ArticlePloS one2023
Adaptation to life after sport for retired athletes: A scoping review of existing reviews and programs.
Article in PloS one, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 17 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
17 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 39 citations in OpenAlex.
- Mental Health in Elite Athletes: A Systematic Review of Suicidal Behaviour as Compared to the General Population.Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2024Pooled it
- Mental health in elite athletes: International Olympic Committee consensus statement (2026).British journal of sports medicine · 2026Article
- Sustainable Athletes' Career Pathways and Mental Health Support: An Integrative Umbrella Review.Sports (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Sustainability of top-performance athletes' mental health and career retirement support services: European major sports organizations' perspective.Frontiers in sports and active living · 2026Article
- Beyond the game: athletic identity and post-retirement adaptation of former Major League Baseball players.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Article
- Rethinking elite sport as high-stakes work: an organizational perspective on well-being and sustainable performance.Frontiers in sports and active living · 2026Article
- Navigating Nutrition Beyond Elite Sport: A Qualitative Exploration of Experiences After Retirement.Nutrients · 2025Article
- Sustainable Career Transitions and Mental Health Support in Elite Sport: A Systematic Review of Evidence and Practices.Sports (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Analysis of Psychological and Sleep Quality Characteristics of Young and Adult Para-Athletes with Cerebral Palsy During Competitive Period.Sports (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Associations between life stress and athlete burnout: the chain mediation role of mindfulness and cognitive emotion regulation strategies.BMC psychology · 2025Article
- Transitioning to life after sport: empowering former college varsity athletes to live more healthfully.Frontiers in sports and active living · 2025Article
- Comprehensive health assessment of retired martial arts athletes: bone density, dietary intake, physical activity, and wellbeing.Frontiers in aging · 2025Article
- Interplay between sex, age, BMI, health-related quality of life, and coping strategies in amateur and professional athletes.Frontiers in physiology · 2025Article
- The role of the sports coach in developing athlete capacity for transition to retirement.Frontiers in sports and active living · 2025Article
- Psychological hardiness and social support as protective factors against burnout in high-performance athletes.Frontiers in sports and active living · 2025Article
- Midlife health crisis of former competitive athletes: dissecting their experiences via qualitative study.BMJ open sport & exercise medicine · 2024Article
- Hang up your cleats and hope for the best? A cross-sectional study of five health domains in retired elite female rugby players.BMJ open sport & exercise medicine · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Retirement from sport is a life transition that has significant implications for athletes' physical and mental health, as well as their social and professional development. Although extensive work has been done to review the retirement experiences of athletes, relatively less work has been done to examine and reflect on this expansive body of literature with a pragmatic aim of deciding what needs to happen to better support retiring athletes. This study used scoping review methodology to review current academic reviews, gray literature articles, and support programs on athletic retirement. This review followed the Joanna Briggs Institute reviewer's manual guide on scoping reviews and adhered to the PRISMA-ScR checklist. Academic articles were identified from PubMed, Embase, Web of Science and Scopus. Gray literature articles and support programs were identified using advanced Google searches. This study identified 23 academic reviews, 44 gray literature articles, and 15 support programs. Generally, the results suggest that athletic retirement encompasses a drastic shift in identity, a loss of social networks, a lack of career ambitions, and potential risks to physical and mental health. While there was a gap in the academic literature regarding practical strategies to support retiring athletes, the gray literature suggests many creative ideas. Stepwise programming may be beneficial to help athletes: (a) make sense of their athletic experience and see retirement as an ongoing process; (b) develop a well-rounded sense of self identity and understand how to apply their unique skills and strengths in new ways; (3) gain control over their retirement transition by establishing a clear plan and adjusting to new routines and opportunities; and (4) normalize the transition experience by "living in the next" and building confidence in new life directions. Future research may benefit from developing and evaluating more programming to support athletes through the retirement transition.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.