Sports

Coco Gauff manifested a Grand Slam title at the French Open. Or did she?

Published

5 months ago

August 7, 2025

Editor’s Note: This story is part of Peak, The Athletic’s desk covering leadership, personal development and success through the lens of sports. Follow Peak here.

The idea came from an Olympic gold medalist, and the ritual didn’t take long, so on the night before the 2025 French Open final, Coco Gauff pulled out a pen and a small piece of paper.

“I will win French Open 2025,” she scribbled.

Then she kept writing.

“I will win French Open 2025”

When she ran out of paper, she’d filled up eight lines.

Gauff had borrowed the technique from Gabby Thomas, the American sprinter who spent every morning at the Paris Olympics writing a similar intention in the Notes app on her phone: “I will be Olympic champion.”

To Gauff, it reminded her of something she’d discussed with her therapist. She’d always had an inclination for self-doubt, for negative thoughts that creep in before matches. Instead of ignoring them, her therapist wondered, what if she re-directed them?

“Instead of being like, ‘What if I lose?’” Gauff explained on “Good Morning America” earlier this year. “Think about, ‘What if I win?’ Or, ‘I will win.’”

In the parlance of Gen Z, there was an easy way to describe what Gauff was doing. She was manifesting; at least, that’s how some saw it. It was an old idea that resurfaced during the pandemic and caught fire online, resulting in a TikTok trend of “vision boards,” where people illustrated their end goals with images, or “scripting,” the practice of writing down your goals and desires over and over.

The concept of manifestation gained popularity in the 2000s, when the self-help book “The Secret” promoted the Law of Attraction, an idea that positive thoughts bring forth positive results. In reality, it was a repurposed version of the ancient theory of karma, or the belief that good deeds will lead to positive outcomes.

When it came to the French Open, the outcome gave rise to an alluring idea: Gauff had defeated Aryna Sabalenka to win her second Grand Slam title through sheer force of will and positive thinking. She had, as the phrase went, spoken her win into existence.

But was that right?

Researchers have long cautioned there is no scientific basis for the idea of manifesting. “Magical thinking,” said Elliot Berkman, a psychology professor at the University of Oregon who studies motivation and behavior change.

But athletes are a fascinating cohort. They follow unusual routines. They lean on superstition and positive self-talk to increase confidence and belief.

“When you’re desperate,” Gauff told reporters, “you’re just trying anything to think that it’s going to help you win.”

The law of attraction will not carry an athlete to victory on pure positive vibes, psychologists say, but there are actual scientific reasons why writing down your intentions and goals — why saying, “I will win” — could offer a genuine performance benefit.

A 2017 study by researchers at the University of Toronto showed that utilizing a ritual before performance can reduce anxiety and help an athlete rebound from failure. Another sport psychology professor says that writing down a simple intention can be powerful if the athlete then imagines what winning would look and feel like, which activates the same part of the brain used during performance, a concept known as functional equivalence.

“You’re still activating those neural pathways that you would in the real world,” said Alan Chu, an associate professor at the UNC Greensboro.

Studies have long shown that people who write down their goals are more likely to achieve them. One explanation is what psychologists call the “Generation effect,” which indicates that people are more likely to remember information that they’ve actively produced rather than passively consumed.

There is also no shortage of athletes who spent their formative years writing down their goals on paper. Michael Phelps, the legendary Olympic swimmer, would list his goals, then post the paper in a closet, where only he could see it. Emmitt Smith, the NFL’s all-time leading rusher, started writing down his goals in high school, adhering to a message passed on from his coach: “It’s a dream until you write it down; then it becomes a goal.”

It was a similar sentiment to one repeated by former MLB outfielder Ichiro Suzuki when he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in late July.

“Dreaming is fun, but goals are difficult and challenging,” Suzuki said. “It’s not enough to say I want to do something. If you are serious about it, you must think critically about what is necessary to achieve it.”

Suzuki’s message underlined the main flaw in the Law of Attraction doctrine. Berkman, the Oregon professor, says that research has shown that dwelling on the end result is often counterproductive in pursuing a goal.

“I think it is actually fairly intuitive why that doesn’t work,” he said. “Like, if I want to get from here to Kathmandu, just thinking about being in Kathmandu is not going to get me there.”

But for Thomas and Gauff, the act of writing down their intention was less about outlining a goal or a behavior change, and more about putting them in the right mindset to compete. In this way, the process of writing the same intention over and over may have yielded a different effect, one that increased their resilience.

