Psychological insights into school-age Greek rowers at Interscholastic Regatta: a cross-sectional study

The PanHellenic Interscholastic Regatta presents a unique competitive environment for adolescent rowers, combining athletic performance with university admission bonus points. This dual-pressure context may influence athletes' psychological states, particularly competitive anxiety, self-confidence, and motivational orientation.

A total of 132 school-age rowers (66 males, 66 females; aged 15-18 years) competing at the Panhellenic Interscholastic Regatta participated in the study. Athletes completed validated Greek versions of the Competitive State Anxiety Inventory-II (CSAI-II) and the Task and Ego Orientation in Sport Questionnaire (TEOSQ) approximately 30-60 min before competition. Differences across age groups were examined using ANCOVA with previous experience as covariate, while the relationship between the CSAI-II constructs and TEOSQ was assessed with point-biserial correlation coefficient.

Overall levels of anxiety and self-confidence were comparable to those reported in similar youth sport populations. No significant differences were observed between age groups in cognitive anxiety, somatic anxiety, or self-confidence (p > 0.05), regardless of accounting for prior experience. Goal orientation was not significantly associated with cognitive anxiety or self-confidence; however, a small-to-moderate significant negative relationship was found between task orientation and somatic anxiety (r = -0.18, p < 0.05), indicating that more task-oriented athletes experienced lower physiological symptoms of anxiety.

School-age rowers competing in the Panhellenic Interscholastic Regatta demonstrated no differences in their psychological profiles across age groups, potentially due to prior competitive experience and similar sport exposure. Task-oriented motivation appears to have a weak-to-moderate relationship with somatic anxiety. These findings provide some information from an original and unexplored context on how to support young athletes in such environments.