Abstract
Despite having implications for elite athletes’ careers and overall well-being, there is a dearth of research examining high-performance team selection processes. The purpose of this study was to explore seven elite athletes’ experiences with the 2012 Canadian Olympic team selection process and its impact on their athletic careers from an interpretative phenomenological analysis perspective (Smith et al., 2009). Participants took part in three semi-structured interviews prior to or during the Olympic team selection process, once the Olympic team was announced, and after the Olympic Games. Six athletes were not selected while one athlete competed in the 2012 Olympic Games. Analysis of the interviews revealed that participants organized their athletic and education/work endeavours around their goal of being selected to compete in the Olympic Games, demonstrating significant investment and sacrifice. Yet upon non-selection, participants used cognitive reappraisal as a strategy to cope with the selection outcome and to assist in disengaging from their 2012 Olympic goal. While the participants’ focus had primarily been on being selected to the Olympic team, they reengaged with new and meaningful athletic goals after failing to achieve their desired performances in qualification phases. For example, three of the participants who were not selected stated that they wanted to transition to a new event within their sport the following year. The influence of goal reengagement and reappraisal after the selection process on perceptions of goal progress will be discussed within the context of participants’ stages of athletic career.
