University of British Columbia Peter Wall Institute of Advanced Studies PHYSICAL CULTURE, POWER, AND THE BODY

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THE MEDICALIZED BODY IN SPORT: ISSUES OF POWER AND AUTHORITY

Nancy Theberge

Abstract: THE MEDICALIZED BODY IN SPORT: ISSUES OF POWER AND AUTHORITY One of the most significant developments in sport over the last several decades has been the expanding power of medical knowledge in the production and regulation of sporting bodies. This study investigates this process by examining the role of sports medicine, including allied health professions such as physiotherapy and nutrition, in the construction of athletic bodies and athletic identities. The specific focus of the study will be the analysis of professional discourses surrounding the scope and purpose of medical interventions in sport; the political and social processes that enable sport medicine to claim the athletic body as an object of practice; and how medicalization is implicated in the construction of athletic identities. The analysis will be based on a critical review of professional literature in sport medicine and interviews with athletes, sport medicine practitioners and officials in regulatory agencies.