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Balancing risk-taking and self-care: The ecology of athlete health behaviour during the Olympic qualification phase
Institute of Sociology and Gender Studies, German Sport University, Cologne, Germany; University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden.ORCID iD: 0000-0001-8436-7149
University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden.ORCID iD: 0000-0002-6170-3207
Örebro University, School of Health Sciences.ORCID iD: 0000-0002-3918-7904
University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden.
2023 (English)In: International Review for the Sociology of Sport, ISSN 1012-6902, E-ISSN 1461-7218, Vol. 58, no 8, p. 1326-1348Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

Athletes who aim to qualify for the Olympic Games need to stay healthy. Research demonstrates, however, that many elite athletes take health risks to achieve sporting success. Drawing on social ecological thinking, the purpose of this study is to understand change in athlete health behaviour during the Olympic Games qualification phase. We draw on data from a six-month-long case study on four athletes who aimed to qualify for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio. We used semi-structured interviews and weekly-online surveys to collect data. Olympic hopefuls engaged in both risky health behaviour, such as ‘competing while injured’, and in self-caring health behaviour, such as ‘balanced dietary management’. Risk-taking was encouraged by a habit of taking pain medication, insufficient medical support, and time pressure to qualify. Awareness for self-care, a trusting coach-athlete relationship, and a well-rounded athlete support programme were factors that promoted self-care. Conceptually, we found that athlete health behaviour is dynamic and ecological, that is, it is relational to personal, contextual, and temporal factors. Based on the findings, we advise Olympic hopefuls to surround themselves with people who support caring health behaviour, and that sport organisations and stakeholders adopt long-term planning and implement policies of care.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Sage Publications, 2023. Vol. 58, no 8, p. 1326-1348
Keywords [en]
Ecological systems theory, Olympic sport, health behaviour, self-care, qualitative longitudinal research
National Category
Sport and Fitness Sciences
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:oru:diva-105861DOI: 10.1177/10126902231168098ISI: 000974268800001Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-85153593701OAI: oai:DiVA.org:oru-105861DiVA, id: diva2:1755249
Note

Funding agency:

Swedish Research Council for Sport Science P2017-0026

Available from: 2023-05-07 Created: 2023-05-07 Last updated: 2025-02-11Bibliographically approved

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Barker-Ruchti, Natalie

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