Holly Thorpe (she/her) is a Professor in the Sociology of Sport and Gender at the University of Waikato (New Zealand). She has published over 140 articles and chapters, and five books and nine co-edited books, including the Palgrave Handbook of Menstruation Studies in Sport (2026), Feminist New Materialisms, Sport and Fitness (2020), and Women in Action Sport Cultures (2016). She is co-editor of the Palgrave New Femininities in Digital, Physical and Sporting Cultures series (with Kim Toffoletti, Aarti Ratna and Jessica Francombe-Webb). Driven to do research that has real world impact and concerned for issues of equity and inclusion, Holly works with an array of national and international sports organisations to build more inclusive sporting cultures. New Handbook of Menstruation in Sport coming out soon, The Palgrave Handbook of Menstruation Studies in Sport | Springer Nature Link Themes discussed in the podcast:Holly's background in action sports and how it shaped her academic pathFemale athlete health, menstruation, and REDS (Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport)The biopsychosocial approach to understanding women in sportInterdisciplinary collaboration — working across sociology, physiology, endocrinologyThe new Palgrave Handbook of Menstruation Studies in Sport (2026)Cultural and ethnic diversity in female athlete health researchWorking with sports organisations (High Performance Sport NZ, Sport NZ, IOC, Snow Sports NZ)Action sports, the Olympics, and expanding opportunities for women and girlsThe IOC's controversial return to mandatory sex testingThe slow pace of change and strategies for sustaining feminist sports research

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