Motherhood within elite sport discourse: The case of Keli Lane

Abstract

Motherhood and participation in elite sport have traditionally been viewed as at odds with each other. However, mothers competing at the pinnacle of sport are becoming more common. Despite such trends, motherhood often remains invisible and taboo within the sphere of elite sport and little research has addressed athletes who are mothers. In order to explore popular accounts of motherhood and elite sport, we examined 326 media reports of the case of Keli Lane, an Australian water polo player who was convicted of murdering her infant in order to pursue her sporting goals. We draw on a social constructionist and critical approach to discursive analysis in order to explore repeated patterns of constructions of athlete identity and motherhood. We argue that within these media accounts, the identities of ‘elite athlete’ and ‘mother’ were depicted as mutually exclusive. Moreover, the role of the broader context of elite sporting culture and organisations in influencing the combination of motherhood and elite sport participation was rendered invisible within these accounts. The implications for female athletes, especially mothers, are discussed.