Author: Andre Coleman

ESSAY

These days, turning into a great player relies on upon having a great agent in the greater part of the professional sports. A sports agent is an individual who acquires and arranges job and underwriting contracts for a player. In exchange, they get between four and ten percent of the playing contract and ten to twenty percent of the underwriting contract in spite of the fact that this figure shifts dependent upon their arrangements with the sports figures. That implies that sports agents, profit. A sports agent is an individual who helps market competitors or items connected with that player to advertise a competitor’s vocation. Agents are answerable for all correspondences with group holders, directors, mentors and different people to help advertise a competitor’s vocation. Fundamentally, agents are utilized to dealer and arrange contracts for their customers. Likewise, they are answerable for making proposals as to their choices. Notwithstanding discovering approaching sources, agents frequently handle advertising matters for their customers. In some vast sports org, for example, IMG, Creative Artists Agency and Octagon, agents bargain with all parts of a customer’s accounts, from venture to recording duties. Sports agents may be depended upon by their customers for direction in all business parts of life, and frequently considerably all the more extensively. The amount of customers a singular agent can deal with and what number of his or her utilizing office can deal with in aggregate are associated variables. The marked contract is such that the player will get the full contract sum and the specialist organizations then take their wage from the ads specifically speaking to the player. Sports Agents have not been around for quite a while. Until the 1970’s, not many competitors had agents in light of the fact that groups might not manage agents (Masteralexis, 244)

Proficient competitors depend on sports agents to speak to them in the business parts of their calling. Agents assume a basic part in the players’ lives by overseeing business undertakings off the field, so that the competitors can concentrate on their execution on the field. Most expert competitors depend on agents as trusted consultants for a lot of people off-the-field parts of their professions: to arrange contracts, participate in promoting exercises, create players’ brands, secure their budgetary fates, and equip them for life after their playing vocations. In assuming such a key part in the competitor’s life, extraordinary trust is placed put in the agent. Violation of that trust by him, which achieves dispensing with a competitor’s physical qualification, demolishing a player’s money related future, hurting a university sports program, and meddling with expert contracts ought to be tended to by Congress.

Around the first sports agents were theater advancer (Money and Carry) Pyle, who in 1925 arranged an arrangement with the Chicago Bears for Red Grange to procure $3,000 for every amusement and an extra $300,000 in motion picture rights, and sports visual artist Christy Walsh, who furnished Babe Ruth with fiscal counsel throughout the Great Depression. In 1960, Mark H. McCormack’s noteworthy handshake bargain with Arnold Palmer propelled the full administration sports organization business. 6 Athletes progressively depended on sports agents in the late 1960s and the 1970s as expert sports developed exponentially. The development, nonetheless, processed an oversupply of agents for a limited number of customers. At present, there are 4,300 expert players in the four significant groups in United States and between 1,600 and 1,800 agents ensured by their separate player’s affiliations. Because of the substantial rivalry for customers, agents regularly act in an excessively forceful way when enlisting and holding customers.

LATE CASES:

– Cecil Newton, father of Carolina Panther quarterback Cam Newton who played school football at Auburn, professedly attempted to offer his child’s school playing administrations to Mississippi State for $180,000 while Cam was being selected out of The National Collegiate Athletic Association (“NCAA”) suspended fourteen football players for some piece of a season, and eight for the whole season, from the University of North Carolina’s group for getting shameful profits from an agent and scholastic offense.

– Marcell Dareus, a protective handle on the University of Alabama’s football group, was suspended for two amusements by the NCAA for “tolerating about $2,000 in inappropriate profits from an agent.

– The NCAA suspended A.j. Green, and University of Georgia beneficiary, for four diversions for offering a football shirt for $1,000 to an agent in Nior College. The NCAA decided that Cecil Newton did endeavor to offer his child’s administrations yet that Cam did not think about the plan and, hence, there were no suspensions.

Congress ought to rethink the inclusion of agents with learner players, as it gives the idea that enactment to date has been incapable. There have been numerous aggregations occupied with endeavoring to control agents. Around them are players acquaintanceship, colleges, physical meetings, national administering bodies, the NCAA, state and central governments, a now-dead proficient companionship called the Association of Representatives of Professional Athletes (ARPA), and another affiliation, the National Association of Sports Agents & Athlete Representatives (NASAAR). Regardless of the presentation of regulations by these aggregations, none have been positively compelling at tending to the full extent of issues that have happened since the late 1970s when previous sportswriter Richard Sorkin, agent too many NHL and NBA players, wasted an expected $1.2 million of his customers’ cash, much of it on his own betting and poor ventures.

As a rising administration industry, sport organization might profit from professionalization. Regulation toward oneself and administrative regulations are frequently instituted because of a negative picture. Set up of the negative picture, regulation toward oneself shows issue distinguishment and a proactive methodology to making results. Instead of various agents working under varying principles, regulation changes the dynamic to one where people are playing by the same tenets. This proposal uses the structures made by expert administration firms to get to the learning of industry specialists to impact practices, while using the force of government regulation to authorize the standards with a specific end goal to restore open trust in the sport industry.

REFERENCES

1) Shropshire K.L., Agents of Opportunity: Sports Agents and Corruption in Collegiate Sports, University of Pennsylvania Press, 1990.

2) Sobel L. S, the regulation of sports agents: an analytical primer, Baylor Law Review, vol. 39, 1987, pp. 702-786.

3) Verow R., a‰? Sports agents a‰« in Verow R., Lawrence C. and McCormick P., Sport, Business and the Law, Jordans Ltd, Bristol, 1999, pp. 289-324.

4) Baggott R (1989), Regulatory Reform in Britain, The Changing Face of Self-Regulation, Public Administration, 67:4, pp435-454.

5) Baldwin R and Cave M (1999), Understanding Regulation, Theory, Strategy and Practice, Oxford, Oxford University Press.

6) Hood, C James O and Scott C (2000), Regulation of Government, Has It Increased, Is It Increasing, Should It Be Diminished? Public Administration, 78:2.

With reference to published literature critically discuss the factors influencing the effectiveness of a sport psychologist

Introduction

Sport psychology has grown remarkably from its roots in the amorphous and poorly understood disciplines of athlete motivation and performance counselling 40 years ago (Dosil, 2005; Cox, 2005). Modern sport at every level of competition and in virtually every sporting activity has benefited from the application of psychological principles and mental training in the pursuit of maximum athletic performance, stress management, improved training attitude and every other aspect of sport where the mind, emotions and physical performance intersect.

Sport psychology is unique amongst the applied psychology disciplines for a number of reasons. The phrase suggests that there are accepted common practices employed by sports psychologists and its is acknowledged as with any science, the baseline approaches to the education, training and certification of the sport psychologist are well understood across the world of sport and athletic competition. The feature of sports psychology practice that tends to differentiate it from other form of applied psychology is the general closeness of the relationships developed between an individual athlete and their psychologist. The common professional boundaries of professional detachment are different in sports environments where intense emotion and competitive desire are the fuel that both drives the athlete onwards and makes them vulnerable to psychological stresses. Many sport psychologists play a multi-dimensional role in the lives of their athlete clients – trained professional psychologist, friend, sounding board, confidante and advisor are each possible and entirely ethical component to the relationships that may develop in practise (Watson, 2008, 1).

This paper considers the question of ‘effectiveness’ of the sports psychologist as considered within the following analytical and discussion framework. A detailed and properly academic analysis of why the science of sports psychology is effective in the context of competitive and recreational sport is beyond the scope of this paper. The discussion that is developed below is premised on the proposition that sports psychology is a proven and well accepted body of science that applied in accordance with its principles will generally benefit an athlete. All athletes in all sports, team and individualA from cross country running to equestrienne events, in all age groups and genders are amenable to its benefits (Kornspan & McCracken, 2003: 36: Donohue, 2001: 19). The important question in the present context is what factors, professional and personal render a sports psychologist successful in a particular application. Included in this discrete issue are a wide variety of potential ethical considerations.

The question requires that a preliminary working definition of sport psychologist be articulated; the definition as stated below also assists in defining the general areas of professional engagement within sport. The discussion will then engage two broad and interrelated questions: what steps sports psychologists take in any given assignment to achieve maximum effect with their athlete; where are the typical problem areas that require attention in the sports psychologist / athlete relationship? The emphasis of the discussion will be directed to Educational Sports Psychologists as this area of sport psychology provides the most immediate connections between athletic performance and the application of psychological principles.

These questions also require consideration of the type of person who is more likely to succeed as a sports psychologist – as with any professional activity where the subject is a human being, the delicate interface between the knowledge based psychological education that helps to comprise ones intellect and the often empathetic talent of “dealing” with people is important (Armstrong, 2001; Griffin, 2008:10). The paper draws upon the significant representative sampling of the authorities as appended to this paper in this regard.

The paper concludes with some thoughts concerning the anticipated continued expansion of the sport psychologist role at all levels of sport. If these professionals have not already achieved such status in most sports, it is submitted that the progression observed in the relationship between athletes and sports psychologist will trace the progression from pop psychology to important training and coaching asset to an indispensible component of the training regimes and competitive performance of all serious athletes.A

Sport Psychology – definition and scope of the discipline

The literal definition of sports psychology is a deceptively straightforward one. According to Cox (1998) and confirmed as accepted throughout the literature, sport psychology is a “…science in which the principles of psychology are applied in a sport or exercise setting” (p.4). The definition does not depend on the presence of a professional relationship with elite or aspiring high performance athletes; the principles of sport psychology apply with necessary circumstantial modification to every level of athlete. In this paper, the term “sport psychologist” shall extend to any professional engaged in the psychology of sport or exercise (Douthitt & Harvey, 1995: Griffin, 2008)).

As a general proposition there are three different types of sport psychologists recognised in the field; a great deal of the work carried out by a sport psychologist may include work in more than one category in the case of a particular athlete or assignment. For the purposes of the discussions set out below, the boundaries between each sub discipline shall be regarded as relatively fixed. In the present discussion, it is assumed that each category member is a fully trained and accredited psychologist as defined by the relevant statue I their jurisdiction (British Psychological Society, 2009: American Psychological Society, 2009).

