ABSTRACT
In this chapter, one prominent Canadian elite 800-m runner's (i.e., Melissa Bishop-Nriagu) public stories of motherhood and negotiating a running career are explored. Data collected from digital media (e.g., Instagram, running magazines, news) are re-presented as an ethnodrama. Ethnodrama involves the creation of a play script, by dramatizing selections from digital narrative segments and images thematically analyzed, to tell an evocative story across the motherhood journey. After outlining relevant literature on motherhood, sport, narrative inquiry, and embodiment, the what, why, and how of ethnodrama are outlined. Next, a play script in two acts is presented, which draws on ethnodrama techniques of creating a central character via monologues directed to the audience and to the self (i.e., soliloquy). The multiple plotlines created in the two acts and scenes feed into tensions of embodied pregnancy and post-partum periods, in relation to biomedical, risk, sport performance, and good motherhood narratives. The ethnodrama is theoretically laden and speaks for itself rather than offering interpretations for readers. The chapter concludes with reflections on future directions in athlete mother research using ethnodrama.
