Author(s): RUSNAKOVA, K., HARBICHOVA, I.1, STEHLIK, M.2, KOMARC, M.1, Institution: FACULTY OF PHYSICAL EDUCATION AND SPORT, CHARLES UNIVERSITY, Country: CZECH REPUBLIC, Abstract-ID: 1820

Introduction
High training stress is known to precipitate overtraining and performance decline, yet the nuanced impact of gender differences among athletes remain underexplored. The motivational climate created by the coach can contribute to negative psychological outcomes, including stress and overtraining. Understanding gender differences in how athletes perceive training stress and the impact of motivational climate can help in devising more effective strategies. The aim of this study is to investigate gender differences in perceived training stress and examine their relationships with the motivational climate.
Methods
A total of 178 athletes, aged between 18 to 30 years who are actively engaged in competitive sports across diverse disciplines, participated in the online survey. This survey consisted of standardized instruments such as the Training Distress Scale to assess athletes psychological and physical symptoms and the Empowering and Disempowering Motivational Climate Questionnaire-Coach for assessing the athletes perceptions of the motivational environment created by their coach.
Results
Female athletes reported higher levels of training stress compared to male athletes. Specifically, female athletes exhibited elevated scores in 16 out of 19 overtraining symptoms assessed than male athletes. Statistically significant differences were noted in the overall perception of symptoms, particularly in symptoms like "not being able to remember things" and " a quick temper“ . Furthermore, an elevated incidence of overtraining symptoms was associated with an ego-involved motivational climate for both genders (female r = 0.25, male r = 0.27). For female athletes, a controlling coaching climate was also associated with a higher prevalence of overtraining symptoms (r = 0.26), highlighting the role of coaching style in athlete well-being.
Discussion
The observed higher incidence of overtraining in female athletes compared to male athletes emphasizes the importance of gender-specific vulnerabilities in the context of overtraining. While the social dimension of overtraining seems to be significant for all elite athletes regardless of gender, the connection between overtraining and a disempowering motivational climate is somewhat more noticeable in female athletes. This association suggests that the nature of the coaching climate, especially aspects that undermine the autonomy and competence of athletes, can disproportionately affect female athletes and contribute to greater training stress. The results of this investigation underscore the need for gender-sensitive approaches in training practices to mitigate the risk of overtraining and optimize the well-being and performance of athletes.

This work was supported by the following projects: GAUK no. 165023, COOP SPOS and GAČR 23-02573S.