The first category is the Clinical/Counselling Sport Psychologist (Cox, 2005).This person is trained in clinical or counselling psychology and is a licensed psychologist. These psychologists are trained to assist athletes to deal effectively with emotional and personality disorder issues that affect particular athletes. The range of prospective sport patients that this professional might assist is very broad; an example would include treating a female gymnast who suffers from bulimia or other eating disorder given the competitive pressures to perform at a specific weight. Treating a downhill skier of motorsports racer who has difficulties recovering from a particular crash or injury might be another.

The second category is the grouping that includes the Educational Sport Psychologist (Cox, 2005; Kramer & Moran, 2008). These psychologists come to sport with an extensive academic and practical background in university departments of physical education and sport specific training. The objective of an intervention or ongoing assistance provided by these individuals is to assist the athlete to develop a wide range of potential psychological skills for performance enhancement. Specific techniques such as various mental imagery sequences, self talk, the building of per performance or per competition routines are all included in the work carried out by the psychologists in this category (Morris & Summers, 2004; Boyce & King, 1993). These psychologists also provide services to athletes in a team environment.

This particular definition also provides an important qualification concerning the general role of psychology in sport. Sport psychologists are not monopolists in this area. Many athletes have the benefit of psychological support as provided by a trainer, a position coach or a team manager (Kornspan & Duve, 2006; Wilson & Stephens, 2005). This element of sport psychology is very important but is excluded from consideration here.

The final category is the Research Sport Psychologist. This group is comprised of scientists and scholars of sport psychologist. Theirs is an important support role to the entire discipline (Cox, 2005). Sport provides science with ongoing opportunities to gain access to athletes and teams in every sport from its preseason, in season and post season /off season periodization. The psychologists engage in ongoing research and experiments in the field.

Applied sport psychology

Applied sport and exercise psychology involves the extension of psychology theory and research into a specific field. While the particular athlete or team will inevitably attract the most attention in these applications, given that the pursuit of athletic excellence is a primary objective, the psychologist has a significant role to play in the education of any coaches, teammates, parents, fitness professionals, and athletic trainers about the psychological aspects of the specific sport or exercise activity. Applied sport and exercise psychologists seek to facilitate maximal involvement, performance, and enjoyment in any sport environment.

The practice of applied sport and exercise psychology usually involves a combination of individual and group consulting or counseling depending on the style of the professional conducting the intervention and the needs of the client. The realty of amateur sport is that many athletes do not have the access or means to have a personal psychological consultant (Maclean & Hamm, 2008: 352). Notwithstanding access questions, the principles that support a proper practitioner / athlete relationship are the same.

Key Issues

Sports psychologists face similar professional demands in areas such as continuing education and training. It is submitted that given the ceaseless commitment to athletic improvement, the development of new training techniques, nutritional and supplement approaches, physical monitoring, equipment trends and related factors places a substantial pressure on a sports psychologist to remain current in all aspects of their practice (Nesti, 2004).

At its best articulation, sport psychology has a transformational power that elevates performance (Armstrong, 2001, 4). Experiential learning cycles are often at the heart of successful sport psychology practice, because sport performance typically provides immediate feedback as to the efficacy of the cycles developed for the athlete. Sport psychology encourages an intensely personalized approach to all facets of it application; a significant relationship exists between the personality of the practitioner and the effectiveness of the applications; the simple observation that not every psychologist can succeed in this area due to the limitations of their own personality is reinforced here.

For even the most engaged and ‘cutting edge’ practitioners, there are practical considerations to the discipline that are submitted as both constants and as overarching issues that never decline in their importance. These are discussed here under the general rubric of ethics; as the examples below illustrate, the boundaries between professional competence, the duty of care to the athlete, continuing education concerning best practices, and the maintenance of appropriate ethical standards in all matters involving an athlete or team are not always clear cut.

It is important to appreciate that notwithstanding the unique demands of an individual sport or the immediacy that may be a part of the practitioner / athlete relationship, a psychologist remains bound by the statutory provisions and the ethical regulations of their jurisdiction. The various Codes of Conduct do not create separate regimes for the sports psychologist; the attention to the athlete relationship must be observed with the same care as patient relationships in clinical or therapeutic settings. It may be observed that in an elite sports team setting, where there is a large staff of professional sport persons that span a number of disciplines, only the team physician and the sport psychologist are liable to a standard of ethical conduct that extends beyond their contractual obligation to the team or the common law duties of care that might apply to a coach – athlete or trainer – athlete scenario (Nesti, 2004; Watson, 2008; Morris & Summers, 2004). Ethical codes may be clearer cut when the practitioner’s relationship is with a adult professional golfer or well paid footballer; the youth and overall potential for vulnerable persons to be working with a sports psychologist render the standard ethical duties very important in practice.

One might conclude that given the acceptance of sport psychology as an important element of modern sport training and competition, that the more closely one could integrate physical and psychological, athletic training the more efficient the training over all and the more successful the athletic enterprise. Leaving aside the impossibility of installing combined coach / practitioners at every level of sport, a seeming next best option would be to ensure a close and centralised relationship between the athletic and psychological training programmes.

There are clear advantages to such a coordinated approach. The training time required for each aspect would be optimized; the psychological training could be seamlessly integrated into every segment of the physical training routines. The trust implicit in the athlete / coach relationship could assist the athlete in overcoming any apprehension about what to them may be novel or disconcerting mental training approaches (Wright & Erdal, 2008: 187).

The disadvantages are equally stark and it is submitted that the maintenance of practitioner and coaching boundaries is important in several potential areas of difficulty. Where the coach and the psychologist are working very closely together in a team sport environment, there is the concern that the athlete may be apprehensive about confiding in the psychologist or making a complete commitment to a psychological training programme for fear of any mental / emotional weakness being revealed to the coach and thus compromising playing time or status on the team (Watson & Clement, 2008, 3). The relationship between psychologist and athlete, like coach and athlete is inherently a power relationship; the knowledge that the practitioner applies to the psychological aspects of training create a dependency that must not be permitted to influence any other relationships that the athlete has.A As Nesti notes (2004), the task facing the practitioner is to simultaneously maintain openness to the athletes and coaches without abandoning or diluting their most personal and deeply held values. This makes considerable demands upon the psychologist working in a sports environment “…where the dominant values are those centred on self-preservation and material gain.”(102)

The ethics rubric takes on a further and more complex dimension when a team or sports organisation retains a sport psychologist to provide training. The ethical duties and their corresponding lines can become blurred. The following hypothetical will illustrate the issue. A sport psychologist is retained by a football team to help develop what the coach describes as “mental toughness” (Wann & Polk, 2007).A The coach wants his players to be more aggressive, more truculent and more physical in their approach to the game – “I’m tired of our guys getting pushed around”. It may be readily appreciated that there is a thin almost indiscernible boundary between the coach’s “toughness” and a training programme that may as easily promote rough, violent or anti-social attitudes amongst the players. The coach is determined to take newfound toughness instilled in the mental training regime to a new competitive level. The psychologist is now placed in a difficult position – to train as the club’s retainer requires, or to potentially assist in the promotion of emotional attitudes that are not necessarily in the individual athlete’s interest (Goldstein & Iso-Ahola, 2006).

The sports psychologist has an important preventative / restorative role in all aspects of athletic training. ‘Burnout’ is a psychological problem at every level of competitive sport, youth leagues to the professional ranks. (Kalliath & Beck, 2001; Matheson, Mathes & Murray, 1997) The same fundamental trust relationship between practitioner and athlete that build mental power in sport must also be applied where appropriate to protect – if an athlete is not emotionally suited to a particular type of training a practitioner has a positive ethical obligation to discontinue it, no matter who is paying for the services.

Future Directions in Sport Psychology

It is impossible to provide a definitive conclusion as to the future direction of sport psychology within the framework of this paper. However, two tentative propositions may be advanced. The first is a predicted even greater reliance by elite athletes on sport psychologists to provide them with support in training and competition. Every athlete in every sport seeks the proverbial edge, so often measured in millimeters or milliseconds. In an era of immense potential financial returns for sport success, a sports psychologist is a cost-effective training aid.

The second prediction is connected to the development of the discipline itself. Competitive athletes are result driven; for society as a whole, there are fewer ways to empirically measure societal athletic or sport exercise success. The cost of health care as attributed to poor life style choices and sedentary attitudes may militate in favour of a public push to incorporate sports psychologists into the public health mainstream, on the same cost effectiveness rational as observed in elite sports.

Works Cited

American Psychological Association Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct (2009) [online] Retrieved November 18, 2009 at:< http://www.apa.org/ethics/>

Armstrong, Scott. “Are You a “Transformational” Coach?” JOPERD–The Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance 72.3 (2001): 44

British Psychological Society Ethical Guidelines (2009) [online] Retrieved November 21, 2009 at:< http://www.bps.org.uk/the-society/code-of-conduct/code-of-conduct_home.cfm>

Boyce, B. Ann, and Valerie King “Goal-Setting Strategies for Coaches” JOPERD–The Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance 64.1 (1993): 65+. Questia. Web. 24 Nov. 2009.

