The Experiences of High-Performance Female Coaches in Luxembourg

Study examining the underrepresentation of women in high-performance (HP) coaching in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and the challenges faced by women who do enter this male-dominated field, underpinned by LaVoi and Dutove's ecological model.

Six women currently coaching at high-performance level in Luxembourg were interviewed; a social phenomenological analysis with deductive thematic coding identified 32 raw data themes covering supports and barriers across individual, interpersonal, organisational and societal levels (e.g. passion for the job and family support as supports; personal sacrifices, lack of federation support, lack of entry opportunities and hegemonic masculinity as barriers).

Supports and barriers were identified at each ecological level: five supports and four barriers at individual level, five supports and three barriers at interpersonal level, three supports and seven barriers at organisational level, and two supports and three barriers at societal level; women coaches reported facing gender stereotypes, lack of support and resources, and work-life balance challenges.