Turning the Country into an “Immense and Clamorous Stadium”: Perón,the New Argentina,and the 1951 Pan-American Games

Abstract

During the Peronist regime (1946–1955), the Argentine government encouraged and financed a wide variety of sports activities. This investment bore fruit internationally and Juan Perón tried to make political capital out of the achievements of Argentine individual athletes or national teams in international competitions. Such achievements were presented as a collective victory of Argentine society, transcending the divisions of social class, ethnic origins, place of residence, or political affiliation. Argentine participation in the London Olympics in 1948, the hosting of the world basketball championship in Buenos Aires in 1950, and above all the organization of the first Pan-American games in the Argentine in March 1951, all, served to promote patriotism and national unity at home and improve the country’s image in the international scene. This paper focuses on an analysis of a 250-page book published by the sports magazine Mundo Deportivo, sponsored by the Peronist government, on the eve of the games. Both the text and the images attest to its populist character, its quest for modernity, emphasis on social mobility, and an authoritarian way of imposing national unity. The initiative to hold such games in Argentina dated back to 1940 but it had to be postponed twice: first to 1948 because of the Second World War, and then to 1951 because of the London Olympic Games. Perón’s government wanted these games to serve as a proof of the regime’s success. To that end, the president urged the organizers to ‘spur no effort’, promising them any financial assistance they might need. A year and a half before the inaugural ceremony, held at the Racing stadium (officially named the President Perón Stadium), the organizational effort moved into high gear, and Perón supervized it personally. Argentina was indeed the big winner in this event, its athletes capturing a total of 153 medals.     

Employers’ support for adult higher education students in liberal post-socialist contexts

In most European countries, the proportion of adult students among both full-time and part-time workers has increased significantly over recent decades. Undertaking paid work is also increasingly common among traditional students. The opportunities to work while studying depend largely on the role of employers in promoting learning. However, both theoretical frameworks and empirical studies typically focus on the behaviour of firms in providing training. The support of employers for formal adult education has remained a marginal topic. The aim of this article is to analyse the contributions of employers to the acquisition of higher education from the perspective of the adult learners; we investigated how employers support their staff in higher education studies. We also tried to identify which kinds of learners have a better chance of receiving various benefits. We used two different data-sets: quantitative data from a study of adult students in higher education and qualitative data from interviews with managers of small- and medium-sized enterprises and at least one employed participant in formal adult education, collected in the framework of the international research project Towards a Lifelong Learning Society in Europe: The Contribution of the Education System supported by the EU Sixth Framework Programme.     

Looking for a Refuge of ‘Normalcy’ during the Argentine Dictatorship: The Case of Atlanta Football Club

Abstract

This article examines the history of Club Atlético Atlanta of Buenos Aires during the years of the military dictatorship (1976–1983) within the framework of efforts to reconsider the impact of repression on everyday life. Club Atlético Atlanta is a microcosm of Argentine society, and it contained everything: from victims of repression, to the son of genocidal general Roberto Eduardo Viola. Conformism, indifference, adaptation, support for the military authorities, or opposition to them, as well as resistance strategies, were a mosaic of expressions showing that various attitudes coexisted while facing the impact of state terror on daily life. The advent of dictatorship did not mean the same rupture for everyone, and did not alter in the same way certain dimensions of everyday life and routines for different individuals and groups. The story of a neighbourhood club such as Atlanta and the perceptions and memories of its fans may help us move forward on this path, to ascertain the links between the ‘micro’ level of social life and the great narratives of politics and the State.     

Sport,Politics and Exile: Protests in Israel during the World Cup (Argentina, 1978)

This article seeks to analyze certain questions concerning the protests mounted against the 1978 World Cup. After a brief review of the military government's efforts to use the World Cup to legitimize its dictatorship, to Argentine society as well as the rest of the world, we examine the reactions of world public opinion to the fact that this event was being held in a country ruled by a repressive, criminal regime. Our focus, however, is on the people and groups in Israel who used the occasion of the World Cup to protest and denounce the crimes committed in Argentina. The Israeli case is particularly interesting because of the close relations between Israel and the Argentine dictatorship, as well as the fact that Israel had a large community of Latin American immigrants, most of them Argentines. Their numbers steadily increased as several hundred exiles fled the horrors of the military dictatorship.     

Influence of a proprioceptive training on functional ankle stability in young speed skaters – a prospective randomised study

The influence of a 12-week-proprioceptive training on functional ankle stability was investigated in young speed skaters. Twenty-eight speed skaters were randomly divided into an intervention (n = 14) and into a control group (n = 14). A 15-min circle training was performed 5 times per week over a 12-week period. Measurements were taken prior to the training, after 6 and 12 weeks of training. Kinaesthesia was evaluated with the Isomed2000 in all movements of the ankle joint. Dynamic balance was tested with the Biodex Stability System at the stable level 8 and at the unstable level 2, measuring the overall stability index, the anterior/posterior and the medial/lateral scores. Static single-leg stance was evaluated using the Kistler force platform. Kinaesthesia of the intervention group improved significantly for plantarflexion of the right foot (P = 0.001) after 12 weeks. Dynamic balance showed significant differences in the intervention group after 12 weeks in comparison with the first measurement for each foot in the overall stability index, the anterior/posterior and the medial/lateral scores (P ≤ 0.017, respectively) at the unstable level 2. Functional ankle stability improved in terms of dynamic balance after 12 weeks of proprioceptive training. Therefore, inclusion of proprioceptive exercises in the daily training programme is recommended for young speed skaters.     

Effect of Participatory Research on Farmers' Knowledge and Practice of IPM: The Case of Cotton in Benin

Purpose: This study assesses the effect of participatory research on farmers' knowledge and practice of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) in Benin. The participatory field experiments were carried out during the 2011–2012 cotton growing season, and focused on the development and application of pest management knowledge.

Methodology: A ‘Difference-in-Differences’ methodology was used to document the changes in farmers' knowledge and practices across the following season, 2012–2013. Of the 180 cotton growers sampled, 150 took part in the research, while 30 served as the control.

Findings: Participation in the research increased farmers' ability to recognise pests and natural enemies and how to use thresholds and apply bio-pesticides. Increase in knowledge did not lead to any modification in the farmers' use of neem oil and the entomopathogen Beauveria, but it did lead to a significant change in threshold-based pesticide applications. Farmers seemed to want to reduce pest management costs, whatever the type of pesticide recommended (conventional or bio-based).

Practical Implications: Development practitioners should be aware that changes in practices of IPM are not only knowledge driven. Other factors such as financial consideration and specific input availability are also needed for the success of an effective pest management strategy.

Originality/Value: In any interactive process, the Difference-in-Differences methodology is an appropriate tool for an effective assessment of changes in farmers' knowledge and practices over time.     

Graduate teacher motivation for choosing a job in education

This article compares individuals already in teaching and non-teaching teacher graduates, and explores the motivation to pursue a teaching job based on job motives and work values. From the response of 241 recently graduated teachers it may be concluded that teachers consider intrinsic, altruistic and interpersonal features as strong job-specific motivators. Furthermore, teachers prefer altruistic and interpersonal work values, while non-teachers are more attracted by individualistic work values such as career opportunities and executive power.