Weightlifting during the COVID-19 pandemic—A transnational study regarding motivation, barriers, and coping of master athletes

Sport has been heavily impacted by the pandemic for over a year with
restrictions and closures of facilities. The main aims of this study are
to identify motivation and barriers for an international group of Master
weightlifters (ages 35 and up) and analyze age and gender differences in
pandemic-related changes to physical activities. A sample of 1051 older
athletes, 523 women and 528 men, aged from 35 to 88 years, from Australia,
Canada, Europe, and the USA provided responses to an online survey
conducted in June 2021. A confirmatory factor analysis was performed to
examine age, gender, and regional differences about motivation, barriers,
and pandemic impact on sport and physical activities. Participants showed
enthusiasm for the opportunity to compete despite health challenges with
increasing age but faced barriers due to access to training facilities and
qualified coaches even before the pandemic. The oldest athletes had the
greatest reduction in physical activities during the pandemic.
Weightlifters had the opportunity to compete in virtual competitions and
44% would like to see some of these continued in the future, especially
women. These findings highlight the benefits of competitive sports and may
provide future directions in strength sports for organizations, sports
clubs, and coaches.