Striving for thriving: A narrative analysis of cyclists’ stories from the Olympic qualification window

Our purpose for the present study was to understand elite track cyclists’ stories of attempting to experience thriving during an Olympic qualification window. More specifically, we hoped to describe the narratives underpinning the cyclists’ stories during this time, and to gain an understanding of the socio-cultural factors that were perceived to influence their experiences. Interviews were conducted with eleven elite track cyclists on three occasions over a six-month period. Interview data were analyzed using a combination of holistic-form structural analysis and thematic narrative analysis. Our results are presented as a realist tale and illustrate three narratives: performance, discovery, and vindication. We interpreted the results to suggest that the performance narrative was prominent and drawn on within many, if not all, athletes’ stories. Our results show that, although aspirations exist in research and practice to dilute the prevailing performance narrative with one that provides a frame for concurrent experiences of sporting success and athlete well-being (i.e., thriving), attempts to make this shift will likely be complex. These findings are the first representation of athlete narratives as they attempt to experience thriving during a critical part of their Olympic journey and offer a unique insight to the narratives that inform their stories. Moreover, they highlight the important socio-cultural factors for supporting thriving in people and systems at the highest level of sport.