When Failure Is Not an Option: Creating Excellence in Sport Through Insights From Special Forces

soldier in combat is presented with a more challenging activity for the human brain. Both sport and combat require physical preparation, mental focus, and emotional control. While success in sport can result in social recognition, financial gain, and a sense of selfachievement, success for elite soldiers is linked to achieving mission objectives while at the same time remaining functional and avoiding casualties. Given the demands placed on elite soldiers, the high-stress environment in which they perform, the intense training and selection processes they endure, and ultimately the consequences of failure, it is highly likely that the elite sport community can benefit from under standing different aspects of selecting and preparing Special Forces soldiers. At the very least, a comparison of these 2 elite groups may help us understand characteristics that may exemplify excellence. There are a number of similarities between Special Forces (SF) soldiers and elite athletes with respect to physiological character