EDMONTON — Pregnant athletes and new mothers who play soccer now have a clear roadmap for navigating their careers on the pitch: FIFA has officially launched a pioneering decision tool with decision aids to guide players through pregnancy and returning to the sport post-partum.
The guide was developed by FIFA, an international governing body for the sport, in collaboration with Dr. Margie Davenport, a leading pregnancy researcher at the University of Alberta in the Faculty of Kinesiology, Sport, and Recreation. Validated through a pair of studies, these guides represent the first frameworks to provide "practical how-to advice" for players, doctors, physiotherapists, and coaches, says Davenport.
"While various international and national guidelines offer general recommendations on what to do physically and why, they all lack actionable frameworks on the ‘how,’" Davenport, the senior author and lead for the FIFA project, explains.
Players have often been pulled from their teams upon becoming pregnant. According to Davenport, this is not only unnecessary but counterproductive to an athlete’s health and long-term performance. Research strongly supports continued training throughout pregnancy to reduce the risk of complications and prevent injury post-partum.
Davenport and her co-researchers analyzed existing data on the barriers to elite sport participation during and after pregnancy. The resulting tools were tested by doctors, athletes, and coaches to ensure they are practical and easy to use across professional, amateur, and recreational levels.
The decision aids offer flowcharts to assess pregnant or post-partum athletes for health conditions where medical guidance is needed, along with evaluations for mental health, fear of movement and pelvic health. Graduated training frameworks will determine whether the athletes should progress, stay put or regress in their playing activity, and provide examples of what the type of training would look like at each stage.
The new FIFA tools eliminate the anxiety and uncertainty that athletes face when balancing family and sport. By providing clear referral pathways to physicians, psychologists, and lactation consultants, the framework elevates the quality of support players receive from their clubs.
"This is what players have been asking for, for years," notes Dr. Davenport, adding that before the development of these aids, there was confusion about how to train during pregnancy or postpartum. "It’s visionary that a sporting organization is stepping up to find ways to put play into practice. This is showing athletes how to be able to make those choices of both starting a family and making a career."
More information can be found here. To schedule an interview, please contact:
Riley Tjosvold | U of A Communications Coordinator | riley.tjosvold@ualberta.ca