Cox, Richard H. Sport Psychology: Concepts and Applications (5th ed.) Toronto: McGraw Hill (2005)

Donohue, Brad, et al. “The Development and Initial Evaluation of Two Promising Mental Preparatory Methods in a Sample of Female Cross Country Runners.” Journal of Sport Behavior 24.1 (2001): 19

Dosil, Joaquin, ed. The Sport Psychologist’s Handbook: A Guide for Sport-Specific Performance Enhancement Chichester, West Sussex: John Wiley & Sons, (2005)

Douthitt, Vicki L., and Mark L. Harvey “Exercise Counseling – How Physical Educators Can Help” JOPERD–The Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance 66.5 (1995): 31

Goldstein, Jay D., and Seppo E. Iso-Ahola “Promoting Sportsmanship in Youth Sports: Perspectives from Sport Psychology; Sport Psychology Provides Crucial Insights for Improving Behavior in Sport.” JOPERD–The Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance 77.7 (2006): 18

Griffin, Joy. “Sport Psychology: Myths in Sport Education and Physical Education Sport Psychology Isn’t Just for the Elites; It Can Benefit Everyone in Youth Sports and Physical Education.” JOPERD–The Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance 79.8 (2008): 11

Kalliath, Thomas J., and Alexandra Beck “Is the Path to Burnout and Turnover Paved by a Lack of Supervisory Support? A Structural Equations Test” New Zealand Journal of Psychology 30.2 (2001): 72

Kornspan, Alan S., and Mary J. McCracken “The Use of Psychology in Professional Baseball: The Pioneering Work of David F. Tracy.” Nine 11.2 (2003): 36

Kornspan, Alan S., and Michael A. Duve “A Niche and a Need: A Summary of the Need for Sport Psychology Consultants in Collegiate Sports.” Annals of the American Psychotherapy Association 9.1 (2006): 19

Kremer, J., & Moran, A. P. Pure Sport: Practical sport psychology. London: Routledge (2008)

Maclean, Joanne, and Shannon Hamm “Values and Sport Participation: Comparing Participant Groups, Age, and Gender.” Journal of Sport Behavior 31.4 (2008): 352

Matheson, Hilary, Sharon Mathes, and Mimi Murray “The Effect of Winning and Losing on Female Interactive and Coactive Team Cohesion” Journal of Sport Behavior 20.3 (1997): 284

Morris, T., and Summers, J., eds. Sport psychology: theory, application and issues (2nd Ed.). Chichester: Wiley (2004)

Nesti, Mark. Existential Psychology and Sport: Theory and Application. New York: Routledge, 2004

Wann, Daniel L., and Joshua Polk “The Positive Relationship between Sport Team Identification and Belief in the Trustworthiness of Others” North American Journal of Psychology 9.2 (2007): 251

Wilson, Marcia A., and Dawn E. Stephens “Great Expectations: How Do Athletes of Different Expectancies Attribute Their Perception of Personal Athletic Performance?” Journal of Sport Behavior 28.4 (2005): 392

Watson, Jack C and Damien Clement ‘Ethical and Practical Issues Related to Multiple Role Relationships in Sport Psychology’ (2008) [online] Retrieved November 22, 2009 at:

Wright, Perry B., and Kristi J. Erdal “Sport Superstition as a Function of Skill Level and Task Difficulty” Journal of Sport Behavior 31.2 (2008): 187

Sport management is a young field that is built on a foundation of business and other professional fields. The discourse of sport management is the same vocabulary as other professional fields. Its history is not very extensive, and the curriculum is still very young. Although the field is young, there are great resources available to advance the curriculum. The ability to manage a staff and effectively communicate to the staff is crucial to the success of a sport administrator. And while APA is the citing resource for sport management, MLA is one of the other citing resources that are very common in professional and educational settings. Overall, sport management is an emerging field that will flourish in the future. Discourse of Sport and Recreation Management

When engaged in conversation with another human being, it is important to listen and follow along with the conversation. It is also keen to speak with proper tone and the appropriate language of the topic discussed. Language of a discussion is referred to as discourse. Copley said it best when describing discourse: “Imagine someone new to sports initiating a conversation with long-time sports fans: ‘So what do you think the Raiders will wear in their next game? (Copley, 2006)” This is better than any definition that a dictionary could ever provide simply because her discourse is easily understood by the readers of the document. Sports management is one of the highest requested majors for incoming freshman in the United States (Mahoney, 2008). While the degree is one of the highest requested majors, it is also one of the most understaffed and underappreciated by universities around the nation (Mahoney, 2008). The discourse, or discourses for sports management are very broad and are interdisciplinary with other fields of study. These fields include law, business, physical education, communications, and psychology. Throughout the paper, these fields of study will be discussed in correlation with sports management; along with their purpose in academia.

The first and most important topic of discussion in sports management is business. Business is a strong cornerstone in sports management, as the word management is quite often associated with training and facilitating in business. The business aspects of sports management consist of marketing, and management, with specific focus on individuals, teams, facilities, and organizations. To start off, there are the two main ways to market sports: First is marketing a product through a sport, and secondly marketing of a sport. Marketing through a sport tends to bring companies a higher revenue then regular advertisements (Gladden & Sutton, 2005). A good example of marketing through sport is Budwesier. They like to market during the football season with beer drinkers (usually young men) playing or enjoying a football game with a fictitious background story, that subsequently features beautiful women, glamorizing drinking, to market the product (Gladden & Sutton, 2005). The best example for marketing of a sport is a television commercial for Monday night football, or Sunday night baseball on ESPN. The network is trying to get people to watch the game, so they in-turn advertise and if the viewer watches the game they have successfully marketed. Generally though, business is all about profits and losses. The numbers don’t lie and they can tell whether a business is doing well or if it is not. Therefore, the unofficial language or discourse of business is accounting (Warren, Reeve & Duchac, 2007). Accounting is the backbone of business because again, the numbers don’t lie. If a business is failing, a balance sheet can tell you why. And from there, a business can make a decision to raise their numbers by making cuts or taking out loans and collecting interest payments from stockholders. Accounting has a language of its own, similar to economics. But a good business man and woman should have a firm, and comprehensive knowledge of accounting to understand the language and concepts of business (Warren, Reeve & Duchac, 2007).

The second comprehensive field in sports management is law. Law is most commonly associated with the rights and wrongs in our American government. However, it also deals with contracts, property, negligence, statutes, and upholds regulations by other companies (Cotten & Wolohan, 2007). The most well known practice of sport law comes in the form of contract negotiations by agents and sports teams. Throughout most of the United States, it is required for sports agents to hold a law degree so that they have a complete grasp of how contract negotiations are supposed to work and ensures they follow all the proper channels that it must go through to become an official contract (Cotten & Wolohan, 2007). It is very important in law, to understand what every sentence or article says because one word can change the complete meaning of a very closely worded law. Therefore, an extensive knowledge of the American language, and numerous legal terms is required to be involved in such practice. Extensive knowledge of the American Constitution is needed for a career in law as well. The Constitution is the first form of precedence in the United States (Cotten & Wolohan, 2007). If a law can be traced back to the constitution, it is a powerful tool and a great advantage to have over your legal opponent.

The third major discourse of sports management is kinesiology, better known as physical education. It is a good thing to know how the human body works and what makes it function properly. It is also good know how it reacts under stress, and how it works at rest. Sports management and kinesiology are at first often confused for the same thing; when in fact, they two completely different fields. Practical use of kinesiologic discourse is mainly used marketing and in media relations. In marketing, a company might say “improve your vertical leap by training your fast twitch muscles.” This would be a correct statement and would directly correlate to the discourse of kinesiology as fast twitch muscle control sudden quick movements such as jumping as high as you can (Jeukendrup & Gleeson, 2004). Of course, if no one knew what a fast twitch muscle was they probably would not be interested. In an instance like that, a consumer would probably be more inclined to purchase because they recognize the scientific word used in the advertisement (Duncan, 2005). In media relations, terms of kinesiology are used less frequently and come from more of a medical standpoint for example if an athlete was injured in a game (Nichols, Moynahan, Hall, & Taylor, 2002. “Brett Favre suffered a pulled hamstring yesterday in practice. Brett said ‘it was a little tender after it happened, but the doctor said it was minor enough so I could play Sunday.” Obviously, this is a general discourse statement. But, it is related to kinesiology because you need to have an understanding of where the hamstring is located on the body and what happens to the muscle when it is pulled (Jeukendrup & Gleeson, 2004). Again, Kinesiology is not nearly as closely related as sports management as people believe and as shown so far, does not scratch the surface what the heart and soul of sports management really is (Mahoney, 2008).

Fourth, related field of sports management is communications. Communications play an integral part in collegiate and professional athletics (Nichols et al. 2002) as most organizations have multiple staff members who market and publicize their respective university or team. These people are often referred to as Sports Information Directors. Their job duties, in most cases, are as follows: Writing press releases about or for organizational events and athletes, taking statistics of athletic events, statistical research, designing school athletic brochures, writing and publishing media guides, web publishing, and grammatical editing (Nichols et al. 2002). Sports Information Directors, like most people who work in communications for a company have certain ethical obligations like always writing positive about the university that they represent. The basic guidelines are as follows: Honesty, truthfulness, respect, compassion, fairness, accuracy, professional distance, and ethical models (Nichols et al. 2002). At the same time, these writers need to find a way to entertain in their press releases so that fans and consumers will read their writing. Often, the directors use common slang terms that the average sport fan would understand in their writing. For example, if a press release says “Jean-Sebastien Giguere played great between the pipes tonight, saving all 31 shots for the shutout,” this would easily be translated by a sports fan as “Giguere played great in front of the goal, as he stopped all of the opponent’s shots to win the game tonight.” The slang terms allow the reader to engage with the release; and if the reader was not at the game, they could recapture a sense of the excitement that took place during the game (Nichols et al. 2002). As most people see athletes getting in trouble off the field, naturally damage control is a current trend in professional athletics. The directors want to minimize harm to the athlete’s image and to the organizations reputation. When it comes time to write a press release or release a statement at a press conference about the situation, it is of the utmost importance that “hot” words or catch phrases are not included in the statement (Nichols et al. 2002). Any words that would allude to any wrong doing are never good for other reporters to hear. Like a profession in law, sports information directors need an extensive knowledge of grammar and language as their job relies heavily on writing.

Finally, sports management deals in psychology. If the common nomenclature says that “playing a sport is twenty percent physical, and eighty percent mental,” then sports psychology will prove that. Life is what you perceive it to be, and the same can be applied to sport (Plotnik, 2005). If someone believes that they are performing badly, then they probably are performing badly. The discourse of the field is no different than that of a regular discussion about psychology. The main trend that seems to follow in sports psychology however, is motivation. If a person has a hard time working out, why is it that they do not want to work out? Are they self-conscious? Are they just that lazy? Or is that they are not physically able? Sports psychology applies the principals of psychology to sport, and hence psychology of sport is born (Plotnik, 2005). Sport psychology does apply its own kind twist however. As in most cases discussed in the textbook, the questions are more directed towards how you could remedy any psychological situations, as a manager or a coach would do; a standpoint towards the reader that they are always in control of their destiny.

The proverbial cookie jar that is sports management is a big jar that is filled with all different varieties of “cookies” that do have a similar taste at times, but are unique in their own way. Business of course being the most popular choice or widely used discourse as all business conducted will always rely on numbers to provide the evidence. Sports law is a least popular variety that no one can escape, because someone will always need someone to talk for them to get more money or to get them out of trouble. Kinesiology is a standard choice, “the chocolate chip” of discourse as sport is in the title of sports management. However, at the end of the day, is a completely different field of study. Communications is the underground of sports management that keeps the wheels spinning and allows people that were not at the game to experience the excitement. While psychology is everything in the field: Being able to understand situations that may arise and the motivation to do things for the betterment of a team or individually. Instead of focusing on one specific area of discourse, it is clearly beneficial to have a broad understanding of all the discourses in sports management. It is a big broad business, and its foundations are deep.

