A discussion on the emergence of new creative methodologies in the field of sport studies

Sport is a creative endeavour. It is simultaneously complex and simple, it forces participants to actualise tactics from training sessions and, ultimately, create opportunities for success. Contrastingly, many aspects of sport are quite measurable. Statistics and probabilities have sport scholars leaning heavily to quantitative research as opposed to qualitative. Sport is arguably both a science and an art, but related research is hardly reflective of this. The purpose of this chapter is to evidence and discuss the creative ways in which sport has been studied qualitatively. We first consider digital methods, including the use of social media and smartphone applications as ways to collect meaningful data. Next, we present design and artbased methods, including photography, drawing, and novel ways of analysing qualitative findings. We then present a case study that demonstrates how digital and art-based methods can be integrated with a research project This Woman Does!, from Loughborough University London, exploring women’s relationship with physical activity and exercise in and out of their workplace. Finally, we present an emerging embodied methodology, which uses the body as the research method. We conclude by emphasising that creative methods provide an alternative way of studying sport, in an interpretive, relational and generative way. In conjunction with other methods, it can enrich and expand sports research. We encourage sport researchers to consider using creative, qualitative inquiry to appreciate, investigate, and attempt to understand the complexities of sport and progress the field in novel ways.