The narrative construction of a de-stigmatised identity: an Olympic athlete’s stories of living with bipolar disorder

There is limited research offering experiential knowledge of severe mental illness in elite athletes. Adopting a narrative approach, this study explored how an Olympic athlete constructed his illness identity and how this construction shaped his experience of living with bipolar disorder. We conducted five semi-structured interviews with Darrel, a male Olympic athlete diagnosed with bipolar disorder, over a ten-month period in the lead-up to the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. 10 hours of data were collected, with interviews an average of 90 minutes in duration. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed using dialogical narrative analysis, attending to both the content of Darrel’s stories and the ways in which he told them. Through various storytelling strategies, Darrel constructed a de-stigmatised illness identity that reinforced his sense of self as an athlete. His narratives emphasised athletic accomplishment despite – and sometimes because of – his bipolar disorder. He distanced himself from the stigmatised stereotypes of severe mental illness by telling stories of his high functioning. Emotionally difficult moments were laced with humour, while manic episodes were portrayed in a glamourised way. These narrative strategies appeared to manage self-stigma and resist the potentially marginalising meanings associated with mental illness in elite sport. However, such storytelling also has implications for how others perceive and respond to athlete distress. For example, the glamourisation of mania may lead staff to underestimate the severity of the athlete’s mental illness. This study demonstrates the value of narrative methods for exploring how athletes make sense of severe mental illness and construct identities within the cultural context of elite sport.