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“Is It Realistic?”: A Qualitative Study of the Experiences of Elite Women Athletes Considering Parenthood

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Abstract

Background and Objective

As the visibility and acceptance of athlete-mothers increase, so does the number of women athletes considering parenthood. Yet, many athletes struggle with the decision to become a parent while competing at the elite level due to the significant changes and uncertainties that have been reported by pregnant and parenting athletes. The experiences of women athletes considering parenthood are under-represented in the vast sport literature but are necessary for developing evidenced-based policies and practices that can support women’s equitable participation in high-performance sport contexts. Thus, the purpose of this qualitative study was to describe the experiences of elite women athletes that are considering parenthood.

Methods

Participants were ten elite North American athletes (29–36 years) who are considering becoming parents in the next 5 years. Each participant self-identified as a woman and competed at the highest level in their respective sport. Data were generated via one-on-one semi-structured interviews that were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed through a process of content analysis.

Results

The experiences of elite women athletes considering parenthood are represented by five themes: (a) calls for essential mandates and leadership, (b) how do you support yourself?, (c) hesitation of body changes, (d) age inequities, and (e) being proactive about reproductive health. Such findings support an in-depth understanding of gender-specific stressors that limit women’s equitable participation in high-performance contexts.

Conclusion

This research is grounded in the voices of elite women athletes and identifies actionable steps necessary for research and culture change. Findings provide necessary evidence to inform the development of sport policies to support those athletes that are considering becoming parents.

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Notes

  1. Sex and gender are distinct and non-binary concepts, yet the terms are often conflated in the sport and exercise research literature [6]. Consistent with Cowan et al., we use the more "inclusive terms of women and men" wherever possible in this paper. When reporting specific quotes by participants, we reported the specific terms that they used.

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Acknowledgements

The authors wish to thank the individuals who participated in this study.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Program for Pregnancy and Postpartum Health, Physical Activity and Diabetes Laboratory, Faculty of Kinesiology, Sport and Recreation, Women and Children’s Health Research Institute, Alberta Diabetes Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada

    Margie H. Davenport

  2. Faculty of Kinesiology, Sport and Recreation, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada

    Autumn Nesdoly, Lauren Ray & Tara-Leigh F. McHugh

  3. Departments of Medicine and Obstetrics and Gynecology, Women and Children’s Health Research Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada

    Rshmi Khurana

  4. Fowler Kennedy Sports Medicine Clinic, Department of Family Medicine, Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, Canada

    Jane Thornton

  5. Department of Epidemiology, and Biostatistics, Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, Canada

    Jane Thornton

Authors
  1. Margie H. Davenport
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  2. Autumn Nesdoly
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  3. Lauren Ray
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  4. Rshmi Khurana
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  5. Jane Thornton
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  6. Tara-Leigh F. McHugh
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Margie H. Davenport.

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Funding

This manuscript draws on research supported by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, and a Kinesiology Sport, and Recreation Sport Research Grant. M.H.D. is supported by the Christenson Professorship in Active Healthy Living. J.T. is supported by a Canada Research Chair in Injury Prevention and Physical Activity for Health. Study data were collected and managed using REDCap electronic data capture tools hosted and supported by the Women and Children’s Health Research Institute at the University of Alberta.

Conflict of Interest

Margie H Davenport, Lauren Ray, Autumn Nesdoly, Jane Thornton, Rshmi Khurana, and Tara-Leigh F. McHugh declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Data Availability

The generated and analyzed data in the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

Compliance with Ethical Standards

This study was approved by the University of Alberta Institutional Research Ethics Board (PRO00104326, 1 June 2020). Participants gave informed consent after reading an information sheet about the study. The study complied with the latest guidelines set out in the Declaration of Helsinki, apart from registration in a publicly accessible database.

Author Contributions

M.H.D., T.L.M., J.T., and R.K. conceived and designed the project. A.N. and L.R. conducted the interviews, A.N., L.R., T.L.M., and M.H.D. analyzed the data and drafted the manuscript. All authors interpreted the data, revised, and approved the final version of the manuscript.

Consent to Participate

Participants provided written, informed consent.

Consent for Publication

Not applicable.

Code Availability

Not applicable.

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Davenport, M.H., Nesdoly, A., Ray, L. et al. “Is It Realistic?”: A Qualitative Study of the Experiences of Elite Women Athletes Considering Parenthood. Sports Med (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-024-02019-y

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