Elite sport has created an arena of intense competition among nations, emphasizing the need to examine factors influencing competitiveness in elite sport. Accordingly, this study aimed to develop a model of micro-level factors influencing the competitiveness of elite sport in the Islamic Republic of Iran, conducted in two stages. In the first stage, researchers identified micro-level factors through qualitative semi-structured interviews. In the second stage, using the Total Interpretive Structural Modeling (total ISM) approach, researchers designed a model of micro-level factors. The frist stage included 15 semi-structured open-ended interviews with experts, including professors of sport management, sport administrators, coaches, athletes, and media professionals, until theoretical saturation was reached. In the second stage, 12 sport management experts completed a pairwise comparison questionnaire of the identified factors. Expert selection in both stage was purposive and based on accessibility. The findings placed “athletes’ innate talent” at the third level of the model and in the driver quadrant of MICMAC analysis. The factors “family,” “lifestyle,” and “athletes’ psychological-personality traits” were located at the second level and in the linkage quadrant. “Competitiveness in elite sport in Iran” was placed at the first level and in the dependent quadrant of the analysis. As a result, Elite sport competitiveness at the micro level is the result of the synergy between innate talent, family support, psychological-personality traits, and athletes lifestyle. These factors, through systemic interactions, adherence to institutional norms, and the creation of competitive advantages, ensure the athlete’s ability to win medals and maintain competitiveness in elite sports.