Objectives: To measure the evolution, from 2006 to 2011, of high level athletes` level of compliance of their medical follow-up (in reference to the French law) and exploring their perception of it. Method: Data were collected by an online questionnaire among the 458high level athletes in the Lorraine region (East of France). To make the comparison possible, questions were identical to those used in 2006. Main results: Response rate was 53.5%. The responding athletes were composed of 52.2% girls, 90.6% were aged more than 15 years and they were training on average 13 ± 4 hours per week (mean ± standard deviation). More than three quarter of them did benefit from the two medical examinations carried out by a sport doctor, a higher proportion than in 2006. The great majority did benefit neither from dietetic assessment, nor of nutritional council. More than two third of them stated that they had a psychological assessment, a higher proportion than in 2006. All of these exams or assessments are however obligatory according to the French law. The majority of the athletes felt that the follow-up was not a waste of time, not very constraining and that it was complete. Conclusion: Although these results are promising, a nation-wide study should be undertaken to check them among all high level athletes in France.
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