The post-Olympic Games experience: A qualitative investigation of Australian Rio Olympians

Bennie, Andrew; Walton, Courtney C.; O'Connor, Deidra; Fitzsimons, Larissa; Hammond, Tarana

doi:10.31234/osf.io/8asfb

Cited by 3 publications

(3 citation statements)

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“…Additional to obstacles many women commonly face at work, 6 women athletes may also experience stressors such as negative or sexualised perceptions of their body, 7 unwanted social media messaging 8 and financial difficulty. 9 There is limited understanding of the association between such factors and MHS in elite sport.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Gender differences in mental health symptoms and risk factors in Australian elite athletes

Walton

Rice

Gao

et al. 2021

BMJ Open Sport Exerc Med

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ObjectivesTo examine gender differences in the reporting of, and contributors to, mental health symptoms.MethodsThis was a cross-sectional observational study of adult athletes within a national elite sporting system (n=523; women=292;56%), who completed a battery of assessments including measures of mental health and adverse life events. Group differences across a range of scores were examined, followed by gender-stratified bootstrapped linear regression and meta-regression on measures where gender differences were observed.ResultsWomen athletes reported higher rates of mental health symptoms, and lower rates of mental well-being, although there were no differences in general psychological distress or life satisfaction. Women reported experiencing several adverse life events at higher rates than men; particularly interpersonal conflict, financial hardship and discrimination. Low self-esteem was consistently associated with poorer mental health outcomes for all athletes. While a range of factors were associated with poor mental health in men or women athletes, meta-regression suggested that experiencing financial difficulty and social media abuse were more uniquely associated with mental health symptoms in men.ConclusionGender differences in mental health in elite athletes are apparent. Approaches to increasing well-being are required in elite sport.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Gender differences in mental health symptoms and risk factors in Australian elite athletes

Walton

Rice

Gao

et al. 2021

BMJ Open Sport Exerc Med

Self Cite

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“…As there is convincing evidence that indicates pursuing excellence i nhigh-performance sports is associated with various factors that may become threats to the holistic wellbeing of athletes (MacAuley, 2012;Gouttebarge et al, 2019;Giles et al, 2020;Bennie et al, 2021), several high-profile countries in the Olympic and Paralympic Games, such as Canada, Australia, Netherlands, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, the United States, and so on, have started developing their own support systems and programs for athletes to pursue excellence both in performance and wellbeing in recent years. Japan is considered one of the world's leading countries in highperformance sports by placing in the top 3 in the summer Olympic Games of Tokyo 2020.…”

Section: Discussion and Practical Implicationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Current state and the support system of athlete wellbeing in Japan: The perspectives of the university student-athletes

2022

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The optimization of athletes’ wellbeing has been increasingly considered essential both in the academic and practical fields of high-performance sports. Various organizations, such as the International Olympic Committee, have highlighted its importance, particularly mental health. Moreover, the increased attention to athlete wellbeing in sport policy debates at the national level has led to the development and implementation of a support system for athletes’ mental wellbeing in some countries. Nevertheless, the literature is limited to understanding the case of Japan. Interestingly, only 0.8% of the literature is available on “athlete” and “wellbeing” in Japanese compared to English journals up to 2019. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to identify (a) the current state of wellbeing of Japanese university student-athletes, (b) the level of knowledge about athlete wellbeing, and (c) the athletes’ perception of the availability of wellbeing support in the national sports federations, (d) the athlete experience of support services, and develop the types of national support athletes expect and need from the government and national sports federations in the future. As a pilot study, a total of 100 Japanese university student-athletes (43 male, 57 female) from 17 Olympic and seven Paralympic sports completed an online survey. Consequently, the state of their wellbeing was self-perceived as good in all dimensions (i.e., physical, mental, educational, organizational, social, and financial). Moreover, the results showed low recognition of the term “athlete wellbeing” and a lack of knowledge of the availability and accessibility of appropriate support services. The results also showed that Japanese university student-athletes rarely seek help from experts, while 45% indicated “no one” to talk to. Interestingly, however, most athletes considered each dimension of wellbeing important in relation to their performance development. Based on the results, it is necessary to develop an education program, guidelines, and detection systems and improve information accessibility. Given that this pilot study’s validity, reliability, and feasibility were verified, further studies should focus more on the wellbeing of Japanese elite athletes in high-performance sports (i.e., Olympic and Paralympic athletes).

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“…Given that transitions are defined by change (Anderson et al, 2011) and often characterised by uncertainty (Stambulova, 2009), it is perhaps unsurprising that swimmer wellbeing was perceived as most likely to be affected during transitions. Indeed, previous studies have extensively documented the impact of various transitions on athlete wellbeing, including the junior-to-senior transition (e.g., Drew et al, 2019;Stambulova, 2017), returning from a major games such as the Olympics (e.g., Bennie et al, 2021;Howells & Lucassen, 2018), and retiring from sport (e.g., Cosh et al, 2021;Jewett et al, 2019). However, the findings of the present study further our understanding of why transitions affect wellbeing by suggesting that it is not necessarily the transition itself that impacts swimmer wellbeing.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Protecting and Promoting the Wellbeing of High-Performance Swimmers

Uzzell¹

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The aims of the present thesis were two-fold. First, to gain an in-depth understanding of high-performance swimmers’ experiences of wellbeing. Second, to develop, implement, and evaluate an intervention aimed at protecting and promoting the wellbeing of high-performance swimmers. Study 1 used an interpretive description methodology to explore swimmers’ wellbeing experiences, in terms of how it was understood, experienced, and recognised. Findings suggested that wellbeing was understood and experienced in relation to personal values and goals, and could be recognised via numerous affective, cognitive, and behavioural indicators. Study 2 used a grounded theory methodology to develop a substantive theory of the process through which participation in high-performance swimming affects athlete wellbeing. The resultant theory illustrated how a dominant performance narrative influenced the development and maintenance of an exclusive swimmer identity that was tied to performance. Subsequently, transitions were highlighted as critical points where wellbeing was likely to be affected, due to the increased potential for change and uncertainty to impact on performance (and therefore identity). However, proactive coping strategies (e.g., planning, social support) were shown to minimise the impact on wellbeing. Informed by the findings of the first two studies, Study 3 used an action research methodology to develop, implement, and evaluate the delivery and effectiveness of a multi-component online wellbeing intervention. Findings suggested the intervention was effective in increasing knowledge and skills, improving self-awareness, and provided reassurance that led to increased confidence in coping abilities. Such outcomes were perceived to be facilitated by the delivery of timely and relevant content, the inclusion of a professional swimmer, use of real-world examples, and opportunities for self-reflection and interaction with peers. However, findings also illustrated some key challenges related to delivering a workshop-based intervention, such as ensuring content is relevant and useful for all, and delivering workshops at a time that suits everyone, in a format that fits individual preferences.

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The post-Olympic Games experience: A qualitative investigation of Australian Rio Olympians

Cited by 3 publications

References 30 publications

Gender differences in mental health symptoms and risk factors in Australian elite athletes

Gender differences in mental health symptoms and risk factors in Australian elite athletes

Current state and the support system of athlete wellbeing in Japan: The perspectives of the university student-athletes

Protecting and Promoting the Wellbeing of High-Performance Swimmers

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