Abstract
Women are significantly underrepresented as coaches in high-performance sport contexts. Organizational policies and professional practices have systematically influenced the low percentage of women in coaching. Furthermore, key life stages, including starting a family, have been identified by women as a barrier to participation. The pregnancy and parenting experiences of high-performance women coaches have been overlooked in the sport literature, yet such experiences are essential in understanding the cultural and societal complexities that continue to limit women's equitable inclusion in sport. Research grounded in the voices of high-performance women coaches is necessary to facilitate the development of evidence-informed policies and practices. As such, the purpose of this research was to better understand the pregnancy and parenting experiences of high-performance coaches through a matricentric feminist lens. An international sample of 14 high-performance coaches from a broad range of winter and summer sports participated in semi-structured one-on-one interviews. Data were analyzed through content analysis, and the findings of this study are represented by five main themes: (a) visibility and voices for change, (b) trusting abilities, c) pressure to navigate gendered expecations around parenthood, d) lack of transparency, and e) negotiating unique cultural circumstances. The in-depth stories shared by participants highlight the unique social, political, economical, and cultural challenges that mother coaches navigate in high-performance sport contexts due to their position as women and mothers. Participants’ shared stories highlight the critical need for sport policies and practices that will support the Government of Canada’s goal to reach gender equity in sport by 2035.
