For an elite athlete, the calendar can be crowded years in advance: qualifying events, championship seasons, sponsor commitments and recovery periods.
Deciding when to start a family rarely fits neatly between them. Increasingly, women in sport are making that decision earlier and with more information, whether they hope to become parents soon, years from now or while continuing to compete.
Their plans vary. Some seek medical advice about fertility and pregnancy. Others consider egg freezing or arrange support for travel and childcare.
Still others adjust competition schedules around the arrival of a child. What connects these decisions is a practical question: what would it take to make room for family life in a demanding athletic career?
A career timeline meets a family timeline
In a 2025 survey conducted by fertility company Cofertility and the nonprofit &Mother, more than 350 women athletes from over 18 sports described how competition shaped their family plans. Seventy percent of respondents said they had postponed having children because of their careers. The survey reflects the experiences of its participants; it should not be read as an estimate for every woman athlete.
The gap between expectations and experience was also revealing. Among respondents who already had children, 82% said they had their first by age 35. Among those who wanted children but had not yet had them, 62% planned to do so by that age. Neither figure predicts what will happen for any individual.
Together, they show why some athletes want to discuss family planning before they reach a decision point.
Runners, cyclists and team-sport athletes face different seasons and career lengths, and individual circumstances matter as much as a race calendar. Olympic runner Molly Huddle, who took part in the Cofertility campaign, described wondering how much time she had for both peak performance and parenthood.
Her account captures an uncertainty that can be difficult to address when training occupies the immediate horizon.
Seeking information before choosing a path
For some athletes, planning begins with a conversation rather than a treatment. A clinician can discuss reproductive history, age, goals and the timing of a possible pregnancy. An athlete may also want to ask how heavy training, nutrition or a demanding travel schedule fit into her overall health.
The goal is to understand her circumstances well enough to make a choice, including the choice to take no immediate action.
Egg freezing is one option some women explore when they hope to have children later. It involves ovarian stimulation, retrieval and storage of eggs for potential future use. It can require appointments, medication and time away from a normal training schedule. The American Society for Reproductive Medicine emphasizes that frozen eggs do not guarantee a future pregnancy or child.
Cofertility’s role in the athlete conversation comes partly through its 2025 Level the Playing Field initiative with &Mother. The company offers an egg-sharing program in which eligible participants can freeze eggs without paying for the freezing cycle when they also donate eggs to an intended parent or family.
It also offers a separate program for people who want to keep all their retrieved eggs. These are distinct choices, and the right fit depends on a person’s medical situation, priorities and comfort with each arrangement.
Professional volleyball player Jenny Mosser, identified by Cofertility as a participant in its egg-sharing program, said access to an option helped her think about her athletic career and a possible family on a longer timeline. Her experience is one example of planning ahead, not a template for other athletes.
Pregnancy and competition can require a new plan
Family planning does not end when an athlete becomes pregnant. Training demands, medical needs and the timing of competition may all change. According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, people with uncomplicated pregnancies can generally continue appropriate physical activity, though competitive athletes may need more individualized evaluation and monitoring. Advice depends on the person, the pregnancy and the sport.
Some athletes continue to compete; others take a longer break or change goals.
Paralympic swimmer Mallory Weggemann described competing at national championships while pregnant and later winning gold in Paris with her young daughter watching. Her path illustrates what can be possible for one athlete with her own support and care, without setting an expectation for anyone else’s pregnancy or return to sport.
The next phase can be just as complicated. A return to training may have to account for recovery, feeding, sleep, travel and a child’s care. Performance plans that once involved only a coach and athlete can become family logistics plans, too.
For athletes whose work depends on regular competition, dependable childcare can determine whether a training block or race trip is feasible.
Support extends beyond the athlete
That practical need has prompted new programs outside the clinic. &Mother, now known as For All Mothers+, announced 25 childcare grant recipients in 2026 through a program with Strava and other supporters. The organization said the grants were intended to help mothers with caregiving costs tied to training, travel and racing.
More than three-quarters of applicants identified as recreational athletes or parents returning to sport, underscoring that these questions reach well beyond professionals.
Support may take less visible forms as well: a partner sharing care duties, a team making room for medical appointments, or a coach willing to revise a season’s goals. Olympic sailor Nikki Barnes, another participant in Cofertility’s campaign, has described having a son during one Olympic training cycle and planning for a second child after another.
Her schedule is personal, but the underlying approach is familiar: look ahead, gather information and adapt as circumstances change.
There is no single calendar for an athletic career or a family.
The emerging picture from athlete accounts and support programs is one of women making different decisions with the same aim: having enough information and practical help to decide how sport and family life can fit together on their own terms.