In 2017, Nick Hobson, then a research psychologist at the University of Toronto, published a study that found that people who used a ritual before completing a task had less of a neurological response in the brain when they made an error.

The explanation is fairly simple: The part of the brain associated with failure, called the anterior cingulate cortex, possesses something akin to an “oh s— signal,” Hobson said.

When a person uses a ritual before performance, it dampens the signal.

“You’re going to make a mistake in any performance context,” Hobson said. “So how do you trick your brain — your behavior — to say, ‘I just made an error. That’s OK. Let’s slow down so that you prevent the occurrence of a subsequent error?’ I think that’s what rituals do. It makes the sting of a failure less aversive.”

Chu, the professor at UNC Greensboro, says there may be an even better way for an athlete to lift themselves up through positive self talk. Some research has suggested that athletes may get an even bigger dopamine boost by talking to themselves in the second person.

“Using the word ‘you’ sometimes could be more helpful than using the word ‘I’,” Chu said. “Because you are almost feeling like you’re hearing that voice from a third party.”

For Gauff, the post-match explanation of her mental strategy was almost beside the point.

As she scribbled on a piece of paper and looked in the mirror, she wasn’t sure if it would work or not. But for one day, it did.

That was enough.

(Illustration: Dan Goldfarb / The Athletic; Yanshan Zhang / Getty Images)

Link

Sports

Jenkins Signs Two Power Four Transfers to 2026 Class

Published

15 minutes ago

December 23, 2025

Your Sports Nation

CHARLOTTE – Charlotte Volleyball Head Coach Benavia Jenkins has announced the signings of two power four conference transfers in Harper Hall (Setter) and Gia McGrew (Outside Hitter) on Tuesday (Dec. 23). Hall transfers to Charlotte from Oklahoma while McGrew comes by way of Iowa.

Hall is set to enter her third year of college volleyball, spending her freshman season at USCB where she registered seven double-doubles appearing in all 30 matches. She led the team with 649 assists, 245 digs, and averaged 5.74 assists per set. During her sophomore season at Oklahoma, Hall eclipsed the 1,000 career assist milestone with a season-high 31 assists coming in a win at Missouri.

A graduate of Highland Park High School in Texas, Hall was a three-year letter winner and three-time district champion. She was named Newcomer of the Year in her conference and earned First Team All-District honors. Throughout her high school career, she accumulated over 2,500 assists and was named the District Setter of the Year. Hall garnered Texas Girls Coaches Association All-State honors and played club volleyball for the nationally ranked TAV Black.

“I chose Charlotte because of the coaching staff, beautiful campus, and the great culture,” said Hall. “I’m excited to be a part of a team that is in a great position to pursue a championship.”

McGrew tallied 51 kills, 15 total blocks, and 12 digs in 13 matches played during her freshman season at Iowa. Her best performance came in a win over Maryland when she finished with five blocks. A graduate of Santa Fe High School, McGrew impressed as team MVP and first team all-conference in 2023, followed by serving as team captain in 2024 finishing her senior season with 322 kills. She helped lead her team to the Oklahoma 5A state championship in 2022.

On the AAU Circuit, McGrew was a 2024 Nationals Premier Division National Champion and MVP. In 2021, she was an invitee to the USA Volleyball National Team Development Program and was named to the USA Girls Junior National Championship All-Tournament Team.

“The family atmosphere within the program is special,” said McGrew. “Along with that, I chose Charlotte because of the amazing coaching staff and the beautiful location.”

Link

Sports

Penn State Women’s Volleyball Falls Out Of AVCA Polls

Published

32 minutes ago

December 23, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Penn State women’s volleyball has fallen out of the AVCA Polls for the first time since 1988, breaking a 565-week streak.

The Nittany Lions finished with 82 points in the poll, 25 behind No. 25 BYU. Their season ended with a record of 19-13, falling to Texas 0-3 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

Penn State fell out of the polls for the first time since the final poll of 1988, breaking a streak of 565 straight weeks.

The Nittany Lions (19-13) finished with 82 points in the poll, 25 behind No. 25 BYU.

— Lincoln Arneal (@Lincoln_VB) December 22, 2025

Kennedy Martin led the Big Ten in points per set (6.22), kills per set (5.42), and tallied 634 kills and over 700 points. Her former Florida teammate, Alexis Stucky, will join her next season as the Nittany Lions’ setter.

Setter Addie Lyon, middle blockers Maggie Mendelson and Jordan Hopp, and libero Gillian Grimes graduate, and Coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley will look to fill their notable shoes in the upcoming season.

