INTRODUCTION: Alpine skiing`s high injury rates require new approaches to mitigate the risk of injury (1). For alpine skiing development athletes there is a lack of research regarding the sport speficic risk factors (2) in both, internal and external factors (3, 1). The basis for appropriate measures consist of new insights into further internal and external risk factors and injury mechanisms (3). Therefore, the research question of this study was to examine life circumstances of development athletes who have sustained a major injury during one season. METHODS: Due to their injury history, 13 development-team athletes were identified to participate in guided interviews. The interview items consisted of potential predictors influencing a higher injury risk and were defined in accordance with coaches` evaluation in order to gain insights into the experiential reality of the athletes (4). All interview data was categorized using qualitative content analysis by Mayring (5). RESULTS/DISCUSSION: The categories 1) external factors 2) psychological factors 3) physiological factors and 4) social circumstances revealed a potential association in their subcategories specifically for new equipment, stress/pressure and social relations with injury. CONCLUSION: Paying attention to athletes` life circumstances, (unexpected) pressure situations or equipment changes might help mitigate injury risk.
© Copyright 2025 10th International Congress on Science and Skiing, January 28 - February 1, 2025, Val di Fiemme, Italy. All rights reserved.