Old bodies, young hearts: a qualitative exploration of the engagement of older male amateur rugby union players in Taiwan

Abstract

The world’s population is ageing. Engagement in physical activities that assist people to age in good health while enjoying quality of life are critical considerations for practitioners and policy-makers. In 1913, the sport of Rugby Union was introduced to Taiwan. As a form of recreational activity, the game became popular among- Taiwanese males. In recent years, older players have sought to facilitate their continued involvement in an activity that is normally played as a full-contact sport. Why these individuals continue to play, how they perceive their experience and how the sport has evolved to maintain their interest and active involvement are especially interesting to explore. Study participants were specifically chosen from an established Taiwanese rugby union club. Semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted in 2013 with 15 amateur rugby players aged from 54 to 83 years. Results indicated that the main motivations for participants to continue playing was that it gave them ‘a sense of nostalgia and pride’, ‘lifelong friendship and belonging’, ‘pure joy and passion’, with considerations of being ‘mentally and physically active’, keeping up an involvement in ‘a real man’s sport’ and maintaining a sense of one’s ‘self-identity’ with ‘responsibility and commitment’ towards this chosen sport. Findings suggest that leisure providers need to be aware of the opportunities for reducing constraints and providing adaptations that allow older adults to immerse themselves in physically active pursuits integral to enjoying a fruitful ageing journey.

Keywords:

• rugby union
• older amateur rugby players
• male sports
• Taiwan
• serious leisure

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to express their gratitude to the rugby union ‘old boys’ based in northern Taiwan who were so willing to give of their time and who chose to participate without reservation in the completed study.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1. All but one were registered members of the Club, however, the non-registered member was personally affiliated with this club.

Additional information

Funding

National Taipei University.