Retired Female Olympian health project

We're recruiting retired female Olympians and members of the general public to take part in a research project to help us better understand how to support female athletes throughout their careers.

About the project

Female runners at the Olympics
Image credit: ©INPHO/James Crombie

The purpose of the research project is to explore and understand the current health status of retired female Olympians and how this compares to females in the general population. In doing so, we hope to better understand the long-term potential benefits and consequences of sustained Olympic-level sporting participation on the health of female athletes. 

Start date: June 2025

End date: ongoing

Join the project

Research on female athletes – both during their careers and after they finish competing - is limited, leaving important gaps in our understanding of how best to support their care across these stages. 

To address this, we are looking to recruit retired female Olympians and members of the general public from the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and the United States. Register your interest in participating in upcoming research. 

Image credit: INPHO/James Crombie

Our aims and objectives

A dearth of research exists exploring the long-term implications of sustained elite performance on the health of female Olympians, compared to their male counterparts. 

Recent publications from the FAIR (Female, woman and girl Athlete Injury pRevention) consensus calls for the expansion and visibility of females/women/girls in research as ‘absence breeds assumptions’ and perpetuates gendered stereotypes that undermine athlete legitimacy, opportunity and performance. 

The aims of this research are:

  1. To address the data gaps that exist in comparison to retired elite male athletes across various health domains
  2. To provide new knowledge on health issues relating specifically to female athletes
  3. To explore if any identified trends are specific to the retired female Olympian population through comparison with females in the general population.

The primary objective of the first phase of this project is to describe the current health of retired female Olympians and general population controls with a specific focus on:

  • musculoskeletal health
  • mental health
  • cognitive health
  • female (reproductive, pelvic floor and breast) health
  • cardiovascular health. 

Funder

The study is being funded by SportScotland Institute of Sport, UK Sports Institute, United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC), and Moray House School of Sport and Education at the University of Edinburgh; and supported by the Canadian Olympic Committee and LaTrobe University, Melbourne.

Funding partner logos

Participant Information

Who can participate?

To better understand our findings, we will directly compare the health status of retired female Olympians with the females in the general population to identify trends specific to the former Olympian cohort. To do this, we need two types of participants: 

1. Retired female Olympians (defined as any female athlete who has previously competed at an Olympic Games and does not intend to seek qualification for the next Olympic Games); 

2. Female general population controls (i.e. females that have not participated at an Olympic Games). 

Snowboarder performing during the 2022 Winter Olympics
Photo credit: INPHO/Bryan Keane

Study Information Sheets

Download the relevant study information document to find out the purpose of the study and the benefits of taking part:

Study sign up

Join the project
To express interest in participating – either as a retired female Olympian or a member of the female general population – please input your details below and the study team will be in touch with more information. 
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Research team members

Lead Investigator: Dr Lauren Guilfoyle

Co-investigators: Dr Debbie Palmer & Dr Alan MacPherson

The research team is supported by the AUKCAUS Steering Group comprised of representatives from our funding and academic partners:

  • Dr Eric Post (United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee)
  • Dr Amber Donaldson (United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee)
  • Dr Heather Vincent (United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee)
  • Dr Craig Ranson (UK Sports Institute)
  • Dr Kate Hutchings (UK Sports Institute)
  • Dr Michelle Jeffrey (SportScotland Institute of Sport)
  • Ms Irene Riach (SportScotland Institute of Sport)
  • Dr Niall Elliott (British Olympic Association)
  • Professor Kay Crossley (LaTrobe University, Melbourne)
  • Dr Daniel Friedman (LaTrobe University, Melbourne)
  • Dr Mike Wilkinson (Canadian Olympic Committee)
  • Dr Suzanne Leclerc (Canadian Olympic Committee)
  • Dr Jenna Schulz (University of British Columbia)
  • Dr Jane Thornton (International Olympic Committee)
  • Ms Lynsey Sharp (2 x Olympian; Team GB)
  • Retired Female Olympian (TBC)

Publications and news

Guilfoyle, L., MacPherson, A., Cooper, D., Batt, M., Emery, C., Engebretsent, L., Schamasch, P., Shroff, M., Soligard, T., Steffen, K., Whittaker, J., Thonrton, J., and Palmer, D., 2026. The legacy of Olympic sport: A cross-sectional comparison of the musculoskeletal and general health of 1,488 retired female Olympians and 998 female general population controls. In preparation.


Palmer, D., Soligard, T., Fernandes, G., Collins, D., Elliott, N., Kelly, P., Murray, I.R. and Engbretsen, L., 2025. Insights from the first IOC Olympian Health Cohort: injury and illness in Olympians preparing for the Tokyo 2020 Summer and Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games. BMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine, 11(3). 

Palmer, D., Soligard, T. and Engebretsen, L., 2023. Behind the podium and the glory: the IOC Olympian health cohort. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 57(21), pp.1339-1340.

Palmer, D., Cooper, D., Whittaker, J.L., Emery, C., Batt, M.E., Engebretsen, L., Schamasch, P., Shroff, M., Soligard, T., Steffen, K. and Budgett, R., 2022. Prevalence of and factors associated with osteoarthritis and pain in retired Olympians compared with the general population: part 2–the spine and upper limb. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 56(19), pp.1132-1141.

Palmer D, Cooper D, Whittaker JL, et al. Prevalence of and factors associated with osteoarthritis and pain in retired Olympians compared with the general population: part 1 – the lower limb. British Journal of Sports Medicine 2022(56), pp.1123-1132.

Palmer, D., Cooper, D.J., Emery, C., Batt, M.E., Engebretsen, L., Scammell, B.E., Schamasch, P., Shroff, M., Soligard, T., Steffen, K. and Whittaker, J.L., 2021. Self-reported sports injuries and later-life health status in 3357 retired Olympians from 131 countries: a cross-sectional survey among those competing in the games between London 1948 and PyeongChang 2018. British journal of sports medicine, 55(1), pp.46-53.


More information 

For more information about the Retired Female Olympian Health project, please contact Dr Lauren Guilfoyle (project lead).

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