Wed, June 17, 2026
World Athletics seeks female athletes’ views on pregnancy, motherhood and competition
World Athletics (WA) has launched the Childbirth And Return in Elite Sport (CARES) project which will use scientific research and athletes’ perspectives to inform future policies to protect female athletes and reduce inequities within elite athletics.
The global governing body is seeking current and previous female athletes included in the WA competition performance ranking, both those who have experienced pregnancy and those who have not, to complete one of two surveys created by the Health and Science and Competition departments of WA along with the World Athletics Athletes’ Commission, which is the official representative body for elite track and field competitors, serving as a direct link between athletes and the decision makers at WA. It advocates for athletes’ rights, fair competition, and helps shape the rules and future of the sport.
Survey 1 is for female athletes who experienced pregnancy on or after 1 January 2019 during their elite athletics career, regardless of whether this led to childbirth or not. This is to garner information on pregnancy, and where possible, childbirth and return to sport. It hopes to shine light on perceived barriers and facilitators, professional and organisational support, contractual and financial considerations, and ways to support world rankings during maternity leave. A retrospective analysis of the WA database, including performance metrics, will take place for further scientific insight.
Survey 2 is for elite female athletes who have not experienced pregnancy, calling for their perceptions of organisational support, maternity-related governance, and possible ranking-policy mechanisms.
President of WA, Sebastian Coe, expressed: “We are continually looking for ways to make our sport even more equitable, and the CARES project is the next step in ensuring athletes who experience pregnancy are protected, receive support, and do not face barriers when it comes to being able to make a return to elite athletics…
It is important that our athletes are the driving force behind this. The responses generated by these surveys and the associated analysis of performance metrics is vital to this project, to inform future action.”
Chair of the WA Athletes’ Commission, Valerie Adams, voiced: “I am really proud to see World Athletics taking a leading role in encouraging research and more open dialogue about what it means to be a mother and an athlete…
When I started my career, you didn’t want to tell your sponsors if you got pregnant because you might get dropped. By the time I retired – as a mother of two – we’re seeing more female athletes coming back from having kids and performing at an elite level. I hope that the work being done in this space will further inspire female athletes to not only plan their sporting career, but also plan their life.”
An example relating to Adams’ statement includes the most decorated woman in track and field history, American sprinter Allyson Felix. She has won 11 Olympic medals, including 7 gold and 20 World Championship medals.
In 2019, after recovering from a difficult pregnancy and emergency C-section, Felix took on her then-sponsor Nike, revealing that Nike threatened to reduce her sponsorship pay by 70% if her athletic performance declined after pregnancy and childbirth.
After publicly challenging Nike, the company revised its maternity policy three months later, introducing contract protections that guaranteed athletes’ pay and performance bonuses for 18 months surrounding pregnancy. Felix won six medals at major championships after the birth of her first child in 2018. Felix is now also officially coming out of retirement and returning to track and field with the ultimate goal of qualifying for the 2028 Olympic Games in her hometown of Los Angeles.
British runner, Calli Hauger-Thackery, who finished this year's Boston marathon in two hours and 43 minutes while 22 weeks pregnant, voiced the following to BBC Sport regarding childbirth and a woman’s athletic career: “It means so much to me. We can be a mother and also shoot for these crazy big goals, more than ever. It's definitely not going to scare me away from any goals…
I think, if anything, it's going to push me to show my son what is possible. I just think that makes it even more meaningful for me and I'm just honoured and excited to be a part of that space.”
The surveys are currently open and the deadline to respond is 30 September. The 2027 World Athletics Championships also take place in Beijing this September.
WA’s official statement, along with the 2 surveys, can be found here.