Albert Spalding to Earle Ziegler: Foundations of Sport Management

Since the beginning of civilization, it has been in the nature of humans to compete with another. In ancient Greece, the citizens trained in gymnasiums or “naked places” to perfect their wrestling or boxing technique (Sweet, 1987). “Athletics were more important to the Greeks than us today” according to Sweet; like the current American society, cheating was looked down upon in ancient times. Cheating was looked at as sacrilegious; a disgrace to Zeus (Sweet, 1987). Today cheating is not looked at as a sacrilegious act to a god, but as a shameful act of cheating. Today there are entities in place that ensure all athletes have the same competitive advantage. The act of managing sport can level a playing field, negotiate a salary, relocate an athlete, advise an organization, run a facility, or teach others the topics in sport management in a college setting. The modern field of sport management is a fairly young field that is constantly adapting to the demands required. The curriculum of sport management also adheres to the same principles of business, but is even younger than the practice of sport management. Through history, sport and sport management has shown its progressive tendencies and ideals that were ahead of common American society at the turn of the 20^th century. This leads to the five significant events and the influential minds behind the events in sport management, which will be the topic of this paper. They are certainly not all the people and events that had significant contribution, but simply the top five that are deemed worthy for this assignment.

Thoroughbred Racing

Since history is usually placed in chronological order, the trend continues today. Thoroughbred horse racing was a very popular sport in eighteenth century England; along with baseball, cricket, and field hockey (Masteralexis, Barr, & Hums, 2005). Positions of political and social power were appointed to men with wealth; most of those positions being horse owners, track or club owners, and other various supervision roles. Each club in the given area had its own set of rules, which were created by the owner; sometimes even to work in his own favor. Complications often arose when a rider from one track would race at another as rules varied (Masteralexis, Barr, & Hums, 2005). And by the 1830’s with the innovation of railroads, horse owners wanted to compete nationally to increase profits, and breed with new horses to create faster horses. Naturally a new management style was needed, but this was only the first complication of two. The second was gambling.

Gambling was a very popular event amongst the upper and lower classes at the track. The lower class was then able to wager bets at the track with the upper class because club/track owners did not charge admission to the event. The track was a social setting in which a diverse group of people intermingled for a common purpose; whereas a member of the upper and lower class would hardly be seen in the same place, sharing a common purpose (Masteralexis, Barr, & Hums, 2005). The gambling itself took place during the race, which was a four-mile course broken up into three legs. The winner would have to win at least two out of the three races. If the fans of the race suspected the jockey of throwing a race, the jockey would often be physically abused by the fans (Masteralexis, Barr, & Hums, 2005). It was not very common for unethical behavior to take place when bets were made, but they did occur and were dealt with promptly. Sometime after the 1830’s, there became a standardized management system in horse racing which forced club/track owners to standardized lengths of the course, forced the track to time the events, and even spawned a new style of horse racing: Thoroughbred racing with weights added to the horses (Masteralexis, Barr, & Hums, 2005). In gambling, a standardized system was also adopted as club owners started handicapping the races, ran a sweepstakes race and even started to offer tip sheets to the customers at the events. These strategical changes are viewed as the first managerial changes in club sport; while also being viewed as the successful model for club sports, which ruled the eighteenth century in the forms of boxing, cricket, rugby and soccer (Masteralexis, Barr, & Hums, 2005). The club sport system still exists today, although it does not thrive as it once did in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. But these clubs set a precedent that would contribute to the next innovator in the sport management profession.

William Hulbert and the National League

As stated in the previous section, club teams were the dominate structure for athletic teams in the nineteenth century. Baseball was no different. Most teams were around and had a small fan base, but most teams were never able to play a whole season, or keep fan interest for a whole season because of lack of funding. It was not uncommon for teams to just quit halfway through the season. The most popular team of the 1860’s was the Cincinatti Red Stockings who toured the east to play teams and because of their fan base, were able to pay for travel expenses and earn a profit while playing on the road (Masteralexis, Barr, & Hums, 2005). On a road trip at the end of 1870 season the Red Stocking lost the three games of the season, and because of that were no longer considered the champions of baseball. The fan base for the club fell drastically and the team disbanded before the beginning of the following season (Masteralexis, Barr, & Hums, 2005). In 1871, after such hard times, remaining teams formed a union; a new league called the National Association of Professional Baseball Players. Unfortunatly, the beginning results were no different than that of their predecessors in the club system as teams would form, stop playing halfway through the season, and perhaps start operations the next season. After years of trying to gain credibility and reach stability in the league, an entrepreneur by the name of William Hulbert purchased the National League of Professional Baseball Players in 1876 and was often referred to as the National League from then on (Masteralexis, Barr, & Hums, 2005).

Hulbert made sure that all business aspects were in the open and not conducted behind closed doors as to ensure an honest means of doing business. He also set guidelines for the eight teams to follow: he was going to make sure that the league would not crumble because of one team’s financial irresponsibility. All teams were accountable for each other, or the league would fail. Hulbert made many decisions for the league. On one occasion, Hulbert canceled the final series between Philadelphia and New York as both teams were struggling and their outcome would not have affected league standings (Crosset & Hums, 2005). By doing this, he allowed the teams to shut down the operations so the team would save money for the next season and not hinder future operations. Ethics and citizenship were staple points in Hulbert’s National League as well, forcing teams to set curfews for the athletes and enforcing strict policies that meant banning players for life if they were gambling, for example. Hulbert’s precedent still stands today, as over 100 years later, Pete Rose was banned from ever stepping foot into a baseball park because of gambling allegations. He also made sure that the fans were proper citizens as well; raising ticket prices to keep rowdier, lower-class fans out and not allowing alcohol to be sold in the ball park. However, the “revolutionary idea,” according to Crosset and Hums, was the implementation of a pennant race at the end of the season. The two top teams at the end of the season would play a series for the pennant, better known as the National League Championship. Hulbert also protected teams from losing their players, as players under contract were not allowed to negotiate or be bought out by other teams without both parties being aware of it. The “player’s reservation” system was a precedent in sport management, and is still a foundation in modern sport management. After some success with the league, local newspapers started to cover the games; giving updates on injuries, interviewing players, keeping track of statistics and reporting other coaching strategies to keep the fans interested. This also opened a new element for sports as fans who could not afford to attend games and only followed by word of mouth. The media coverage allowed fans to follow keep track of the games played and re-enact the game through the written stories. The precedents set by Hulbert were truly astronomical; building foundations that still stand in baseball today. His demands for class and integrity are considered sacred to the game of baseball and were followed for years; which is why steroids have been such a paramount concern in baseball for the past couple of years. For his actions he was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1995 as a pioneer of the game.

Albert Spalding

While William Hulbert was a great innovator himself, accomplishing many feats, he was not alone in the formation of the new National League. Albert Spalding was a pitcher for the Boston Red Stockings, who subsequently were members of the National League of Professional Baseball Players. Spalding was a major celebrity of the game, winning 241 games, and losing only 60 between 1871 and 1876 (Lampster, 2006). An innovator himself, Spalding pitched with his own signature designed baseball. After leading the Red Stockings to the first National League Championship in 1876, he decided to create his own company named simply after himself. That same year, Spalding was the official baseball of the National League, and baseballs were sold to the general public; therefore, becoming the first sporting good company in America (Lampster, 2006). The year 1877 proved to be Spalding’s last season as a professional ballplayer. He then focused solely on managing his company and the Chicago White Stockings as their team president. After managing, he became an international promoter of baseball, spreading the game around the world in 1888. In 1887, he created and manufactured the first American football. And in 1894, he created the first basketball. Spalding was a true innovator and strived to set precedent like Hulbert. Spalding and Hulbert fed off of each others innovations and cleverly marketed each other through each others company (Lampert, 2006).

Sport Management as an Academic Field

Almost 100 years has passed since the wrinkle in time that was the beginning of professional baseball. The time was the 1960’s, Major League Baseball was a prevalent organization, Albert Spalding had already been inducted into the baseball hall of fame, and the “sports industry was thriving” (Crosset & Hums, 2005). According to Crosset and Hums, two men discussed the idea of a sport management curriculum in 1957; a physical educator from the University of Miami, James G. Mason, and owner of the then Brooklyn Dodgers, George O’Malley. O’Malley is most recognized as the chief legal counsel for Jacky Robinson when he broke the color barrier in 1947 and for moving the Brooklyn Dodgers to Los Angeles. Mason and O’Malley decided that in order to keep up with the demand in the sports industry, a professional degree needed to be created to accommodate this need. In 1966, O’Malley and Mason started the first Sport Management graduate program at Ohio University in Athens, Ohio. The idea of a sport management degree caught on soon thereafter as Biscayne College and St. John’s University founded the first undergraduate programs in the United States (Crosset & Hums, 2005). The University of Massachusetts-Amherst followed in Ohio’s footsteps, offering the second graduate program in the U.S. in 1971. As the field grew, unions of teachers started to form; most of which were short lived. Today’s dominant sport management scholarly union is the North American Society for Sport Management (NASSM). Sport Management is one of the most highly sought after degrees by incoming freshman at the University of Louisville (Mahoney, 2008). With massive growth however, teachers are in high demand and there are not enough people to teach the high volume of students and conduct new research to progress the field in a brand new direction. The next paragraph focuses on a man who changed the field of sport management forever. This dual citizen of the U.S. and Canada implemented his own curriculum; his name is Dr. Earle F. Ziegler.

Dr. Z.

