Disruptions and innovations in sports research during the COVID-19 pandemic

• Published in: Transformations in Social Science Research Methods during the COVID-19 Pandemic pp. 89 - 104
• Main Authors: Kerr-Cumbo, Renzo, Visanich, Valerie, Muscat-Inglott, Matthew
• Format: Book Chapter
• Language: English
• Published: Routledge 2025
• Edition: 1
• ISBN: 9781032646770; 1032646772; 9781032646817; 1032646810
• DOI: 10.4324/9781032646824-8

This chapter explores experiences of academics working within the sports and exercise field as they relate to the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The interest is, more specifically, in the dynamic connectivity in narratives, and how they reveal limitations, challenges, and opportunities in doing research in the field of sports and exercise science during the pandemic and beyond. Specifically, this chapter refers to conversations with six academics - four in Malta and another two academics with similar roles in Iceland and Turkey. All participants brought in their experiences as thesis supervisors of undergraduate- and postgraduate-level sport and exercise science students and as active researchers on solo, national, and/or international research projects within the field of sports. Despite the restrictions of the pandemic and the negative consequences of shifting to online resources and methodologies, this chapter also outlines innovative and iterative approaches adopted as a response to the pandemic.