Identifying Social and Cultural Consequences of Success of Muslim Female Athlete in International Sporting Events

The purpose of the present study was to identify the social and cultural consequences of success of Muslim female athletes in cross-country sporting events. The research method was qualitative and phenomenological. The study population included athletes with more than 3 years of experience in major sporting events. The sampling method was purposively selected and data were collected with 9 athletes. The data collection tool was a semi-structured interview, and data collection continued until theoretical saturation, meaning that the researcher did not obtain new data and code after the seventh interview, thereby halting the sampling process (7 + 2). Coding method and inductive approach to final themes were used for data analysis. For data analysis, NVivo version 10 was used. The findings showed that the consequences of success were classified into two categories: social consequences and cultural consequences. The results show that one of the consequences of the success of Muslim women in the athlete community is the importance of presence of women in sport and the increasing desire to fill leisure time and pursue professional sport.