The program will look ahead toward its ninth national championship, hopeful to repeat its stellar 2024 season.

Please choose an option below.

Karlee is a freshman majoring in Broadcast Journalism. She is from Schuylkill Haven, PA. She loves all things sports and is a big Luka Doncic fan! You can follow her on Instagram and X @karleefeger or email her at [email protected]

Link

Sports

MEAC Announces Burgin as Bowler of the Week For Nov. 2-9

Published

48 minutes ago

December 23, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Women’s Bowling | 12/23/2025 11:52:00 AM

GREENSBORO – The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) announced this week that North Carolina A&T junior bowler Savannah Burgin was the winner of the MEAC Bowler of the Week award for competition held November 2-9.

The tournament Burgin won her first-ever weekly award for was MEAC Meet #1, where Burgin helped the Aggies finish the meet at 5-2, claiming a share of first place. The North Carolina A&T bowling team’s bounce-back performance on Sunday at the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Meet #1, hosted by Morgan State University at AMF Towson Lanes, should make February in Norfolk, Va., fascinating.

After going 2-2 on Saturday and falling behind the Delaware State and Coppin State teams, who went 4-0, the Aggies won all three of their Baker-format matches on Sunday to end the weekend at 5-2.

Now, the five-time defending MEAC champions will enter MEAC Meet #2, scheduled for February 21-22 in Norfolk, Va., tied for the conference lead with the Delaware State Hornets, the 23rd-ranked team in the nation. A&T will have the total pins advantage after a 6,564 total pinfall over the weekend, averaging 187.5 over 35 games played.

The UAB Blazers had the second-highest total pinfall at 6,276, followed by Morgan State at 6,084. A&T looked super impressive on Sunday, totaling 2,877 pins for an average of 191.8 over 15 games bowled.

Burgin finished first in average per frame (20.16) and Baker fill percentage, while also leading the field in overall fill percentage (80.6 percent). She ranked second in overall spare percentage at 74.2 percent. The Aggies will head into 2026, and the spring semester of the season ranked 13th in the latest National Tenpin Coaches Association (NTCA) poll released on December 9.

The Aggies received 895 points, falling from seventh to 13th. Jacksonville State is the No. 1 ranked team in the country, followed by Vanderbilt, Arkansas State, Nebraska, and Louisiana Tech in the top 5. Burgin and the Aggies open the second half of the season at the Northeastern Classic hosted by Sacred Heart in New Castle, Del. The Aggies are 29-17 overall.

Link

Sports

Volleyball Announces Addition of Reese Dunkle to Roster

Published

1 hour ago

December 23, 2025

Your Sports Nation

CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. – Boston College volleyball head coach Jason Kennedy announced the addition of middle blocker Reese Dunkle, a transfer student from Stanford University, to the Eagles’ roster.

The Eagles previously announced a six-player recruiting class last month.

Reese Dunkle, Middle Blocker, Greenwood, Ind.

One year member of Stanford VB

A 2025 graduate of Center Grove High School in Greenwood, Ind.

Four-year letterwinner, captained her team as a junior and senior

Regional champions (2024)

Four-time Sectional champions (2021, 2022, 2023, 2024)

Four-time County champions (2021, 2022, 2023, 2024)

AVCA All-America honorable mention (2024)

AVCA All-Region (2024)

AVCA Best and Brightest (2024)

County Player of the Year (2024)

Indiana Girls Volleyball Player of the Year finalist (2024)

Two-time All-State (2023, 2024)

Three-time All-District (2022, 2023, 2024)

Three-time All-County (2022, 2023, 2024)

All-County honorable mention (2021)

Indiana Senior All-Star (2024)

Indiana Junior All-Star (2023)

Team MVP (2023)

First Team Academic All-State (2024)

Holds high school’s record for blocks (486)

Played club for Circle City

“Reese adds to a strong presence in the middle for us for the next several years,” says Kennedy. “She’s quick laterally and can close well to either pin and we’re excited to get her in the gym this spring and get to work.

Link

Sports

Kiki Granberry Signs with Volleyball Program

Published

2 hours ago

December 23, 2025

Your Sports Nation

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Veteran middle blocker Kiki Granberry, who has four years of college experience under her belt, will join the Indiana volleyball program for the 2026 season. Head coach Steve Aird made the signing official on Tuesday (Dec. 23) morning. Granberry will enroll for the spring semester in January.

