The process of co-branding of the personal brand of paralympic athletes with their stakeholders in France and Canada[Le processus de co-construction de la marque personnelle des athlètes paralympiques avec leurs parties prenantes en France et au Canada]

In an era where the Paralympic Games are among the world's biggest sporting events, we can wonder about the elements that condition the professionalization and notoriety of top-level para-athletes. After conducting an initial work on the development of the brand of Paralympic athletes in France, as part of my master's degree in Sport Management at the UFR STAPS Lyon 1, this PhD research focuses on the process of co-construction of the personal brand of Paralympic athletes in France and Canada. This work is motivated, firstly, by the lack of existing studies in the literature dealing with the journey and development of Paralympic athletes, as demonstrated by Patatas et al. (2020). Secondly, it is justified by its international dimension, which offers the possibility of analyzing and comparing existing models and programs for the support of para-athletes, between two countries with different political, governmental, cultural, and societal contexts. The main aim of this research is therefore to understand how para-athletes build, or attempt to build, their personal brand, in a context, where they lack expertise in brand creation (Hodge and Walker, 2015) and may not be particularly supported on this dimension. Thus, several research questions guide this investigation : How do Paralympic athletes manage their personal brand? Is it possible to identify a process of co-construction of an athlete's personal brand? Does sponsorship contribute to the development of a Paralympic athlete's brand, and therefore contribute to this co- creation process? Through an idealist ontology, which views social reality as « shared interpretations that social actors produce and reproduce in the course of their daily lives » (Blaikie, 2007, pp. 16-17), this research is built around a qualitative methodology through semi-structured interviews. By conducting interviews (around 60 interviews) with French and Canadian Paralympic athletes, as well as stakeholders such as sponsors, institutions, and media representatives, we concentrate on various aspects (brand equity, brand governance,...) of Paralympic sport marketing. Drawing on Dumont & Ots' (2020) theoretical framework of the social world, we analyze the status of the para-athlete and his/her place in the society and professional sport, the impact of the sports governance from each country on the development of the para-athlete's brand and his/her visibility, and the support and backing they receive in their sporting careers from the various key stakeholders identified. In line with the sport management scientific field, this research will contribute to develop the concept of co-branding and possibly brand governance in the context of Paralympic sport and will provide input for all those involved in the development of the Paralympic brand and its athletes.