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Réseau grand INSEP, Accompagnement à la performance

Awareness workshops within the Grand INSEP network: menstruation, menstrual cycles and urinary stress incontinence at the heart of performance

INSEP and the grand INSEP network have always been keen to address issues relating to menstruation, menstrual cycles and stress urinary incontinence and their impact on performance. For a long time, these issues were dealt with peripherally within the various projects carried out by INSEP and the RGI. The 2021-2024 Olympiad marked a turning point and put the focus on these subjects, bringing a form of awakening and awareness concerning the issues and effects linked to these topics.

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More specifically, echoing various publications by the French Ministry of Sports, Youth and the Voluntary Sector, as well as research projects on the subject, the RGI has launched a campaign of awareness-raising workshops in the network's centers, with the aim of encouraging people to speak out, lifting taboos, and raising the awareness of both elite athletes and staff about this central component of performance.

Over the course of the 2021-2024 Olympiad, INSEP teams (gynecologists, physical therapists, scientific project managers, etc.) have visited 15 centers in the grand INSEP network to discuss issues with elite athletes and management teams, enabling them to consider ways of improving communication, knowledge of the subject and the listening posture of staff, and thus optimizing athlete performance.

In total, more than 600 sportswomen and 250 staff members received training and support on this subject. These awareness-raising workshops also led to the launch of a number of local initiatives, including gynecologist visits to the centers, more documentation and information on the subject, conferences, workshops and other events. A scientific publication will be published in 2025, drawing on the wealth of information gathered (anonymously) from elite sportswomen as part of these awareness-raising workshops.

Echoing the success of these “ Periods, cycles and performance ” awareness-raising workshops, INSEP has also relied on the grand INSEP network to launch another campaign, this time concerning stress urinary incontinence. In collaboration with the CNOSF (French National Olympic Committee), awareness-raising videos featuring a range of exercises have been produced, providing further support in the fight against urinary stress incontinence, which affects almost 75% of elite athletes in France. Several centers in the network have already hosted these awareness-raising workshops, and more are planned for the 2025-2028 Olympiad.

To view all the videos on stress urinary incontinence, click on the following link: Sportswomen's perineum and prevention of urinary stress incontinence