Provincial governments and China’s international mega-sports events: a case study of Guangdong

This article intends to understand factors that determine provincial governments’ attitudes in supporting China’s international mega sports events. Through examining the tasks completed by the Guangdong provincial government for the 2010 Guangzhou Asian Games and the 2011 Shenzhen Summer World University Games, the findings confirmed that the political consideration of central leaders, the personal judgements of provincial authorities as well as the factional connection of municipal chiefs were all significant. The article concludes that to scrutinize all the powerful figures of the central, provincial and municipal governments is essential for future academic works with the aim of comprehending the attitude of the Chinese provincial governments towards any sport-related issues.     

Tensions in stakeholder relations for a Swedish football club – a case study

Swedish football is an industry not yet being as commercial as the big leagues and is regulated in terms of ownership of clubs. This implies a need for management of stakeholder relations for a Swedish football club. This paper identifies important stakeholders in Swedish football and discusses the multitude of – sometimes conflicting – objectives in managing these relations. The empirical base of the study is founded in a case study of Malmö FF, one of the dominant clubs in Sweden, with a qualitative single case research approach. Data are collected by means of semi-structured interviews and participant observations. The results of the study show a number of tensions as paradoxes for stakeholder management, suggest management dispositions to reconcile these paradoxes and suggest areas for further research.     

Fan culture and motivation in the context of successful women’s professional team sports: a mixed-methods case study of Portland Thorns fandom

Abstract

By the metric of average home attendance, the Portland Thorns of the National Women’s Soccer League are the most popular women’s professional sports team in the world. This paper investigates that distinct sports context through a mixed-methods case study of Thorns fandom, asking what fans themselves perceive to be salient elements of a successful fan culture for women’s professional soccer and what motivates their fandom. Drawing on survey data that are contextualized by ethnographic observations and interviews, we offer an interpretive analysis of ways Thorns fandom hybridizes elements of traditional and alternative sports fandom. Our findings highlight the emphasis Thorns fans put on quality soccer in a professional atmosphere where fans themselves create the supporters culture, along with the symbolic importance to fans of identifying with values such as gender empowerment, diversity and inclusion. We discuss ways these themes might offer and inform alternative models of sports fandom.     

A coaches’ perspective on the contribution of anthropometry,physical performance,and motor coordination in racquet sports

ABSTRACT

Differences and similarities between table tennis and other racquet sports exist, but are not well documented in the literature, in spite of the relevance for talent identification. In this study we aimed at identifying the key characteristics of table tennis in comparison with tennis and badminton based upon a survey in coaches. A total of 177 licensed coaches from all across the world and with diverse professional backgrounds completed a survey on anthropometric measures, physical performance, and motor coordination skills. On a scale from 1 to 10, coaches indicated to what extent a talent characteristic was important for their sport. MANOVA identified key differences as well as similarities between all three racquet sports and a subsequent discriminant analysis allocated coaches correctly for table tennis, tennis, and badminton 81.01%, 55.6%, and 71.4% respectively. Our results show that table tennis and other racquet sport coaches are well aware of differences between the racquet sports and also the importance and value of testing and assortment of skill components. These findings can assist coaches in future talent orientation and transfer in racquet sports.     

The role of community sports coaches in creating optimal social conditions for life skill development and transferability – a salutogenic perspective

Sport is widely recognised as having the potential to enhance the personal development of socially vulnerable youth, yet there is very limited knowledge on how community sports coaches can create optimal social conditions for life skill development and transferability. We adopt a salutogenic approach in order to study whether and how community sports coaches create these optimal social conditions. Based on the salutogenic framework, a thematic analysis was conducted of 15 in-depth interviews with community sports coaches providing sports lessons to socially vulnerable youth. As part of the interviews, the sports coaches were presented with several training scenarios and asked how they would respond in specific training situations. The results showed that the sports coaches aimed to create meaningful sporting experiences for youths. These meaningful sporting experiences were considered a precondition for keeping youths engaged in the sporting activities, as well as a precondition for life skill development. The sports coaches specifically focused on creating little moments of success and on making sure that the youths felt they belonged to a group. In order to ensure that the youths could experience moments of success, specific coaching strategies were implemented to increase the youths’ comprehensibility and manageability in specific sport situations. According to the sports coaches, experiencing little moments of success could contribute to an increase in socially vulnerable youths’ understanding of the everyday challenges that they face, as well as contribute to their ability to deal with these challenges. Creating meaningful sporting experiences may help youths ‘to learn to cope' – a skill that could be beneficial over their lifespan and in different societal domains.     

