The aim of the study was to identify the intensity and influence of emotions that occur during the competitive period of National Children’s Championships and verifying the gender differences in the observed emotions. Eighty-nine young swimmers of both sexes participated, and were evaluated by the Questionnaire on Emotions in Sports Performance (EQSP – Portuguese version). Pearson's correlation revealed mutual dependenciesin Intensity and Influence of Anger, Anxiety, Fear, Sadness, Pride and Love emotions (p≤0.05). In the gender analysis there were no significant differences in swimmers. It was concluded that emotions are an important factor in sports performance, which are happening throughout the competition and depending on each individual and each sport context. There should be an intervention to apply emotional control strategies to young athletes, and thus benefit their daily practice.