According to the official Earle F. Ziegler website, Ziegler got his start in education at Yale University where he taught physical education and coached football and wrestling from 1943 to 1949. He began working for the University of Western Ontario in 1949 as a part-time German instructor. Shortly thereafter, he became the department head for Physical, Health, & Recreation for the university. At the University of Michigan, Ziegler began his research for physical education and how to manage it effectively. He then conducted research at the University of Illinois, and then went back to the University of Western Ontario. After years of solely researching in the field of physical education, Ziegler intertwined physical education with other topics such as philosophy and administrative theory. In 1975, the year Ziegler returned to Western Ontario, he released six publications on various topics branching physical education out. An acquired copy of “Management Competency Development in Sport and Physical Education” written by Dr. Ziegler in 1983 is an interesting read. Ziegler explains throughout the opening chapter the different types and amounts of research he did to write his book. He opened the book with four chapters about management theories and the emerging field of study. He then presented a strategic plan on how to implement management into sport. It is hard to comprehend that this had never been done before. Dr. Ziegler was in the field conducting research on different topics and drawing parallels between the two. There were degree programs before this at universities around the country, but Ziegler created an entirely new school of thought with the publications that he wrote; inspiring young professionals to think proactively and engage themselves in theory. Most of the topics discussed today in sport management courses are based off of his research and those who followed in his footsteps. Ideals that a person would just take for granted now were accomplished for the first time 25 years ago by an old man from New York City. Ziegler, in fact, was the first president of NASSM, and because of his contributions to the field was honored with an award in his name in 1988. This award is given out annually to the educator in the sport management field making positive contributions in research and education sport management.

Conclusion

As clearly shown throughout the paper, the field of sport management shares a rich history like other fields of academia, even at its young existence. The models of conformity in club horse racing would open the door for the brand new league system created by William Hulbert. And without the newly renovated National League, Spalding would not have marketed his new product, as well with Hulbert. As the field slowly grew and innovation lay dormant for sometime, that opened the door for O’Malley and Mason to create a brand new field of study to feed their vision of enhancing the field of sport management. And finally without Earle Ziegler, sport management would not be flourishing the way it is today without his teachings and theories. Again, he opened a new doorway for students to walk through. Teaching his knowledge and inspiring students then, who are the administrators of today. The interesting thing throughout the paper is the progressiveness of society through sporting events in history: The intermingling of upper and lower classes at horse tracks, the introduction of baseball throughout the world, and O’Malley breaking down the color barrier by signing Jacky Robinson to the Brooklyn Dodgers. Although there may have been some differences between some, athletics has set a standard for breaking down sociological barriers between class and color. These are the five significant events and the influential minds behind the events in sport management; they are certainly not all the people and events that had significant contribution for today’s sport management, but simply the catalysts for change and progression.

Resources for Sport Management

Socrates once stated “No one person knows everything, but everyone knows something.” Socrates was implying that by engaging in discussion with people from all walks of life, one can learn something new from a person. People were the main resource for Socrates in Ancient Greece as he did not have scholarly journals, or the Internet to work with. It is stated that today is an information age. Information and knowledge are only a click away on the Internet. Wikipedia is a source of information on the Internet, as it is an online encyclopedia. However, true scholars maintain that “It is not a credible source” because anyone can go online and edit the information that is written. That is why it is important to get information from professionals in the field of study in which a person is researching. Sometimes it takes a person to create their own field of study from other related fields to create a new school of thought. Earle Ziegler was the author of many books throughout 1970’s and 1980’s that created the current field of sport management, using concepts of business, physical education and other social sciences. Through Ziegler’s contributions, sport management has found its place in academia across the United States on college campuses. The scholarly journals in sport management feature some of the top minds in the field. A few of these journals will be discussed in this paper; along with their contributions to the field of sport management. These journals will be referred to as “fruits,” as they nourish thought and sustain a desire to learn more about sport management. In turn, the seeds are spread, and more fruit is grown creating more fruit and expanding sport management even further.

Journal of Sport Management

According to the Journal of Sport Management website, the journal was initiated as a biannual publication in 1987 by the North American Society for Sport Management (NASSM) and is seen as the organization that progresses the sport management field hosting annual conferences to discuss the topics of sport management, and commending the members on some of the work they did the past year. It is currently edited by Lucie Thibault of Brock University. The journal remained bi-annual until 1992 when it was then released three times a year. In 1996, the Journal of Sport Management became a quarterly journal and it continues that trend today. The journal itself features articles in many different topics: A few of which include management, economics, accounting, governance, tourism and communications. The articles also vary in sport and in level of play; covering issues in high school athletics, all the way to professional sport. Here at the University of Minnesota, Crookston when searching for articles on current topics related to sport management, it is very common to find most of the articles that are listed in the search results are from the Journal of Sport Management. In a personal communication with Dave Rolling, head of Sport and Recreation Management at the University of Minnesota, Crookston on March 10, 2008, “the Journal of Sport Management is the one of the best journals one could use to find topics in sport management.”

Journal of Sport Economics

The Journal of Sport Economics is a quarterly published journal that focuses on the economic issues that are concer

‘This is a Golden Age for Sport in the UK’

To say the UK is now in a ‘Golden Age’ for sport would give the impression that it is in a peak period where all factors are at their best; where sport is in a state of utopia. This, undoubtedly, would be a great thought for the UK however to say that every aspect of sport is in a ‘Golden Age’ would be a much generalised view.

Policy continuity from the government indicates this is indeed a ‘Golden Age’ for sport in the UK. The Wolfendon Report (1960: 18) formed the idea that young people should have the opportunity to participate in a wide variety of physical activity, and this still remains a strong reason for government involvement in sport. Other policies, such as Game Plan (2002: 20), had a long term goal of increasing sport participation, especially among disadvantaged groups, and to sustain levels of success in international competition. These have all contributed to the drive to make sport in the UK better. However, policies such as these are dependent on having a government in place which encourages sport and leisure. Currently, there is a supportive government with the Prime Minister (2006) declaring that he “will set out in the pre-budget report how we can do better with a new focus on sports and fitness for our nation’s children… [And] will urge a national debate around taking sport and fitness more seriously.” But what if a different government takes power? Will sport always be seen in the same light?

Presently, the UK is celebrating a large amount of sporting success in boxing, football, formula 1 and many others, but one of the great success stories of late was the performance of British athletes in the 2008 Olympic Games. This was significant for sport in the UK for many reasons, in particular the amount of funding which has now increased as a result of this surpassed performance. It has created great promise among up-and-coming athletes who wish to achieve similar sporting success. When British athletes are performing well it makes the government in charge look equally good, and with the nation feeling happier about the state of sport, they are less likely to be voted out of power. On the other hand, the continuation of government support in this way is heavily relied on by the ability to deliver success and more importantly to deliver medals. For example, when no British male artistic gymnasts qualified for the Olympics in Athens 2004, this had an adverse effect on other gymnasts. National squad camps were cut in terms of numbers and frequency, and many upcoming elite athletes experienced funding cuts. This suggests that sport in the UK is in a state of instability.

The main argument for saying the UK is in a ‘Golden Age’ for sport is the securing of the Olympic Games in London 2012. Sport will be the focus of most people’s attention not only leading up to, but during London 2012; it is a chance for the government to promote its values on the grandest stage of all as Gordon Brown (2006) states “we should also make the build-up to the 2012 Olympics the centrepiece of a national campaign on sport and fitness”. Not since the 1948 London Games has the UK held such a prestigious event, and with other upcoming events such as the 2014 Commonwealth Games, 2012 Rugby Union World Cup and a possible 2018 FIFA World Cup it would be hard to argue against the UK being in a ‘Golden Age’ for sport. However, are the London 2012 Olympic Games really going to benefit everyone equally? It could be perceived that it may in fact have a detrimental effect on sport in the UK. This may occur if young, inexperienced athletes are ignored at the expense of promoting the athletes competing at the London 2012 Olympic Games. Furthermore, too much pressure on young athletes to succeed could be damaging as Matthew Robertson (2008) argues the case of possibly sacrificing ethics for medals in the build up to Beijing 2008 by the Chinese Government. Therefore, it is possible to predict that after 2012 and the following Olympic Games, where current athletes will no longer be competing; the UK could end up taking a backward step with performances dropping.

The hosting of the London 2012 Olympics promises great things, none more so than the legacy it will leave behind. The original budget for the games lay at ?3.4 billion, ?1.5 billion coming from the National Lottery, the remainder coming from the private and public sector, DCMS and others (Olympics ‘could cost and extra ?2bn, 2006). Funding towards sport is now historically higher than ever and this money is to be used in creating an Olympic park, improved transport, making the games sustainable, technology, security, ticketing and accommodation which all aim to make London 2012 a great sporting success. The facilities which are currently being built will be left behind after the games for the local community, sports clubs and elite athletes, whilst the playing fields that surround these facilities will be tailored to suit the community (Olympic Park: Legacy, n.d.). Not only will these be new facilities, but they will be world class which will increase their opportunity to participate and also aid in the development of their talents. Alongside this, there is a prospective for further income to be generated through the sports industries and further money to be spent within the fitness industries. ?1 billion has also been put aside for regeneration of London’s most run down areas (Olympics ‘could cost and extra ?2bn, 2006). However, if the Olympic Legacy does not deliver in terms of regenerating the area this may have a negative effect on sport. Its apparent importance in society may be destroyed and it may end up more looked down upon than its current state. Therefore, the effects of hosting the Olympics in the UK and its hyped up legacy suggests an increase in opportunity to participate in sport and physical activity.

The diversity of people within the UK is something which people portray in an unproblematic way, but not everyone has the same chance to participate as others. Firstly, age is an interesting barrier to look at when investigating participation in sport. At the moment, the sport and leisure industries are directed towards those defined as generation Y. However, Dr Joe Piggin in a lecture on the 6th November 2009 that by 2029 it is predicted that around 40% of the UK’s population will be over the age of 50 which means drastic alterations will need to be made in order to prevent participation rates from dropping. Similarly gender affects not only the amount of sport played but also the types of sport played. For example, the results from the Active People Survey 1 (Oct 2005-Oct 2006) puts male participation rates, in the previous four weeks, for Netball and women’s participation in Waterskiing as 0%. As women usually have more responsibilities in the house and with children they typically have less time to participate in leisure activities, but these stereotypical views seem to be changing. The introduction of new technology such as the Nintendo Wii has made it possible for people to exercise from the comfort of their own home. This could be seen as a bad thing for sport with this culture replacing outdoor leisure activities including team games, meaning other sports and businesses may suffer due to the convenience of exercising in this way.

