Oliver Webb up against champions on two wheels and four

Elite athletes’ memories perform 20% better than average under intense psychological pressure according to a recent study commissioned by Dunlop Tyres in conjunction with University College London. 

The study, which tested mental performance under pressure, included ByKolles Racing’s Shanghai LMP1 Privateer winner Oliver Webb, Isle of Man TT legend John McGuinness and double British Touring Car Champion Colin Turkington.  It revealed that the elite athletes’ superior memory allowed them to stay in control even during tests which artificially invoked stress and anxiety within the brain.

Alongside the three Dunlop-shod racers were big wave surfer Andrew Cotton, British Champion downhill skater Peter Connolly, and experienced climber Louis Parkinson.

The study also showed that athletes’ brains were 10% quicker than non-athletes and actually improved their memory accuracy by 20% more than the non-athletes in a response to challenging and intense emotions….such as during a 6-hour race!

Left to right:  Oliver Webb, Peter Connolly, John McGuinness, Louis Parkinson, Colin Turkington, Andrew Cotton

University College London’s Professor Vincent Walshcommented: “The athletes were more accurate overall in their memory tasks following exposure to negative stimuli whereas the non-athletes were disturbed by the stimuli.  A lot of this makes sense, in particular in the case of rock-climbing or motor racing, where the athletes are conditioned to negate dangerous situations and need to make split second decisions.”

In the tests Oli Webb was shown to be the fastest at calculating risk, while John McGuinness was the most accurate at calculating risk.  Colin Turkington had the fastest recovery of memory after mental stress. 

People can challenge their own mental performance through one of the cognitive tests developed by Dunlop and UCL here: www.facebook.com/dunlop.uk

Photos:  Dunlop Motorsport