The media construction of the sports’ elite from the European perspective: an analysis of the European Symposium of Sports 2010

Since the first Olympic Games, the figure of the athlete has roused enormous passion. One may wonder if nowadays the cultural mechanisms that produce them are analogous and perform the same functions as in the past. This article aims to answer these questions. For this purpose, we have relied on the analysis of the discourse from different actors in the 2010 European Symposium of Sports “Thinking Sports, Transforming Society: The EU in favor of citizenship for the XXI Century”. The results will provide relevant information about the responsibility of the mass media in the production of a sports spectacle, the role of the big brands and the exemplarity of the sports’ elite. In this manner, the need was conveyed of producing a different view of sports, so that in the contest between humanistic values and materialistic values, those who contribute to the welfare of the citizens could achieve glory.     

How to win a bid for major sporting events? A stakeholder analysis of the 2018 Olympic Winter Games French bid

While understanding the planning and hosting of major sporting events is a popular research area, less is known about the bid process despite the potential economic and political spinoffs. Some studies offer criteria for successful bids and even consider the stakeholder network as a key factor. Considering the importance of the stakeholder network, we delve deeper into this area. Using the power, legitimacy and urgency framework by Mitchell et al. (1997), we examine the 2018 Olympic Winter Games’ French national bid competition (four candidacies) to analyse the stakeholder relationships, identify their salience and then determine stakeholder-based bid key success factors. Archival material and 28 interviews were analysed. We notably found that to increase the probability of winning, no actor alone should have a definitive status, the sport stakeholder group should have at least the expectant status, and no strategic stakeholder should have the latent status. We also find that a three-level analysis of the stakeholder network allows for a greater understanding of the bid governance and process dynamics at play, which help to elucidate a successful bid. We contribute to the literature by (a) showing how stakeholder salience analysis can assist in understanding the bid network governance structure; (b) demonstrating that stakeholder salience depends on the level which is analysed (local, between bids, and with the event owner), the stage (deciding to bid, national bid competition, national bid win/international competition), and the case/context; and (c) determining stakeholder-based key bid success factors such as who should and should not be more salient in the bid process.     

The effect of equipment scaling on children’s sport performance: the case for tennis

The influence of scaling court-size and net height on children’s tennis performance was examined. Sixteen boys (9.7 ± 0.5 years) had to perform a 30-min match in four different conditions, where court-size and/or net height were scaled by using a scaling ratio based on the differences in temporal demands between the children and the adult game. These 30-min matches were analysed using Tennis Analyst (FairPlay Ltd., Jindalee, QLD, Australia) software to determine typical tennis match performance characteristics. Children hit more winners, more forced errors, played more volleys, struck more shots from a comfortable height and played in a more forward court position when the net was scaled. Scaling both the court and net lead to a faster children’s game, more closely approximating what is typical of the adult game. The differences between the typical tennis performance variables recorded suggested that scaling the net led to a more aggressive way of playing. Further, children enjoyed playing on the standard court–scaled net condition more than standard adult conditions. It is suggested that optimising the scaling of net height may be as critical as other task constraints, such as racquet length or court-size, as it leads to a more engaging learning environment for experienced children.     

Listening to students’ silences – a case study examining students’ participation and non-participation in physical education

Background: For years researchers have been engaged in revealing the impact of the hidden curriculum in physical education (PE) on students’ participation and non-participation. The hidden PE curriculum encompasses the knowledge, the relations, the assumptions, the norms and the beliefs that students unconsciously and unintentionally learn through the process of education. As the hidden curriculum reinforces particular values and attitudes among students in a very subtle and often unnoticed fashion, it limits students’ possibilities for becoming aware of, and thus reporting, how the tacit messages communicated through the hidden curriculum impact on their position of participation and non-participation. Thus, in this article, we argue that examining students’ silences, that is the things students do not voice, is significant for the understanding of the impact of the hidden curriculum on students’ participation and non-participation in PE.

Purposes: In this article, we aim to develop insight into students’ silences in order to elucidate how aspects of the hidden curriculum serve to reinforce some students’ non-participation in PE. Much attention has been devoted to particular values and attitudes unintentionally transmitted by teachers in PE. However, in this article, we examine how the everyday exchanges between the students themselves may also convey a hidden set of meanings, that impact on students’ actual experiences of the PE curriculum, and thus mitigate the intended effects of students’ participation.