Race is another factor which affects sporting opportunity in the UK. There have been many recent campaigns to eradicate racism out of sport such as “kick racism out of football” and the “everyrace” anti-racism campaign in Formula 1. Nevertheless, black athletes are under-represented in sports like swimming and table tennis, but are over-represented in athletic events. Within some sports stacking occurs, for example, in Rugby there are many black athletes in the position of winger, yet not many in the more central roles of the game. There are many reasons which attempt to explain why this occurs, but the fact that is does occur suggests that this ‘Golden Age’ for sport in the UK does not necessarily branch over to everyone. The football premier league is a good example which shows a great variety of race and ethnicities competing with and against each other but at manager level and beyond the current state shows no black managers and very few at higher levels within the club. Similarly gender and, to an extent, age follow this pattern, and the only way in which change can occur at participation level within sports is if the higher positions also cater for the diversities within the UK.

Obesity has risen by 50% in 10 years among 5-14 year olds (Gordon Brown 2006), and sport and physical activity is now seen as a cure to solve obesity. Gordon Brown (2006) declared that “…we also need to become a fitter nation. Sport holds the key” and the sport and leisure industry has used this philosophy to attract large amounts of funding from the government. The government want a healthy nation not only for political reasons, but also to create healthy workforces and to cut down on costs to the NHS from obesity related illnesses. Change4life is a campaign being used to try and cut down on the obesity related illnesses by promoting being active and eating healthy. However, the very point that the UK is suffering from an “Obesity Crisis” implies they are not in a ‘Golden Age’ for sport at all. Creating a healthier nation is the current prime focus, and this comes at the expense of holistic values that can be gained from sport. Instead of a forward step, this could be seen as one backwards mimicking the late 19th century when physical training was introduced in state elementary schools to produce fitter soldiers due to Britain’s poor performance in the Boer War. This approach to health also raises questions whether it will make PE and sport more inclusive, or simply make people and children more cautious and less involved. Instead of focusing on promoting physical activity and interior health, the government’s focus is orientated around weight and BMI i.e. aesthetic issues.

In recent years the amount of volunteers in sport has been declining. This has been combated by the introduction of ‘step into sport’ which encourages young people to get involved in volunteering from an early age using a time-reward scheme. The decline in volunteers could be explained by the balance people now have between work and sport/leisure as Roberts (1999: 2) states “Our leisure is a product, first and foremost, of the modern organisation of work”. With changes occurring in the working week, year and life, people’s opportunities to partake in sport are changing. With an upcoming event in the UK such as the London 2012 Olympic Games, which will be looking to use approximately 70,000 volunteers for it to run smoothly and successfully, this decline in the culture of volunteering may mean it does not run as smoothly as anticipated.

Another major impact on the citizens of the UK in recent times has been the “Credit Crunch”. This has had an affect on the participation rates at grassroots, as the opportunity to partake in sports has declined due to people simply not being able to afford memberships or equipment. However, multi-millions pound businesses aren’t escaping this; a prime example of this has occurred with Newcastle United Football Club and Sports Direct – their main sponsorship and the UK’s largest sportswear chain. Last year profits were down by 50% which was the worst in the history of the company (Sports and Fitness Industry Affected by Credit Crunch: 2008). Customers cannot continue their large spending in the sports industry when the money is plainly not available. With other major clubs susceptible to follow this trend, it puts serious doubt into the UK’s supposed ‘Golden Age’ for sport.

It is understandable for people to think that the UK is in a ‘Golden Age’ for sport but with closer investigation it is not all black and white. There has been some progress in the narrowing of the “gender gap” but there is no evidence to say that opportunities to participate in sport have widened for low income groups, ethnic minorities or people with disabilities despite campaigns such as “Sport for All” which were meant to specifically deal with these issues. Sport is very much revolved around the idea of agency vs. structure; one’s freedom to partake in sport and the limiting factors preventing this. While the UK is probably in its prime for sport compared to recent years, when compared to other countries then this achievement seems less so apparent. For example Game Plan (2002: 20) states that “only 32% of adults in England take 30 minutes of moderate exercise five times a week, compared to 57% of Australians and 70% of Finns.” To conclude the UK must take advantage of the additional funding and current state of sport in the UK, and importantly achieve success in order for this to be called a ‘Golden Age’.

References

Brown, G. (2006) Gordon Brown: My vision for increasing young people’s participation in sport by 2012, [Online], Available: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-412405/Gordon-Brown-My-vision-increasing-young-peoples-participation-sport-2012.html [11 Nov 2009].

Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS)/Strategy Unit. (2002) Game Plan: A strategy for improving Government’s sport and physical activity objectives, London: Cabinet Office.

Motley Heath. (2008) Sport and Fitness Industry Affected by Credit Crunch, [Online], Available: http://www.motleyhealth.com/articles/2008/07/sports-and-fitness-industry-affected-by-credit-crunch.html [15 Nov 2009].

Olympic Park. Legacy, [Online], Available: http://www.london2012.com/plans/olympic-park/legacy/index.php [14 Nov 2009].

Polley, M. (2001) Moving the Goalposts: A History of Sport and Society Since 1945, [Online], Available: http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=zr9KyexflskC&dq=Moving+the+Goalposts:+A+History+of+Sport+and+Society+Since+1945&printsec=frontcover&source=bl&ots=JevLYBLZzJ&sig=2dSKaAvahQXYYv_IsdNW9DJ943Y&hl=en&ei=YX0BS6G4EtKJ4QaIx8j1Cw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=3&ved=0CA4Q6AEwAg#v=onepage&q=wolfendon%20report&f=false [11 Nov 2009].

Roberts, K. (1999) Leisure in Contemporary Society, London: CABI.

Robertson, M. (2008) The Price of Gold in Beijing, [Online], Available: http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/2664/ [12 Nov 2009].

Sport England. (2005-2006) Active People Survey 1, [Online], Available: http://www.sportengland.org/research/active_people_survey/active_people_survey_1.aspx [06 Nov 2009].

The Daily Mail. (2006) Olympics ‘could cost an extra ?2bn’, [Online], Available: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-412484/Olympics-cost-extra-2bn.html [12 Nov 2009].

Discuss the impact of ‘Sport and Physical Education’ on lifelong health-related physical activity in the UK.

The Be active, be healthy plan (2009 p10) believes “Physical activity includes all forms of activity such as ‘everyday’ walking or cycling to get from A to B, active recreation not undertaken competitively, such as working out in the gym, dancing, gardening or families playing together, as well as organised and competitive sport”.

Sport and physical education is stressed as being an essential part of life, which has a huge impact on both people’s fitness levels and health. It plays a big part in helping to prevent chronic diseases such as heart disease, hypertension and diabetes in adulthood, which is why it’s important for young people to understand the benefits now.

Be active be healthy (2009 p11) also states “People who are physically active reduce their risk of developing stroke and type 2 diabetes by up to 50% and the risk of premature death by about 20-30%”.

Not only does exercise have an effect on physical health but also improves physiological wellbeing as it can relieve stress and anxiety, help with personal development and also improve self esteem and confidence.

In recent times there has been more of an emphasis on encouraging young people to take part in more physical activity due to the high rise in obesity levels.

Chinn and Rona (1994) state “Childhood overweight and obesity is increasing in the UK”

This rise of obesity has been strongly linked to the fact that young people are not participating in the recommended amount of physical exercise suggested.

ThePolicy framework for young people (1998 p4) believes“For all young people, participating in at least 30 minutes of physical activity per day should be seen as a minimum. One hour of activity per day represents a more favourable level and is particularly appropriate for children of a primary school age”

Primary school children are likely to get the recommended amount of exercise due to their general play time and also through physical education lessons. For secondary school pupils they are more likely to get their recommended activity from specific sports and organised physical activity. Not only is it recommended that older children perform the 30 minutes physical activity but also dedicate time to do specific exercises

Policy framework for young people (1998 p3) states“At least twice a week, some of these activities should help to enhance and maintain muscular strength and flexibility”

These types of activities are especially important for children as they are not only helpful at that age but can also be beneficial in preventing health risks in later life. Such benefits include helping with bone mineral density and also osteoporosis.

Although the rise in obesity level is strongly linked to lack of physical activity, there has been some research which contradicts this and does show that most young people are getting the recommended amount.

Armstrong and Welsman (1997) believes “Objective measures have shown that most young people accumulate 20 minutes or more moderate intensity physical activity most days of the week”

Although a lot of young people are getting their recommended amount there are still aims of trying to get more people involved in physical activity. A way in which the Youth Sport Trust is trying to do this is by introducing something called the 5 hour offer. This 5 hour offer gives primary school and secondary school pupils the opportunity to participate in not only school sport but also community based activities.

The PE and sport strategy for young people defines the 5 hour offer as “The Youth Sport Trust and Sport England are working with the DCSF and the DCMS on ways to help local delivery partners increase provision, demand and take-up amongst all young people (5-16 year olds) of their five hours a week of high-quality PE and sport (three hours for 16 -19 year olds)”.

The offer of sport for 5-16 year olds will be made up of 2 hours curriculum PE and 3 hours of sport beyond the curriculum through after school, community and club opportunities. The offer also is extended so that it reaches out to young people between the ages of 16-19. This is a significant age range to target as it is also known as the drop-off age from sport. This is because after young people have finished secondary school, PE is no longer a compulsory subject therefore a lot of pupils will probably lose their only chance of participating in physical activity.

PE matters (2008 p10) believes “For some young people, physical education remains their only structured or organised, regular physical activity. It is therefore crucial that pupils receive their entitlement of at least two hours of physical education a week and that it is of the highest quality”

This is why the youth sport trust are now offering this age range the opportunity to participate in at least 3 hours of other activity rather that the 5 that primary school and secondary school age pupils have the opportunity of getting.

Even though there is a lot of encouragement in getting more people to participate in physical activity there are a lot of influences and barriers that are affecting participation levels. Influences that can have an effect on participation especially in young people are PE teachers. PE teachers can be seen as role models to younger people and therefore have an effect on the attitudes young people have on physical activity. If PE teachers support and encourage their pupils, then they are more likely to take up a more positive attitude to exercise and therefore be more willing to participate in not only school sport but also club or community sport. PE teachers could give society the help which is needed in order to increase the interest in sport which results in more people becoming active and helping to combat the health and obesity issues.

Not only can PE teachers influence participation but it is also said that family and friends can have a big influence on participation levels.

