Triathlon Bodies in Motion

Reconceptualizing Feelings of Pain, Nausea and Disgust in the Ironman Triathlon

Bibliographic Data

ID5080158
AuthorsJesper Andreasson (0000-0003-1631-6475, Linnaeus University, corresponding author), Thomas Johansson (0000-0003-1798-570X)
Year2019
Volume25
Issue2
Pages119-145
Publication date2019-06-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueBody & Society (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1357-034X • E-ISSN: 1460-3632
PublisherSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/1357034x18798705
OpenAlexW2890575350
LanguageEN
Citations received3
References cited45

This study focuses on the physical expressions and intensity of embodiment that occur in the Ironman Triathlon. More specifically, the study investigates the transformational bodily experiences taking place during Ironman competitions. Using an ethnographic approach, a total of 29 Ironman triathletes participated in the study (15 men and 14 women). Theoretically, the article focuses on how triathletes' bodies 'move' between different forms of embodiment. The results show that, in the process of disciplining the body, the athletes reconceptualized feelings of pain, nausea and even disgust, making these emotionally expressive aspects of the corpus into a part of the experience and bending them towards the pleasure of reaching potential divinity. Situated in a long tradition of philosophical and sociological explorations of the transgressing and transcending body, the study interprets and understands the performing body as a site for change and utopian possibilities. Thus the study adds to existing debates on contemporary individuals' exploration of the existential and corporeal dimensions of modernity

Aesthetics · Disgust · Epistemology · Ethnography · Feeling · Physical body · Pleasure · Psychotherapist · Situated · Sociology · Adventure Sports and Sensation Seeking · Diversity and Impact of Dance · Philosophy · Psychology · Social Psychology · Sports, Gender, and Society

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