The political process of constructing a sustainable London Olympics sports development legacy

This study attempts to develop a research agenda for understanding the process of constructing a sustainable Olympic sports development legacy. The research uses a social constructivist perspective to examine the link between the 2012 London Olympic Games and sustainable sports development. The first part of the paper provides justification for the study of sport policy processes using a constructivist lens. This is followed by a section which critically unpacks sustainable sports development drawing on Mosse’s (1998) ideas of process-oriented research and Searle’s conceptualisation of the construction of social reality. Searle’s (1995) concepts of the assignment of function, collective intentionality, collective rules, and human capacity to cope with the environment are considered in relation to the events and discourses emerging from the legacy vision(s) associated with the 2012 London Olympic Games. The paper concludes by proposing a framework for engaging in process oriented research and highlights key elements, research questions, and methodological issues. The proposed constructivist approach can be used to inform policy, practice, and research on sustainable Olympic sports development legacy

Keeping it liminal. The Mondiali Antirazzisti (Anti-racist World Cup) as a multifocal interaction ritual

© 2013 Taylor & Francis. This paper examines how social mixing and celebration of diversity can be enabled through sports festivals marked by their carnivalesque atmosphere. Our analysis draws on a longitudinal ethnographic study of the Mondiali Antirazzisti (Anti-racist World Cup), a non-competitive football tournament and intercultural festival featuring the yearly participation of hardcore football fans (ultras), migrant groups, third-sector associations and other informal groups. We consider how the multifocal ritual form of the event helps to create a liminal space in which discrimination and stereotypes can be temporarily challenged. The sources of collective effervescence are multiplied by placing sport games within a wider range of other leisure and cultural activities, thus promoting internal diversity and the inclusion of outsiders. Additionally, social boundaries are also blurred by not emphasising the competitive dimension of the sporting activities, making sporting categorisations more fluid, and breaking down the separation between protagonists and spectators. Nonetheless, considering the transient character of liminality, we also investigate problems and limitations implied by the pursuit of these objectives. It is concluded that, despite a certain degree of self-referentiality, the festival fosters the spreading of anti-discriminatory cultures by enhancing the participants’ reflexivity and feeding their commitment in generating spin-off activities in different local contexts

“We wouldn’t of made friends if we didn’t come to Football United”: the impacts of a football program on young people’s peer, prosocial and cross-cultural relationships

Background Sport as a mechanism to build relationships across cultural boundaries and to build positive interactions among young people has often been promoted in the literature. However, robust evaluation of sport-for-development program impacts is limited. This study reports on an impact evaluation of a sport-for-development program in Australia, Football United®. Methods A quasi-experimental mixed methods design was employed using treatment partitioning (different groups compared had different levels of exposure to Football United). A survey was undertaken with 142 young people (average age of 14.7 years with 22.5% of the sample comprising girls) in four Australian schools. These schools included two Football United and two Comparison schools where Football United was not operating. The survey instrument was composed of previously validated measures, including emotional symptoms, peer problems and relationships, prosocial behaviour, other-group orientation, feelings of social inclusion and belonging and resilience. Face to face interviews were undertaken with a purposeful sample (n = 79) of those who completed the survey. The participants in the interviews were selected to provide a diversity of age, gender and cultural backgrounds. Results Young people who participated in Football United showed significantly higher levels of other-group orientation than a Comparison Group (who did not participate in the program). The Football United boys had significantly lower scores on the peer problem scale and significantly higher scores on the prosocial scale than boys in the Comparison Group. Treatment partitioning analyses showed positive, linear associations between other-group orientation and total participation in the Football United program. A lower score on peer problems and higher scores on prosocial behaviour in the survey were associated with regularity of attendance at Football United. These quantitative results are supported by qualitative data analysed from interviews. Conclusions The study provides evidence of the effects of Football United on key domains of peer and prosocial relationships for boys and other-group orientation for young people in the program sites studied. The effects on girls, and the impacts of the program on the broader school environment and at the community level, require further investigation

The ‘spirit of sport’, WADAs code review, and the search for an overlapping consensus

In this paper, we argue for the recognition that anti-doping is in itself first and foremost an ethical position. The current World Anti-doping Code formulation of ‘the spirit of sport’ is an acknowledgement of this point and a counterweight against scientific and technicist understandings of the nature of anti-doping itself. We critically review the Code formulations on ‘the spirit of sport’. Based on a theoretical background of various approaches to normative agreement and consensus in a setting of diversity of ‘comprehensive views’, we argue for revision of the Code. Specifically, we argue for a re-formulation of ‘the spirit of sport’ in terms of athlete protection and the preservation of the integrity of sporting competition that could meet requirements on an overlapping consensus among all WADA stakeholders. This is not just a matter of formality and Code acceptance. An overlapping consensus is not a mere modus vivendi but a normative consensus based on fair, honest, and transparent discourse in which participants deliberate in a setting of mutual respect and trust, and of ‘decency’, which is a basis for a consensus that cultivates authentic stakeholder commitment

Track A Basic Science

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/138319/1/jia218438.pd

Validity and reliability of field-based measures for assessing movement skill competency in lifelong physical activities: a systematic review

Background: It has been suggested that young people should develop competence in a variety of ‘lifelong physical activities’ to ensure that they can be active across the lifespan. Objective: The primary aim of this systematic review is to report the methodological properties, validity, reliability, and test duration of field-based measures that assess movement skill competency in lifelong physical activities. A secondary aim was to clearly define those characteristics unique to lifelong physical activities. Data Sources: A search of four electronic databases (Scopus, SPORTDiscus, ProQuest, and PubMed) was conducted between June 2014 and April 2015 with no date restrictions. Study Selection: Studies addressing the validity and/or reliability of lifelong physical activity tests were reviewed. Included articles were required to assess lifelong physical activities using process-oriented measures, as well as report either one type of validity or reliability. Study Appraisal and Synthesis Methods: Assessment criteria for methodological quality were adapted from a checklist used in a previous review of sport skill outcome assessments. Results: Movement skill assessments for eight different lifelong physical activities (badminton, cycling, dance, golf, racquetball, resistance training, swimming, and tennis) in 17 studies were identified for inclusion. Methodological quality, validity, reliability, and test duration (time to assess a single participant), for each article were assessed. Moderate to excellent reliability results were found in 16 of 17 studies, with 71 % reporting inter-rater reliability and 41 % reporting intra-rater reliability. Only four studies in this review reported test–retest reliability. Ten studies reported validity results; content validity was cited in 41 % of these studies. Construct validity was reported in 24 % of studies, while criterion validity was only reported in 12 % of studies. Limitations: Numerous assessments for lifelong physical activities may exist, yet only assessments for eight lifelong physical activities were included in this review. Generalizability of results may be more applicable if more heterogeneous samples are used in future research. Conclusion: Moderate to excellent levels of inter- and intra-rater reliability were reported in the majority of studies. However, future work should look to establish test–retest reliability. Validity was less commonly reported than reliability, and further types of validity other than content validity need to be established in future research. Specifically, predictive validity of ‘lifelong physical activity’ movement skill competency is needed to support the assertion that such activities provide the foundation for a lifetime of activity