“There is substantial evidence that family and peer modeling and support , correlate with physical activity levels of young people(wold and Anderssen 1992) and that access to appropriate environments can enhance their participation” (Sallis et al, 1990; Sallis, 1993b)

The reasoning for this is because children tend to look up to their parents and friends and are likely to take notice of their attitudes and actions. If their parents have a negative attitude towards physical activity and don’t get the recommended amount that they should be doing, then their children might also take the same opinion. On the other hand if their parents enjoy exercise and took part in sports when they were younger, then their children are more likely to be supported and encouraged to also participate in sports. Friends can also have an effect on participation of others as if you mates are playing and enjoying sport, you are more likely to participate as well. This could not only be due to the health benefits and fun aspects of it but also to the social side associated with playing sport.

There has been a lot of debate recently about alternative activities being classed as physical exercise. This is because the older population may not have the time or money to join a club but yet they can do activities such cleaning and gardening, which some people class as exercise but others don’t.

The Be active be healthy plan (2009)defines the role of exercise as “What unites all physical activity is its effect upon our bodies, raising our heart rate, brining about an immediate and often beneficial physiology response and improving our overall well-being.”

So as long as simple activities such as cleaning and gardening are having that effect on the older population, who maybe can’t do as much as younger people can, then it is still beneficial to that person’s health. Overall in society sport and physical activity can’t be ignored as it helps to improve both a person’s physical health and mental wellbeing. Not only does it provide health benefits but it is also a fun leisure activity and even if it is doing something as simple as gardening then I think everyone should be getting their 30 minutes a day.

References

Department of Health in partnership with other Government Departments, (2009) Be active, be healthy: a plan for getting the nation moving, DH Publications

BIDDLE, S. CAVILL, N. And SALLIS, J. (1998) Policy Framework for young people and health enhancing physical activity, In HEA (1998) Young and Active? HEA Publishing

The PE & Sport Strategy for Young People {Online}. Last accessed 15th April 2010 at http://www.youthsporttrust.org/page/pessyp/index.html

Health position paper – Physical Educations contribution to public health (2008) PE matters

Sport Studies Programme Faculty of Health and Wellbeing

Sheffield Hallam University

1. Should physical combat sports be banned?

Ans: Introduction: Combat sports have been in existence in different forms for more than 2000 years. With high risks prevailing is such sports and the nature of aggression demonstrated on the sporting arena, ethical issues have come up whether in a modern civilized society there is a place of such activities. Measures have been adopted to minimise the risks to participants yet the demonstration of skills in such thrilling fashion has been under criticism. There are both bright and dark sides of these sports but whether to eliminate them or not is the major debate.

Definition of Combat Sports: Combat sports may be defined as sports wherein two individual combatants fight each other using fighting techniques according to a set of prearranged rules.

Competitors use different techniques in different forms of Combat Sports, but the objective of any contest is to subdue the opponent. The question arises here that is it ethical to allow such a sport where the main intension is to harm your opponent.

The Dark Side of Combat Sports: The first thing that strikes into one’s mind while saying about the dark sides of such sports is morality.

1. Morality: As said earlier, is it morally correct for one human being to attempt intentionally to harm the brain of the other as in boxing. It might be true that reckless tackles are made in sports like American football, Soccer, ice hockey etc and also body line bowling prevails in cricket which sometimes result in serious injuries but one does not win the game by doing so. Where as in physical combat sports one can win only by hurting the opponent and that too so seriously that the opponent cannot continue to take part in the game anymore.

2. Impact on society: The impact of such sports on the society can be viewed in two different ways.
Combat sports practice: Evidence of unlicensed boxing events exist where violence has reached its extremities but it may be argued that a sport, which is explicitly a stimulation of actual combat and which has clearly defined boundaries is less of a threat to the social order than such evidences.

Another issue evolved which argued if participation in a combat sport results in increase of violence and aggression in a human being. But different researches have shown increase in social and emotional awareness among the participants.

Viewing Combat sports: The effect of excessive media exposure of combat sports does have a positive impulse of violence in some people but for the vast majority of the population exposure to aggression and violence as a passive spectator is considered to have negligible impact on people’s social behaviour.

The Value of Combat Sports: Notwithstanding the violent nature of combat sports, “good” can be found in them just like any other sport. Any form of combat sport has the potential to improve physical health and well being. Higher physical competence and ability to defend one’s own self can be considered as the positive side of combat sports. Combat sports can also acts as a medium of self-expression and human bonding. Contrary to popular belief, winning is not the sole objective of fighting contests. Value is given to what can be learnt from the opponent, be it in victory or defeat.

Conclusion: Considering the fact that sport where the principal intent is to harm your opponent and with the high risk of fatalities and serious disabling injuries involved, the question arises both from the ethical and safety point of view as to whether or not combat sports be legally banned. In my opinion, before considering a legal ban and forcing the sport underground, each combat sport should be given the opportunity to review its rules for competition. For example, fighting within predetermined weight class, only one fight per night etc.

Self-Determination Theory as a proposed aid to Athletic Injury Rehabilitation

Just as Honda Motor Company advertises widely that the technology it places in its Formula I racing program finds its way to each consumer automobile it sells, one can find the same justification for utilizing psychological interventions to increase the performance of athletes, especially after potentially career-ending or –derailing injuries. The success of such interventions, much as is efficacy of the technology in 200+mph race cars, is exceptionally clarified during moments of intense sport action. Similarly, by incorporating elements of Self-Determination Theory and motivational interviewing during the “pit time” of an athlete in rehab, their likelihood of emerging as strong as or perhaps even stronger than before the injury are increased.

In fine scientific tradition, the basis of Self-Determination Theory (SDT) is found in the continual evolution of prior theories that were found lacking. For example, in one early model, Hull’s Drive Theory, motivation was posited to simply be a factor of unmet physiological needs. While this is true for some ‘drives’, for other needs such as emotional or even play, this theory was notably silent (Deci & Ryan 2000, p. 228). Another example of an ‘unfinished’ theory would be Skinner’s operant conditioning, a very useful theory that nonetheless omits intrinsic motivations (Deci & Ryan 2000, p. 233). Fundamental precepts of SDT indicate that people “have an innate organizational tendency toward growth, integration of the self, and the resolution of psychological inconsistency” (Markland, Ryan, Tobin & Rollnick 2005, p.815). These three concepts are both the “what” and the “why” of motivation have been demonstrated to not only be valid theoretically but also in real-world field research where actual behaviors occur (Ryan & Deci 2000, pp. 228 and 258).

In first speculating about and then later in predicting and then influencing behavior, SDT argues that motivation must first be understood. According to SDT, behaviors lie on a continuum from externally motivated, in which others control behavior through reinforcements, to identification which is very “self-determined”. In between these extremes is behavior motivated by introspective regulations as would be the case when someone partially internalizes motivation, often because of self-esteem type issues that are unstable as sources of continual motivation (Markland, et al 2005, p. 816).

To begin bridging motivation with actual performance, that is to bring together intent with actual outcome, it is well documented that those with a greater degree of internal motivation do better in “motivational persistence, quality of behavior and learning, and well-being outcomes in… education, work, sports, exercise….” (Markland, et al 2005, p. 817). Though it is not enough to say that these things just “happen”, there are methods designed to facilitate the internalization of goals. Such techniques as Motivation Interviewing, in fact, make a purposeful facilitation of this objective.

In short, Motivational Interviewing is style of counseling that has been widely adopted for behavioral change. Beginning with the reasonable assumption that there is not a single behavior that did not first begin as a thought or motive emotion, the key to changing behavior is to change one’s motivation. It achieves this through the exploration and resolution of the client’s ambivalence in choosing one “desired” behavior over another “undesired” behavior (Markland, et al 2005, p. 813). By assisting the client to clarify the conflicts of change and the choices they make and rationalize, the therapist is able to facilitate the client to want to change, thus overcoming their own ambivalence.

To better illustrate how these methods might work, consider the following case:

John is a third year high school athlete in a top-third soccer program. He consistently plays at a high level and has been told that he has potential to possibly play at a top college program. The key to this seems to be to continue to evolve as a total player, attend a top-flight summer camp program and have a predictably excellent final year. Everything proceeds according to plan when, at the summer camp, he has a severe grade II hamstring pull. Though he immediately iced it, he was unable to move faster than a limping walk for two days. Surgical repair was ill advised due to the specific nature and location and aggressive therapy was prescribed.

Clearly, John seems to be properly motivated for ‘his best efforts’ at recovery prior to the fall season only 3 months away. On the line is a college scholarship, the admiration of his peers and the otherwise ‘abandonment’ of his team. Seemingly, all the ingredients for motivational performance in the “sport of rehabilitation” are present yet, when one examines these, it is not apparent the extent to which he is internally motivated. Is he playing to save his parent’s money? Will his girlfriend reject him if he becomes a “spectator”? These are potentially powerful motivators yet SDT research clearly indicates an almost linear relationship between performance and the degree of internal motivation.

To utilize the SDT and motivational interviewing precepts to John’s advantage, the first order of business is to become “client-centric” by giving John choices in his care. The greater extent that John can control the outcome in a medically acceptable way, the greater the extent that he will feel as though he is in charge and therefore motivation is more intrinsic and thus he is more likely to perform better during and consequently after rehab as well (Podlog & Eklund 2005, p. 23; Markland et al 2005, p. 818).

In addition, in direct support of SDT, the following motivational interview techniques are recommended:

SDT Functional Area

Competence
Autonomy
Relatedness

Clear & neutral information about goals and outcomes
Avoid coercion
Express empathy

Develop appropriate goals
“Roll with resistance”
Explore concerns

Positive feedback
Explore Options
Demonstrate understanding of the client’s position

Self-efficacy is supported
Client-centric decision making
Avoid judgment and blame

(Markland et al 2005, p. 821)

As an additional adjunct to utilizing SDT theory and as indicated earlier, it is not a great stretch of the imagination to envision rehab as a form of sport in which you continually compete against one’s on “personal best”, the admonitions of your medical “coaches” and the coming next game or season, as applicable. By doing so, not only does this perspective further enable one to apply SDT to rehab as to other settings but is also allows the athlete to leverage the intrinsic competitiveness and drive to achieve greater gains in rehabilitation. An example in which we might apply a broader portion of sports psychology to a rehab setting would be to utilize mental rehearsal not just of a sporting moment but of rehab exercises. By focusing on the specific components of a rehab exercise, performance is likely to be increased just as visualizing on-the-field performance can enhance the performance of a healthy athlete (Wrisberg & Fisher 2005, p. 58).

