Imagine the greatest athletes in the world, the ones who consistently crush their competition. They make it look so easy until you try to do it yourself and see that it is tougher than you thought!
Well, that’s because being a professional athlete requires a lot more than strength and skill. But if you don’t have the mental toughness and confidence necessary to be at the top of your game, you won’t go far.
You need to have a positive mindset, so you go into every competition confident in your ability to win. Game days are part of the sport and come with many emotions. On game day, it’s important to stay in the right mindset.
There are so many things that can distract you from your goal of winning on game day. Everything from family, friends, and school to whether or not you’re going out after the game. Your success as an athlete is largely determined by your mental strength and attitude.
Below you’ll find inspirational quotes geared towards athletes on game day that can keep you or your athlete friend or family motivated and encouraged to give your or their best during competition.
Inspirational Quotes for Athletes on Game Day
Gameday is a beautiful, magical time. It’s a time when anything can happen. All you have to do is play your game correctly, and in the end, everyone will be coming up to you asking how you could pull such a magical performance out of nowhere. Don’t let anything distract you from your goals. Please focus on the game, know what you have to do, and go out there and do it.
1. Gameday. Your opportunity to chase greatness.
2. You set your limits and you are the only one who can push yourself beyond them. You define your potential, and what you can and cannot do.
3. The best way to keep your spirits high on game day is to focus on the task at hand. If you have to go out after the game, be sure you’re prepared for whatever may come.
4. You don’t have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great. It doesn’t matter who you are, where you come from, or now. Give it everything you got, and you will succeed.
5. If you work harder than everyone else, believe you can do it, and never quit – you’ll be a winner.
6. A game is won or lost before it ever starts. And so it is with life.
7. The harder you work, the luckier you get. They can’t take away your spirit, passion, or love for the game. And that’s all real. That’s forever.
8. The secret to winning is to put yourself in a frame of mind that, no matter what happens, you’ll be able to deal with it. Then, anything can happen.
9. Today is the day! Do not let fear run your life—do what you were born to do.
10. Practice doesn’t make perfect. Perfect practice makes perfect.
11. Being vulnerable can be one of the hardest things an athlete will ever have to do and yet it can transform their life unlike anything else.
12. Stay calm and trust your instincts on game day. They’re more accurate than you think.
13. Get to know the sport, love the sport, and live the sport.
14. Your mental game is just as important as your physical conditioning if not more so.
15. To be the best, you’ve got to beat the best.
16. Breathe deep. Relax. Trust your training. And have fun!
17. Your mindset is more important than your physical ability.
18. You can’t win the race if you don’t start it. Start it.
19. The only thing that stands between you and greatness is the will to prepare.
20. You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.
21. If you want to achieve greatness, stop asking for permission.
22. Let today be the first day of the rest of your life. Let today be a new turning point.
23. Gameday. You’re ready. You’ve worked hard all week to be just as ready as possible. So treat yourself on game day to quality coffee that will energise you and give you the mental edge to own it today.
24. As you walk to the arena today, the feeling that every fibre of your being makes you want to go out there, play your hardest, and do something great.
25. If you are going through hell, keep going. Win the championship.
26. To play a sport, to send yourself into battle and to know you have done everything in your power to succeed is the essence of athleticism.
27. Set the game. Match the intensity. Then, outplay. Game. Set. Match. You got it.
28. It’s always darkest before dawn! Be ready to get up and perform tomorrow.
29. We see the finish line. It’s just how far away it looks, is all.
30. Winners never quit, quitters never win. Nothing worth having is easy, but you can enjoy the work involved in getting the prizes that you covet the most.
31. If you can’t run with the big dogs, stay on the porch. You must do the thing you think you cannot do.
32. Everyone has inside of them a piece of good news. You have to take the time to listen to it.
33. A goal is a dream with a deadline. Say this to yourself when you need a boost.
34. You are not human if you have never been nervous before a game. Work hard, be grateful, keep focused, and give it all you got!
35. Keep your head in the game, keep your heart in the right place, and go out there and perform.
36. In a game, quitting is never an option because you win it all or lose it all.
37. Keep going. Don’t look back, don’t worry about pretty, just run your race. It’s not a sprint, it’s a marathon.
38. Get up, get out, and keep going. You are still in the game and giving up is not an option.
39. The difference between a successful athlete and others is not a lack of strength, not knowledge but rather a lack of will.
40. The hardest thing about growth as an athlete is that you have to get used to being uncomfortable.
41. No matter what happens today, you’re a champion. You’re the champion of putting in your best effort.
42. Even though adversities come and go, you keep pushing yourself towards the finish line.
43. Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.
44. Work hard to be the best you can be. Accept the challenges so that you can feel the exhilaration of success.
45. I am not the voice in your head that says you can’t do something. I am the voice in the front of your head that says you can. And you know what that means, you can.
46. The only thing that can stop you is you. Believe in yourself.
47. It’s time to show the other team what you’re made of.
48. Whether you think you can or can’t, you’re right.
49. Those who think they have no time for bodily exercise will sooner or later have to find time for illness.
50. Toughness results from living in a state of constant pain.
51. Athletes, you are built for this. Get them.
52. The great thing about sports is watching your idols and learning their secrets. You can make enormous progress once you find someone whose path you would like to follow.
