The impact of training environment on Tokyo Olympic athletes’ wellbeing: a qualitative multiple case study

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Viola Paoletti, Tristan Mayglothling and John P. Mills

University of Essex, UK

Citation

Paoletti, V., Mayglothling, T., Mills, J.P. (2023). The impact of training environment on Tokyo Olympic athletes’ wellbeing: a qualitative multiple case study. International Journal of Sport Psychology, 54(4), 348-371. doi:10.7352/IJSP.2023.54.348

Abstract

This study explores the influence that the training environments have on the wellbeing of Tokyo Olympic athletes. The staff/athlete relationships and the Olympic Organizations can influence the sport performance and the athletes’ wellbeing. A qualitative multiple case study was conducted on an anonymous sample of six Olympic level female athletes through the web software Chatplat. Reflexive thematic analysis was employed to analyze the data. Results were categorized into the following three general dimensions: training environments, relationships’ influence on well-being, and organizational environments. The results are presented to demonstrate the negative and positive factors that affect the performance and the psychological well-being of the athletes. The current study offers an original and significant contribution to the sport psychological literature by providing a unique methodology in addition to real time insight into the dynamic nature of well-being in Olympic athletes. Limitations and recommendations of the study are discussed for future research.

Keywords: Olympic, female, athletes, training environment, wellbeing

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