Research design: The backdrop for this article is a single-case study carried out in a multi-ethnic and co-educational secondary school in Denmark from January to December 2014. The article draws on material collected through focus group interviews with 7th grade students (including participant-diagrams filled out by students) along with observations of their PE classes. The observations took place once a week throughout the whole calendar year.

Findings: In the article, we point to students’ intentional silences that are highly reflective of the normative expectations negotiated within the peer group. In addition, we show that the pressures toward social conformity have a direct impact on the positions of non-participation intentionally taken up by some of the less socially respected students in PE. These students were highly aware that how they behaved in PE and what they voiced in the interviews might have consequences for their peer group connections within PE and for their social reputation among peers outside of PE. In addition, we add to the current literature on student silence by pointing to a category of non-privileged silences. These silences revealed that a minor group of students were not aware of or had not recognized their position as non-participants in PE. Moreover, they appeared unable to imagine that things could be different and to voice a desire for change.

Conclusions: We argue that our findings reveal critical aspects of students’ non-participation that would be difficult to access if we did not listen to, hear and attempt to understand students’ silences. In order to extend the knowledge base on students’ participation and non-participation in PE, we hope that this article may also encourage other researchers to let students’ silences breathe and speak.     

Perception of the new competition formats in the Innsbruck 2012 Youth Olympic Games sports programme—A spectators’ perspective

The Youth Olympic Games (YOG) was initiated by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 2007 aiming to reach out to a younger target group. Besides the introduction of a Culture and Education Programme the creation of new competition formats was an important initiative. The objective of this study was to assess the spectators’ perception of the new sports competitions at the first Winter YOG 2012 in Innsbruck, Austria. The aim was to understand how the Games were perceived by on-site spectators attending the event. For this purpose a quantitative research approach was chosen. Based on an extensive literature review a paper questionnaire was developed and distributed among the spectators during the YOG in Innsbruck. The results revealed that the Level of Performance was perceived very positively across all competitions. Regarding the Entertainment Value, Future Development, Eustress and Rules the spectators’ perception differed between the various competitions. The findings from the study in hand provide important insights for future organisers of sports events and other related stakeholders (federations and sports clubs) with respect to the implementation of new sports competitions.     

Sport disciplines,types of sports,and waist circumference in young adulthood – a population-based twin study

Purpose: The benefits of physical activity (PA) in preventing abdominal obesity are well recognized, but the role of different sport disciplines remains open. We aimed, therefore, to investigate how participation in different sport disciplines, and the number and types of sports engaged in are associated with waist circumference (WC) in young adulthood. Methods: This population-based cohort study comprised 4027 Finnish twin individuals (1874 men), with a mean age of 34 y (32–37), who answered a survey, including self-measured WC. We extracted the number and identified the types (aerobic, power, and mixed) of the different sport disciplines respondents reported participating in. Results: The number of sport disciplines participated in was inversely associated with WC, the linear decrease averaging 1.38?cm (95% CI 1.10–1.65) per each additional sport discipline. The result persisted after adjustment for the main covariates, such as volume of PA and diet quality. Among dizygotic twin pairs discordant for sports participation (0–2 vs. 5 or more disciplines), the mean within-pair difference in WC was 4.8?cm (95% CI 0.4–9.1) for men and 11.2?cm (95% CI 4.4–18.0) for women; among discordant monozygotic pairs, no differences were observed. In men, all three types of sports were individually associated with smaller WC, while in women, only mixed and power sports showed this association. Conclusions: Participation in several sport disciplines and sport types was associated with smaller WC among young adults in their mid-30s. Shared genetic background may explain some of the associations.     

Role models in sports – Can success in professional sports increase the demand for amateur sport participation?

The determinants of the demand for sport participation have been extensively analyzed. This study intends to complement these determinants by examining the question of whether the success of professional athletes can spill over on the demand for amateur sport participation. A theoretical framework of sporting role models was developed and subsequently tested with a stated preference approach and primary data of N = 1413 amateur soccer players from Germany. The results show that past success of both the female and the male German national soccer teams had increased the demand for amateur soccer only slightly. However, present (hypothetical) success of the national teams considerably increases the demand for the frequency of soccer participation of already active players. The estimation of ordered logit regression models validates the constructed framework. Availability and relevance of the role models as well as similarity to the role models are the main predictors of their motivational effect.     