“Our program is thrilled to add Kiki to the roster,” Aird said. “She brings a mix of experience and skill to the table, along with a personality that meshes so well with our team. Our goal is to continue to build on a fantastic season and adding a player of this caliber is a great step in that direction. We have a group that is physical, tough and proud to represent IU. I am positive that Kiki will have a tremendous impact on the group, compete like crazy and develop into a pro that will thrive at the next level.”

Granberry spent the last four seasons at Tennessee where she was one of the nation’s most efficient offensive forces. In her time on Rocky Top, Granberry was a career .376 hitter (509-134-997). During her junior campaign in 2024, she hit .455 with 189 kills and just 36 attacking errors and finished second in the country in hitting percentage.

The 6-foot-3 native of Florida will join a deep and talented collection of middle blockers in Bloomington. Current freshman middle blocker Victoria Gray hit .378 with 152 kills and 106 blocks in her debut season. Sophomore middle blocker Ella Boersema was the conference’s leading blocker (1.40 per set) before a season-ending injury in October. Collectively, IU’s four middle blockers for next year have a career hitting percentage of .366.

Granberry was one of Tennessee’s best blockers during her career in Knoxville. She recorded 314 blocks in four seasons including over 100 in each of her first two years. She had a career-high 11 blocks in a contest against Western Kentucky in 2024. Her career high in kills (14) came against Elon in 2022.

She will have one year of eligibility in 2026 after taking a medical redshirt last season. She played in just three matches in 2025 but finished her time in Knoxville as the second-most efficient hitter (.376) in program history. Granberry was a 2022 SEC All-Freshman Team member and a 2024 AVCA South All-Region Team selection.

Granberry will wear the 77 jersey for the Hoosiers, becoming the first player in program history to wear the number. She graduated from Tennessee with an undergraduate degree in Journalism and Electronic Media this December. She will join the Hoosiers for the beginning of spring practice in January.

Link

Sports

David Nguyen named head coach of North Dakota volleyball program

Published

2 hours ago

December 23, 2025

Your Sports Nation

GRAND FORKS, N.D. – University of North Dakota Director of Athletics Bill Chaves announced on Tuesday, December 23, 2025 that David Nguyen (pronounced WIN) has been named the 15th head coach of the North Dakota volleyball program..

“We are tremendously excited to announce David as our next head coach of UND volleyball,” said Chaves. “What he has been able to do at FDU was nothing short of remarkable in such a short amount of time. To be a two-time NEC Coach of the Year and leading the Knights into the NCAA tournament for the first time in their history is something that he and we believe can be replicated at UND.”

Nguyen comes to North Dakota following a successful run as the head coach at Division I Fairleigh Dickinson, where he helped the Knights set multiple program highs in his four years. He guided the Knights to their first NCAA Tournament appearance and captured both the 2022 NEC Tournament Championship and the 2023 regular season title, each a program first.

“I am excited and honored to be selected as the next head coach at UND,” said Nguyen. “I would like to thank Director of Athletics Bill Chaves, Deputy Director of Athletics Erik Martinson and the entire search committee for having the confidence in me to lead the volleyball program into future success.”

His leadership helped claim the program’s first 20-win season in the modern era and earned him back-to-back NEC Coach of the Year honors in 2022 and 2023. Under his direction, FDU reached three consecutive NEC Tournament finals and four straight conference semifinals.

“My mission is to provide our student-athletes a first-class experience by being competitive on-and-off the court,” Nguyen continued. “We are going to work together to build a legacy our student-athletes, alumni, fans and donors can be proud of. I am excited to take this next step in my career, and I look forward to building a volleyball family at North Dakota.”

His teams produced the NEC Player of the Year, an AVCA All-American, nine all-conference selections and multiple all-tournament honorees. The Knights also recorded the four winningest conference seasons in school history during his tenure.

Nguyen brings more than a decade of Division I experience, including assistant coaching roles at Coastal Carolina and William & Mary, as well as an operations role at Virginia and a student position at Virginia Commonwealth.

Nguyen holds a Bachelor of Science in Mathematical Sciences from Virginia Commonwealth University. He will be introduced to the media at a later date.

THE DAVID NGYUEN FILE

Position: Head Coach

Hometown: Glen Allen, Va.

Education: Virginia Commonwealth (2018)

Family: David and his wife, Kaylin, have two children

CAREER IN VOLLEYBALL

AS A COACH

2022-25: Fairleigh Dickinson (Head Coach)

2021-22: Coastal Carolina (Assistant Coach)

2019-21: William & Mary (Assistant Coach)

2018-19: Virginia (Director of Operations)

2013-18: Virginia Commonwealth (Manager)