Table 2

Athletes’ perceived knowledge of injuries

ThemesCodesSubcodesExample of quotes from youth athletes
Awareness of injuriesExperiences of injuriesAmbiguity‘Yes, but I think, of course, I’ve had niggles, it’s not that, but I’ve never gotten so far that I’ve really thought there were injuries.’ Year 3
‘I would probably draw the line at when you can’t exercise, then it’s a big injury. When you lose training.’ Year 3
Others’ injuriesThe experience of others‘There are many who have been injured, so you have an idea.’ Year 1
‘Everyone has had some experience with an injury.’ Year 3
Perception of injuriesIntrapersonal perspectiveConcern‘Well, I went around and worried for a long time. That’s probably why I hesitated when I applied here at all, because like what am I going to do here if I’m in ‘rags’. And then when you didn’t get a hundred either, you were a little disappointed too. I had it as a goal, like, you have to be 100 when you start here.’ Year 1
‘You get a little worried if you feel pain you haven’t felt before, in a place you haven’t had pain before. So, you think, what is it? Should I continue, should I not continue?’ Year 3
Interpersonal perspectiveCulture, acceptance‘Track and field athletes have niggles all the time, somewhere. Especially sprinters.’ Year 3
‘Heard that those who are the best at fighting through injuries are the ones who become the best. Everyone gets hurt at some point.’ Year 1
Lack of medical (social) support‘So, my experience is that the physiotherapist who is connected to the SSHS-A has a lot to do, so you don’t really get the time that you really need.’ Year 3
‘It’s very much an ‘assembly line’, in with the next one, out with that one and so on. It’s like that.’ Year 3
There is social support‘…talked to him who is the coach here. He has like all the time asked how my injury is going and he’s been involved in it, every time we have met each other. So, I have, of course I’ve been a bit worried, but he’s always known about it and sort of cared.’ Year 1
‘If you feel that that was not good, then you just tell them.’ Year 3
Factors contributing to an athletics injuryLack of context-specific knowledgeInaccuracy‘I feel a lot in the gym, if you do exercises wrong. It is important to know from the beginning that you are doing them correctly, because if you do it wrong and then you continue, you become uneven and so on.’ Year 3
‘No, that was the whole first year, meatballs and sausages that was all you ate.’ Year 3
Training structure‘Before, I trained maybe 3, 4, max 5 times a week. Say running then, maybe not that I ran every time but that I trained athletics. And then when I started here, it increased quite a bit. Training 2 times in the same day and stuff like this, things I hadn’t done before. It wasn’t impossible, that you got up 7, 8 sessions a week and so on. Of course, you had a day off. But in any case, it was a big increase compared to what we did before, and the sessions became longer, and to some extent more intense as well. And that was something I, I wanted to invest in too, and then it turned out that you have to increase the amount of training. Maybe just too much for my body.’ Year 3
‘Or too much training, if you run several sessions a day. Kind of like 2.5 hours.’ Year 1
‘After all, we always train on fairly hard surfaces, athletics tracks.’ Year 3
BiopsychosocialLack of recovery‘That there are relatively few elements, if you do one event in athletics, you might be training a little one-sided, I think.’ Year 3
‘It’s more fun to stay up and talk with your friends than to go to bed.’ Year 1
Structure every day‘Then, sometimes it feels like you eat too little and I’ve always eaten too little, like.’ Year 1
‘…you have to plan a lot. Come home at 8 pm and start cooking, even though you don't really have the energy.’ Year 1
Lack of social support‘It is difficult for coaches to know how injured we are.’ Year 3
‘If I think I need to do my rehab, then there shouldn’t be anyone who sort of argues against it. I think that before you set up the week, that is, those who plan, that is, the coaches at and those at home must have some form of communication so that they are reasonably in sync. But if I have to train differently, I think that I should be able to do that, and it shouldn’t be strange that I do.’ Year 3