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Should the strongest be the last? Strategic choice of ordering in sports relays

Author

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  • Avkhimovich, N.

    (HSE University, Moscow, Russia)

Abstract

In this paper, we analyse the strategic order of athletes in sports relays. It is generally believed that the strongest athlete should perform the last. In sports, 'choking under pressure' is a major phenomenon that manifests in athletes' performance decrement when faced the stressful conditions. We focus on the pressure the athletes experience when their team is lagging behind the competitor in accuracy-based relays. In theoretical models, we found that choking under pressure has an impact on strategic decisions on team formation when teams consist of players with differentiated skills. Without 'choking under pressure', teams are indifferent to athletes' order. If all athletes experience the same magnitude of performance decrements, the strictly dominant strategy is: a stronger athlete starts and a weaker athlete finishes the race. For the case of differentiated performance decrements, we find the optimal strategy as a function of those decrements. The conventional wisdom strategy "Weaker to start, stronger to finish" is strictly dominant only when the resilience of a strong player is high enough and the performance decrement is much lower than a weak player's.

Suggested Citation

  • Avkhimovich, N., 2024. "Should the strongest be the last? Strategic choice of ordering in sports relays," Journal of the New Economic Association, New Economic Association, vol. 62(1), pages 31-48.
    • Handle: RePEc:nea:journl:y:2024:i:62:p:31-48
    DOI: 10.31737/22212264_2024_1_31-48
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Klein Teeselink, Bouke & Potter van Loon, Rogier J.D. & van den Assem, Martijn J. & van Dolder, Dennie, 2020. "Incentives, performance and choking in darts," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 169(C), pages 38-52.
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    3. Cohen-Zada, Danny & Krumer, Alex & Rosenboim, Mosi & Shapir, Offer Moshe, 2017. "Choking under pressure and gender: Evidence from professional tennis," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 61(C), pages 176-190.
    4. Daniel C. Hickman & Craig Kerr & Neil Metz, 2019. "Rank and Performance in Dynamic Tournaments: Evidence From the PGA Tour," Journal of Sports Economics, , vol. 20(4), pages 509-534, May.
    5. Zheng Cao & Joseph Price & Daniel F. Stone, 2011. "Performance Under Pressure in the NBA," Journal of Sports Economics, , vol. 12(3), pages 231-252, June.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    choking under pressure; relay races; strategic athletes' ordering; team formation;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C61 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Mathematical Methods; Programming Models; Mathematical and Simulation Modeling - - - Optimization Techniques; Programming Models; Dynamic Analysis
    • C70 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Game Theory and Bargaining Theory - - - General
    • L83 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Services - - - Sports; Gambling; Restaurants; Recreation; Tourism

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