Stress urinary incontinence is still a taboo subject in the sporting world. However, according to some studies, this is a reality experienced by a large number of high-level athletes, and up to 80% in certain specific sports.
These athletes report urinary leakage not only during their workouts, but also in their daily lives.
Meaghan Benfeito, a three-time Olympic diving medalist and mother of a young son, knows this reality well.
I think we don’t talk about it enough. You get out of the pool and sometimes you can leak urine. It happens to both men and women. This is completely normal. It’s not because we are athletes and in shape that it doesn’t happen to us, on the contrary.
According to several researches, many sports are affected, especially those with high impact. The authors of one of them1 report, for example, that 80% of the elite trampolinists they studied experienced episodes of urinary leakage. The authors of another study2 noted a prevalence of 50% and 30%, respectively, among female basketball players and volleyball players.
Another study3carried out in particular by Dr Carole Maître, gynecologist and sports doctor as well as vice-president of the medical commission of the French Institute of Sport, Expertise and Performance (INSEP) and published in 2011, noted a prevalence of around 50% among female athletes in gymnastics, soccer, athletics and cross-country skiing.
Geneviève Tardif
Photo : -
According to François Bieuzen, physiologist and director of sports science at theINS Quebec, urinary incontinence affects the majority of athletes. This phenomenon is linked to the abdominal pressure exerted during numerous physical movements. The more often the movement is repeated, the greater the risk.
This pressure can overload the pelvic floor which supports the bladder. During intense effort, if the abdominal muscles and the perineum are not properly used, excessive pressure is exerted on the bladder, leading to urinary leakage.
he explains.
Contrary to popular belief, urinary incontinence does not only affect older women or those who have had children, but also young athletes under the age of 25, often without children. Because the subject is still taboo, many athletes try to find solutions on their own to avoid leaks.
Open in full screen mode
Urinary incontinence affects a majority of high-level athletes.
Photo : afp via getty images / GABRIEL BOUYS
Now a CrossFit fan, Meaghan Benfeito continues to live this reality, even in the gym, during certain exercises.
We should not think that we are weak because we have urinary leaks, she insists. I went to the Olympics, won medals, and had bladder leaks my entire athletic life. It’s not a problem!
Luckily for her, her diving teammates and coaches never judged her. We laughed about it, because it was normal!
she says.
Other athletes who struggle with these leaks prefer to hide, which can hinder their performance and even prevent them from training or competing.
In sports like gymnastics or dance, where every movement is scrutinized, the discomfort caused by these leaks can be decisive in a career.
mentions François Bieuzen.
An article from France Info4 published in 2023 also reveals that a physical trainer, Mathieu Pereira, noticed a strange habit among the female athletes of the national trampoline team: they avoided drinking water during training. Intrigued, he asked them why. The answer: Because I don’t want to piss myself.
Which says a lot about the weight of this taboo in the sporting world.
Prevention and education
The key, according to François Bieuzen, lies above all in prevention. This lack of upstream education is a real problem. We don’t educate young girls before they become adults. This is often only after childbirth, when it would be essential to address the issue earlier
he notes.
What I realize is that athletes are poorly informed about their bodies!
According to him, you need to do exercises to learn to strengthen the perineum and control the bladder while integrating breathing techniques and mobilizing the abdominal muscles. A physiotherapist can be a valuable ally in helping the athlete better understand their body.
Moreover, Égale Action, in partnership with theINS Quebec, recently launched a new brochure on the physiology of women’s sports, which addresses subjects such as pregnancy, menstruation, but also stress incontinence.
Open in full screen mode
The brochure Physiology of women’s sport, from Égale Action and INS Québec
Photo : -
In 2023, theINSEPin France, launched a series of informative videos on stress urinary incontinence with the participation of high-level athletes such as gymnast Marine Boyer, fencer Sara Balzer and para-athlete Mandy Francois-Elie. François Bieuzen hopes that this type of awareness campaign will also be implemented in Quebec, in order to help athletes better understand this reality.
And the men in all this?
Stress urinary incontinence affects women more due to their physiology, but men are not spared.
During certain exercises, such as crunchs (bust lifts, a variation of sit-ups, Editor’s note), poor posture or too much pressure on the perineum can also lead to urinary leakage. It is therefore important to also include men in this preventive education
insists François Bieuzen.
1 : Prevalence of stress incontinence in nulliparous elite trampolinistsby Eliasson et al, published in 2002 in the Scandinavian Journal of Medecine and Science in Sports
2 : Brazilian Journal of Sports Medicinewhose findings were published in 2011
3 : Urinary incontinence in athletesby Carole Maître and Thierry Harvey, Carole Maître, Thierry Harvey, 2011
4 ; Saying “I peed on myself” is demeaning and shameful
: stress urinary incontinence among high-level athletes, a taboo to be lifted