On the fast track? Using standard contracts in public–private partnerships for sports facilities: A case study

Public–private partnerships (PPPs) for the provision of public infrastructure involve costly contracting processes. Standard contracts are modularly structured documents, which provide standard terms for these processes; it is argued that they help reduce transaction costs by limiting the room for contractual negotiations. We investigate the use of standard contracts in an embedded case study of a PPP policy program in the Belgian sports sector, and apply notions of standardization theory and transaction cost economics to explain the differences in the success of using these contracts. On the basis of desk research and interviews, our study demonstrates both successful and unsuccessful usage of standard contracts across a range of subcases, which include artificial pitches, sports halls, and multifunctional sports centers. Unsuccessful cases were characterized by an interference of local governments’ interests that was poorly managed by the leading public actor, and a persistently rigid attitude at the negotiation table of this latter actor. We further relate the different degrees of success to inappropriate government responses to the assets at hand. Finally, we proclaim a more cautious approach toward the standardization of contracts, both in theory and practice.     

Actors who can’t play in the sports film: exploring the cinematic construction of sports performance

The sports film often focuses upon character psychology and narrative in the cinematic capturing and construction of sport and sports performance. However, the limited attention given to the role of the actor’s body threatens to compromise this seamless dramatic structure of the narrative, not to mention viewer identification with the protagonist, thus leading to inadequate sporting technique that fails to achieve verisimilitude. This paper looks to address the limitations in the actor’s bodily performance, by rethinking the relationship between the actor’s physical portrayal and their cinematic construction. I argue that cinematic techniques should function as an extension of the actor’s body, thus creating a more seamless fusion between the two. Adopting such a method would facilitate a more heightened representation of sports performance, while contributing to the unfolding of the plot through the bodily interactions between the actors during the spectacle of sports sequences.     

The impact of social influence on physical activity among adolescents – a longitudinal study

Abstract

Objectives: The purpose of the current study was to examine the impact of social support and negative social influence from various contexts on adolescents' current and intended physical activity (C&IPA) two years later. In addition, social influence related to C&IPA at baseline (16–17 years old) is compared to follow-up (18–19 years old). Methods: Questionnaire data was obtained from 404 students at the age of 16–17 and again at the age of 18–19. Relationships among variables were examined with structural equation modelling (SEM). Results: Social influence experienced by high-school students at 16–17 years of age had a direct suppressing effect and an indirect positive effect on their C&IPA two years later. Social support for physical activity was more complex and related to positive as well as negative relations at the age of 16–17 compared to two years later. Conclusions: The results imply that social support to adolescents should be offered over a longer period of time, with increased focus on its significance as a link from an initially external regulation to a more internal regulation of physical activity as students get older. Closer examination of maintaining, pro-activating and intervening effects of social support could enhance our understanding of direct and indirect effects of social support on physical activity.     

‘Re-branding’ women’s football by means of a new Sports product: a case study of women’s football in Denmark

Women’s football (soccer in the US) does not reach the same overall popularity levels as men’s football measured on a variety of factors, i.e. league attendances, participants, media attention, fan engagement or strength of business models as it translates into brand equity and revenue generation. This article investigates how a new sports product, i.e. a new football (soccer ball) labelled ‘Sensational 1’, and its interaction with positive participation numbers concerning women’s football in Denmark can enhance the brand equity of women’s football in Denmark and exploit the associated commercial opportunities. In doing so, the article discusses how this development relates to factors like winning and success, passion and the business of sports, accountability and role models, brand articulation and marketability in the context of women’s football in Denmark.     

The outcomes of running a sport camp for children and youth with visual impairments on faculty members’ teaching,research, and service activities: a case study

Abstract

We explored the outcomes of running a sport camp for children and youth with visual impairment on faculty members’ roles. Seven adapted physical activity faculty members were interviewed. Questionnaires and documents were also analyzed and a variety of strategies were employed to ensure the study’s trustworthiness. Regarding the teaching role, disability knowledge and real life examples gave faculty more credibility in conducting their class. As for the research role, the outcomes were not shared by the majority of participants and seemed to rely on aspects such as camp maturity, directors’ aptitudes, and partnerships. In turn, running the camp was a means for faculty members to perform their external service roles. These potential outcomes may become a significant part of the process by which people enact their institutional roles and may serve as a framework for future studies with a more hypothesis-driven approach.