Effect of Quran recitation on the level of anxiety in athletics

Aims: anxiety is a kind of agitation and apprehension which is caused under the influence of the threat or danger feeling in individuals. anxiety in athletes can reduce the optimum performance. according to the islamic religious doctrines, spiritual relationship with god comforts the hearts and prevent from the anxiety. the aim of this study was to investigate the effect of hearing the holy quran lilt on the athlete's competitive anxiety. methods: this research was a quasi-experimental (randomized cohort) study. samples of the study were 80 female students studied in gonabad university of medical sciences who were attending the sporting events. data collection tools were of personal information and marten's competitive anxiety questionnaires. first, the anxiety of all subjects in the control and experimental group was determined before the tournaments. then, on the race day, about an hour before holding, for 15 min the quran's lilt was broadcast for experimental group that had been gathered in a hall, and finally 15 minutes before the competition outset, the anxiety questionnaire was distributed among subjects and collected after completion. results: the mean anxiety score of the experimental and control groups before the intervention were 20.3±2.68 and 20.7±1.6 respectively and after the intervention were 17.5±1.02 and 20.2±1.87, respectively. significant difference was not observed between the mean score of the experimental and control groups before the intervention but after intervention, there was a significant difference (p=0.02). conclusion: reading [of] and listening to the quran verses is a simple, effective, affordable, accessible and most importantly drug free method to reduce anxiety in athletes before competition.