“I had a dream: it was to play the games”. Sports socialisation processes of French paralympic athletes

Abstract

In this article, we provide a diachronic and synchronic study of the socialisation processes that contribute to participation in Paralympic Games. We will focus both on the socializations that were involved in the engagement in elite sports practice, and on the socializations that took place during the preparation for the 2016 Rio Paralympic Games. Thirteen athletes who took part in the Rio Paralympic Games were interviewed. Beyond the diversity of the sports socialisation experiences of French athletes who participated in the Paralympic Games, this article also highlights similarities: the results highlight i) the importance of early socialisation to sport practice; ii) that commitment in high-performance paralympic sport is determined by a very rapid progression in the athletes’ performances; iii) the essential role of family as an emotional, financial and organisational support. These results reveal social levers and brakes to the optimisation of Paralympic performance, and in this sense can be used to guide the accompaniment of athletes by Paralympic institutions.

Keywords:

• Socialisation
• paralympics athletes
• disability
• performance

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 According to the social model of disability (Shakespeare, 2013), we will use the expression 'disabled athletes' to highlight the instances of discrimination experienced by Paralympic athletes. Conversely, we will use the expression 'non-disabled athletes' to refer to individuals who do not experience these situations. Discourse analysis will sometimes require specific reference to biomedical characteristics that impact the trajectories and experiences of athletes. The term 'impairment' will then be used when it comes to designating these individual dimensions.

2 "Non-disabled sport" is the chosen translation for the French expression 'sport valide.'

3 Such as functional rehabilitation centers or schools for children with disabilities.

4 Among these 126 athletes, 121 athletes had a physical disability, 5 had an intellectual impairment.

5 To ensure the confidentiality of the survey, we chose not to present the impairment of the athletes interviewed.