Elite gymnastics sport culture is presently under global scrutiny. Largely ignited by the highly publicized case of serial sexual abuses in USA Gymnastics, multiple national gymnastics teams have disclosed stories of athlete abuse. Our author team utilized media data to investigate the serial sexual abuses that occurred on the Brazilian Men’s Gymnastics Team. Using media data to conceptualize athlete maltreatment is novel and facilitated our holistic interpretation of athlete maltreatment across multiple levels of athletes’ developmental systems. The authors traced the media coverage temporally and identified four overarching themes: (a) uncovering the case (subthemes—the Brazilian sport context; the Brazilian men’s gymnastics context; the club context), (b) before abuse was identified (subthemes—the coach–athlete dyad: before disclosure; the athlete: a lost childhood; social connectivity: isolation; the gymnastics system: mechanisms of abuse), (c) when abuse was recognized (subthemes—the coach–athlete dyad: athlete resistance; the athlete: identifying the impact; social connectivity: building connections; the gymnastics system: consequences of abuse), and (d) the legacy of abuse (subthemes—the coach–athlete dyad: ongoing abuses; the athlete: cyclical victimization; social connectivity: expanding connections; the gymnastics system: after abuse). Utilizing media data facilitated our culturally contextualized interpretation of athlete abuse to present tailored recommendations for practitioners.
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Brazilian Gymnastics in a Crucible: A Media Data Case Study of Serial Sexual Victimization of the Brazilian Men’s Gymnastics Team
Michelle E. Seanor, Cole E. Giffin, Robert J. Schinke, and Diana A. Coholic
Constellation Mentoring for University Soccer Players: A Case Study
Brennan Petersen, Cole E. Giffin, Thierry R.F. Middleton, and Yufeng Li
Peer mentoring is a supportive relationship between a more experienced mentor and a less experienced protégé that has garnered attention in recent sport research. Moving beyond traditional mentoring dyads, constellation peer mentoring engages several mentors to provide support to a protégé, ensuring they have access to multiple perspectives and areas of expertise. We implemented a constellation peer-mentoring program with Canadian university student-athletes throughout their competitive seasons. Subsequently, we undertook an instrumental case study to explore participants’ feedback and the perceived benefits of the program. Using reflexive thematic analysis, we interpreted participants’ responses as indicative of traditional mentoring benefits, including reduced transitional stress, feelings of well-being, and feelings of satisfaction. In addition, we determined unique aspects of constellation peer mentoring, such as increased team cohesion, improved help-seeking, an environment that fostered relational mentoring experiences, and the need for leader training. Constellation peer mentoring presents a promising intervention for supporting student-athletes during career transitions.