Dr Erin Reifsteck: Developing a New Relationship with Sport Post-retirement

Athletic retirement is a much-studied topic, but only recently have researchers started to explore whether sport and physical activity remains part of retired athletes’ lives. Do athletes still find sport and physical activity meaningful pursuits, and if so, how do they change their practice and relationship with them? What kind of identity changes are required?Continue reading “Dr Erin Reifsteck: Developing a New Relationship with Sport Post-retirement”

Dr Ayse Yemiscigil: Understanding Purpose in Life, Physical Activity and Sport  

I became aware of Ayse Yemiscigil´s work through her article (co-authored with Ivo Vlaev) The bidirectional relationship between sense of purpose in life and physical activity: a longitudinal study. I was excited to discuss with Ayse her work which is one of the first to look at these two things together. Ayse also shared storiesContinue reading “Dr Ayse Yemiscigil: Understanding Purpose in Life, Physical Activity and Sport  “

Drs Mac Ross and Michael McDougall: The Olympics, Human Rights and Managing Meaning(s) in Sport

“Why should people lose their homes for a hockey game to happen?” The upcoming Beijing Olympics have been in the media due to serious human rights concerns in the host country, but it is not the first time when there have been serious ethical concerns with hosting this sporting megaevent. Mac Ross and Michael McDougallContinue reading “Drs Mac Ross and Michael McDougall: The Olympics, Human Rights and Managing Meaning(s) in Sport”

Jim Harte: Telling Stories in Physical Education

What if physical education was about inviting young people into a story and living that story through the school year? This is an approach that coach and teacher Jim Harte has developed during his long career as a physical education teacher. The story is lived through in songs (musical learning) and a performance that finishesContinue reading “Jim Harte: Telling Stories in Physical Education”

Tim Jones: Social and Emotional Learning in Football Academies

Football academies in the UK have been under critical scrutiny by many researchers. Described as hierarchical, short-termist and embodying hegemonic notions of masculinity, it has been argued that they often contribute to identity foreclosure in young players. But are these academies addressing these problems and working towards supporting a more balanced development? Tim Jones, aContinue reading “Tim Jones: Social and Emotional Learning in Football Academies”

Dr Teemu Pauha: Understanding Religion and (New) Spiritualities in Sport

Especially in Western Europe, a growing number of people choose not to be affiliated with organised religion. But does it mean that they reject everything religious? And does sport have something to offer for spiritual life, at least for some? Dr Teemu Pauha visited the podcast to share his thoughts on these issues. Although myContinue reading “Dr Teemu Pauha: Understanding Religion and (New) Spiritualities in Sport”

Dr Kurtis Pankow: Flourishing and Languishing in Sport

A complete mental health is not merely about the absence of mental illness. Yet, surprisingly few studies in a sport context have focused on understanding what contributes to positive mental health and high levels of well-being in athletes and coaches. Dr Kurtis Pankow recently completed a PhD dissertation that sought answers to this question. HeContinue reading “Dr Kurtis Pankow: Flourishing and Languishing in Sport”

Prof. Emmanuelle Tulle: Understanding Careers in Veteran Running and Women’s Mountaineering

Professor Emmanuelle Tulle from Glasgow Caledonian University is one of the leading scholars in theorising how older sports people make sense of and manage the process of bodily ageing. She visited the Meaningful Sport podcast to share insights from her research in two movement subcultures, Veteran/Masters running and mountaineering. Emmanuelle’s work often uses a lifeContinue reading “Prof. Emmanuelle Tulle: Understanding Careers in Veteran Running and Women’s Mountaineering”

Drs Brian Glenney & Paul O’Connor: Skateboarding in the Olympics: A Collision of Two Incompatible Physical Cultures?

Skateboarding made its first appearance in the Olympics in Tokyo. Isn´t that great? Well, some think it is, for others it represents a collision of two incompatible cultures of movement/sport. Drs Brian Glenney and Paul O’Connor visited the Meaningful Sport podcast to share their thinking and recent work on meaning of skateboarding and what happensContinue reading “Drs Brian Glenney & Paul O’Connor: Skateboarding in the Olympics: A Collision of Two Incompatible Physical Cultures?”

Dr Ross Wadey: Telling Stories of Adversity in Sport

Adversity is something most people will inevitably encounter in sport and life. Yet, the way we give meaning to these experiences through storytelling can be very different for different people. Dr Ross Wadey visited the Meaningful Sport podcast to share his exciting work on stories of sport injury and adversity. What are the consequences ofContinue reading “Dr Ross Wadey: Telling Stories of Adversity in Sport”