Becoming a mother-athlete

female athletes' transition to motherhood in Slovenia

Janja Tekavc (Author), Paul Wylleman (Author), Saša Cecić Erpič (Author)

Abstract

Perceptions of incompatibility of sport and motherhood still exist within both sport and family Slovene cultures. For many female athletes starting a family means an end of their athletic careers. However, some women decide to pursue their athletic life after they become mothers. While recent media interest in mother-athletes has increased significantly, scientific research focusing on this topic is still scarce. The purpose of this study was to explore the transition of Slovene female athletes into motherhood and their experiences of combining motherhood with competitive sport. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight female elite athletes, who became mothers during their elite level competitive career. The results of the study revealed that mother-athletes perceived this transition as a long-term process in which motherhood and elite sport had a reciprocal effect on each other. Three transition phases characterized by changes in the participants’ holistic development were identified: (1) pre-pregnancy and pregnancy, (2) returning to competitive sport, and (3) living the life of a mother-athlete.

Keywords

šport;ženske;otroci;starši;matere;športniki;športna kariera;sport;women;children;parenthood;mother;holistic athletic career model;athlets;

Data

Language:	English
Year of publishing:	2020
Typology:	1.01 - Original Scientific Article
Organization:	UL FŠ - Faculty of Sport
UDC:	796.01
COBISS:	5665457
ISSN:	1743-0445
Views:	20
Downloads:	5
Average score:	0 (0 votes)
Metadata:

Other data

Secondary language:	Slovenian
Secondary keywords:	šport;ženske;otroci;starši;matere;športniki;športna kariera;
Type (COBISS):	Article
Pages:	17 str.
Chronology:	2020
DOI:	10.1080/17430437.2020.1720200
ID:	19415980