53. You’ll never win if you don’t run. You never strike out if you step up to the plate. You’ll never finish first if you don’t start.
54. Enjoy the journey. Success comes in its own time. The future belongs to those who believe in their dreams.
55. It’s not about how hard you train but how hard you are willing to fight on days when you don’t want to. It’s not about how many times you get knocked down; it’s about how many times you get back up.
56. You have to think about your legacy. You have to think about what you want people to remember when your career is over.
57. The harder the struggle, the more glorious the triumph.
58. The harder you work, the luckier you get.
59. I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.
60. The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is that little extra.
61. Game day! Our favourite thing to win is cheering for you. Let’s go!
62. Let today be the day you do everything to reach your true potential. Your work ethic will define you, and it’s up to you to make sure that it’s stronger than ever.
63. The best way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing.
64. If you want something, you’ll never reach it unless you’re willing to give up everything else.
65. Go for it. You’ll regret the things you didn’t do more than those you did, so go for it.
66. know you have been training hard, and the big day is here. Motivate yourself and get yourself in the right frame of mind to win.
67. Game day is about making incredible memories. Never forget that.
68. Play like you were born to do it. Count the days because they all matter. Do the right thing at the right time. Believe in yourself, and trust your instincts. Take pride in who you are and what you do.
69. All athletes know that sometimes the difference between winning and losing rests in the details. Whatever your sport, you have to stay focused and be ready for anything. Real success is all about the mental game, and a powerful quote can help keep your eyes on the prize.
70. Be confident and ready to push yourself to the limit!
71. Successful athletes know the importance of focusing on what they can control.
72. An athlete is given two choices: win or lose. You’ve got to win, you need to win and you will win!
73. You can control your future. You can control your destiny. And most of all, you can control what you become by your actions.
74. Don’t be afraid to fail, don’t quit when you fail. Remember that every opportunity has a price tag, and it’s up to you to find out what that is and pay it if it’s worth it.
75. You are the only person who can get in your way.
76. It’s the little details that are vital. Little things make big things happen.
77. In life, there is no such thing as failure. There is only temporary defeat. During a game, your attitude should be to persevere and give everything you have in each moment.
78. You have to play hurt. You have to play sick. It’s all about will.
79. When you want to elevate your game, you don’t work harder; you work smarter.
80. If you’ve been brave enough to begin, you’ve already won. Go out there and crush it.
81. You’re not born a champion; you grow into one.
82. They say the bigger they are, the harder they fall. That’s never been truer than for the athletes on this list who let their overconfidence catch them.
83. It’s not whether or not you get knocked down, it’s whether or not you get up.
84. We are made to persist, to keep pushing forward no matter what.
85. You must expect great things of yourself before doing them.
86. When you’re in the arena, it’s not about cheering for me. It’s about being on my side. Get that win.
87. Let him win who has worked hard. Let him win. Who knows the challenges that victory is greater than defeat.
88. Today is the day to envision, achieve, and celebrate. Go out there, and show what you’re made of!
89. Within the heart of every competitor lies the hope that they will someday experience something that they have never experienced before, and when they do, they will be truly happy.
90. Today is the day. Today is the only day that matters. Your entire life has led up to this moment, so make it count.
91. To maintain your confidence under pressure, you must develop a strong belief in yourself and your ability to succeed in the face of any challenge.
92. About 40% of your performance is controlled by your emotions. You can’t control the outcome of an event (I.e. winning the big game), but you can control how you feel about it.
93. You’ll never escape the intensity of competition from others. So what do you do? You can win against yourself. And then the true champions are re-born.
94. Gameday is a lot like a first date. The pressure’s on, you’re not sure what to expect, and you’re more focused on how you look than how you play. But at the end of the night, it doesn’t matter if things go perfectly; all that matters is how much fun you had.
95. You’ve practised a thousand reps, endured gruelling training, and crafted your body into the perfect athletic machine—then you have to settle for reading tweets during pregame?
96. Your body is capable of amazing things. Let’s see what you can do on the field or track.
97. When you’re up against the tough competition, put your best foot forward and work hard.
98. Go for it all. You only have this one shot in this game, so make it count.
99. Today is an opportunity to prove yourself. In the arena, you either win, or you learn.
100. While the rest of the world is sleeping, they prepare to dominate. It’s not worked for them; it’s a privilege to get to this level.
101. You only have to do three things to win: show up, show up, show up.
102. Champions don’t do extraordinary things. They do ordinary things, but they do them without thinking.
103. The game begins on Friday. Be ready to dominate.
104. Today is a winner. That’s the only way you can play it. Whether you win or lose, you’re still going to be the same person tomorrow.
Whether a professional or amateur athlete, keeping your mindset right is important. You’ve trained hard for the big game; you should be mentally ready for it. These words of wisdom for athletes will inspire, motivate and encourage you to reach your full potential.
I hope you find them inspirational, and on your next game day, play well and give it all you’ve got!
