As Red from The Shawshank Redemption found out, life can be tough on the outside world. Olympic athletes have learned the same thing, as the NEW YORK TIMES reports that many of them have trouble adjusting to life outside of athletics. (Which is not to compare Olympians to convicted criminals - except maybe for Michael Phelps, or Marion Jones, or…) The story quotes noted sports psychologist Charlie Brown from FPS Performance as saying that the post-Olympics can be “a very fragile situation” for many elite athletes.

First off, a sports psychologist named Charlie Brown? Are you serious? I’m sure he can help you overcome any problem, as long as it doesn’t involve any of the following: Kicking a football before some shrill harpy pulls it away; Getting over the embarrassment of having your uniform, shoes & socks be knocked off by a comebacker up the middle; Or anything to do with rafting.

But I digress. Read more…