desire to train or compete at something. This motivation can be extrinsic (external sources) such as rewards, trophies or salary. Motivation can also be intrinsic (internally driven) such personal goals being achieved, sheer enjoyment or physical well-being.

Positive impact

A squash player has played well in the league all season and is one game away from earning a top three position in the league. The reward for this is a trip to the national finals at a much larger venue which had hosted the World Championships.

This extrinsic motivation pushes the player to train much harder and really focus on their game plan for the match.

This gives them a much better chance of winning.

A club runner has always wanted to try and run the marathon distance. They have set themselves a target time that they have always thought was a challenge but achievable.

This intrinsic motivation of beating that personal target helps them complete each training run, even in really poor weather or when they feel too tired to go out running.

This determination and motivation gives them a good training phase and increases their chance of beating the target time.

Negative impact

A cricket team has managed to get to a county cup final - the first time they have ever got this far.

In the week leading up to the final, the local community, including the newspaper, has built the level of excitement up. The players know the trophy would be a fantastic end to the season.

On the day, the players feel the pressure of the build-up and levels of expectation from their friends and family. This makes them nervous and this leads to far too many mistakes in bat, giving the opposition a much easier total to beat.

A gymnast is due to take part in a big competition. The previous competition has not gone too well so she is not expecting too much for the next event.

In the few weeks before the event, she has not trained too well, choosing instead to go out with friends or sit and watch television.

As the competition gets nearer, her low levels of motivation mean she is not prepared enough and her coach decides to leave her out of the team completely.