In conclusion, by utilizing sport psychology and SDT and Motivational Interviewing techniques in particular, there is a great likelihood that John, our case study, performance could be significantly enhanced not only in rehab but in the following season as well. By clearing the mind of its barriers and ambivalence to performance, the body will be enabled to reach its utmost performance potentials.

Works Consulted

Deci, E. and R. Ryan. (2000). “The “What” and “Why” of Goal Pursuits: Human Needs and the Self-Determination of Behavior”. Psychological Inquiry, (11), 4, pp. 227-268.

Markland, D., R. Ryan, V. Tobin, and S. Rollnick. (2005). “Motivational Interviewing and Self-Determination Theory”. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, (24), 6, pp. 811-831.

Podlog, L. and R. Eklund. (2005). “Return to Sport After Serious Injury: A Retrospective Examination of Motivation and Psychological Outcomes”. Journal of Sport Rehabilitation, (14), pp. 20-34.

Wrisberg, C. and L. Fisher. (2005). “Mental Rehearsal During Rehabilitation”. Athletic Therapy Today, (6),10, pp. 58-59.

Sprinting consists of three phases: acceleration phase, transition phase and a maximal velocity phase (Cronin & Hansen, 2006). Acceleration is a major component in making a successful performance in many different sports and it can also be seen as potentially pivotal in determining the outcome of a sports game. Therefore training for acceleration is an essential component of many athletes’ strength and conditioning programme (Kraemer et al. 2000).

When choosing methods to improve sprinting certain parameters need to be considered. The acceleration phase includes a longer stance time, increased trunk and knee flexion and greater propulsive forces (Kraemer et al. 2000). The muscular structure of the lower leg needs to have the necessary capacity to contribute to the acceleration performance and this is done through specific strength training activities. When an athlete improves strength, it produces greater force and decreased ground contact time which increases stride frequency (Spinks et al. 2007). Various training modalities including sprint loading improve the elastic energy during the support sage of the sprint cycle, increasing stride length.

Resisted sprint training is a basic conditioning method used by coaches to lengthen running stride (Makarur et al. 2013). It is carried out by adding an external load to the athlete, such as pulling a tyre, a loaded sled, running up hill or using parachutes. Hunter et al. (2005) observed that running velocity and increasing strength are greatly increased by resisted sprint training due to the increased strength and power of the leg extensor muscles in the acceleration phase.

This critical review will analyse previous studies and their findings when using resisted sprint training using weighted sleds on athletes.

Lockie (2003) and Letzelter et al. (1995) stated that towing causes acute changes in sprint kinematics of acceleration phase. Certain loads may be more appropriate for sprints performed from a block start compared to a standing start. Mero and Komi (1990) found mean contact time of foot to floor in the acceleration phase after a block start to range from 0.15s to 0.22s. This coincides with Spinks et al. (2007) findings of decreased contact time of first step of acceleration phase in the resisted sprint group of 11.8% and recording 0.15s to 0.19s contact time.

Spinks et al. (2007) also found that the biggest increase in overall velocity was achieved in the 0-5m interval. Rimmer and Sleivert (2000) found that carrying out 8 weeks of sprint and plyometric training improves the velocity over the first 10m of the sprint. However Kafer et al. (1993) studied resisted sled training and found that there was a significant improvement of 0.35 seconds (P<0.001) over 20m and 60m when compared to assisted sprint training. They concluded that resisted sled towing improvements were due to increased resistance, increasing force production developing and maintaining velocity. This would increase the load on the strength shortening cycle, increasing muscle stiffness and vertical force at each ground coupling point.

Harridge et al. (1998) found that resisted sled towing can alter myosin heavy chain expression of muscle fibres. Increases in speed occur due to a shift in fibre type distribution and speed of shortening cycle which might contribute to increased power generation. 8.4% significant increases were found on resisted sprint trained athletes when compared to a control group (Spinks et al. 2007). If power output of knee extensors are increased, improved ground contact time results in greater propulsive acceleration efforts. However Maclean () disproved this as he found that after testing this hypothesis across 6 weeks of training increase in muscle performance occurred without any significant change in myosin heavy chain or fibre type distribution.

Letzelter et al. (1995) after studying 16 female sprint performances found that performance was decreased by 8% and 22% respectively for the loads of 2.5 kg and 10 kg. Results showed that this was predominantly due to the reduced stride length in athletes. Decreases in stride length by 5.3% and 13.5%, stride frequency 2.4% with 2.5 kg load and 6.2% with a 10 kg load. Across all loads were found to be an increased stance time to lean and hip flexion angle. Lockie et al. (2003) reported similar findings when testing 20 males’ field sport athletes. Athletes performed 15m sprints using no resistance, 12.6% or 32.2% of body mass load. These were chosen as previous findings show a decrease in 10/20% of max velocity. Decrease in stride length of 10% +24% were documented. Stride frequency was only found to decrease by 6% in each load. In agreement with Leztler et al. (1995).

Makurak et al. (2013) found running stride length increased in their resisted sled training group when compared to the standard training group. Findings were also supported by Delecluse (1997). Increasing stride length is said to be the result of performing fuller extension at the knee found by the increased knee angle at toe off. This change could be directly due to the strength between hip and knee extensors.

Bhowmick and Bhattacharyya (1988) suggest the horizontal acceleration of the arm swing increases stride length and during ground contact time the vertical element enhances the leg drive. Ropret et al. (1988) tested adding load to the athlete’s arms however no significant reduction in initial acceleration over 30 m was found. Lockie et al. (2003) state that 32.2% body mass was better for the development of upper body action. As the load increases shoulder range of motion increases. However Spinks et al. (2007) in terms of their study of upper-body kinematics found that it had little impact on acceleration performance.

The critical analysis of various studies showed that results were contradictory. More investigations into optimal load, changes in strength shortening cycle and training distances should be undertaken to find ideal training focus.

References

Bhowmick, S., Bhattacharyya, A. (1988) ‘Kinematicanalysis of arm movements in sprint start.’ Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness; Vol: 28: pp315–323.

Cronin, J., Hansen, K. (2006) ‘Resisted sprint training for the acceleration phase of sprinting’ Journal of Strength and Conditioning; Vol: 28 (4), pp.42-51

Delecluse, G. (1997) ‘Influence of strength training on sprint running performance: Current findings and implications for training’ Journal of Sports Medicine; Vol. 24 (3), pp.147-156,

Harridge, S.., Bottinelli, R., Canepari, M., Pellegrino, M., Reggiani, C., Esbjornsson, M., Balsom, P.,Saltin, B. (1998) ‘Sprint Training, In Vitro and In Vivo Muscle Function, and Myosin Heavy Chain Expression’. Journal of Applied Physiology; Vol

84: pp.442-449.

Hunter, J., Marshall, R., McNair, P. (2005) ‘Relationships between ground reaction force impulse and kinematics of sprint-running acceleration.’ Journal of Applied Biomechanics; Vol: 21(1), pp.31-34

Kafer, R. Adamson, G., O’Conner, M., Faccioni, A.(1993) ‘Methods of maximising speed development’ Strength and Conditioning Coach; Vol. 1, pp.9-11

Kraemer, W., Ratamess, N., Volek, J., Mazzettil, S., Gomez, A. (2000) ‘The effect of the Meridian Shoe on vertical jump and sprint performances following short-term combined plyometric/sprint and resistance training.’ Journal Strength Conditioning Research. Vol; 14: pp.228–238

Lockie, R., Murphy, A., Spinks, C. (2003) ‘Effects of resisted sled towing on sprint kinematics in field sport athletes;. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research; Vol 17: pp760-767

Mero, A., Komi, P. (1990) ‘Reaction time and electromyographic activity during a sprint start.’ European. Journal of Applied. Physiology and Occupational. Physiology; Vol: 61:pp. 73–80.

Rimmer, E., Sleivert, G. (2000) ‘Effects of a plyometrics intervention program on sprint performance.’ Journal of Strength and Conditioning. Research; Vol. 14: pp. 295–301.

ROPRET, R., M. KUKOLJ, D. UGARKOVIC, D.MATAVULJ, AND S. JARIC. ‘Effect of arm and leg loading on sprint performance.’ European Journal of Applied Physiology and Occupational Physiology; Vol: 77: pp.547–550.

Spinks, C., Murphy, A., Spinks, W., Lockie, R. (2007) ‘The effects of resisted sprint training on acceleration performance and kinematics in soccer, rugby union and Australian football players’ Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research; Vol: 21 (1), pp.77-85

Coaching

In recent years coaching has become a much larger area for research, this is so that the complexity of the coaching process may finally be understood. Due to the nature of professional sport demanding a high quality of coaching there have been rapid developments in coaching as a profession (Woodman, 1993).As a result of this increased need for success in coaching it is becoming more desirable for other coaches to be able to replicate the same coaching processes that have proved successful previously, to do this researchers have attempted to model the coaching process. As thought by Lyle the approach to coaching may be seen as a sequential process, it is described as dynamic and systematic process that follows lots of stages and includes many contextual factors (Lyle, 1993). In similar research by Borrie and Knowles they also agree with the rationalistic approach, this was defined as a ‘series of stages that the coach has to go through to help the athlete learn and improve’ (Borrie and Knowles, 2003). In lots of research it is clear that many researchers believe the process may be modelled, examples of this are shown by Lyle, Fairs and Sherman. These examples of research show that the coaching process is methodical and may be condensed into a diagram form for representation of how the process is carried out (Lyle, 2002; Fairs, 1987; Sherman et al., 1997). Following a successful representation of the coaching process via a model that can be easily replicated, the potential for improvements in education and teaching of these coaching processes is huge as it allows coaching as a profession to become more effective (Csikszentmihalyi et al., 1993; Jones and Wallace, 2005).

Not all research into the coaching process supports the same argument, for example Jones and Wallace (2005) suggest that it doesn’t follow a sequential pattern and cannot be rationalised. This is due to the process being seen to have too many external factors that have to be included, as a result of this the process is viewed as an inherently ambiguous activity that cannot be modelled (Jones and Wallace, 2005). In recent years Jones et al (2004) have focused on the intricate and dynamic nature of how coaches help to prepare athletes for competition (Jones, Armour and Potrac, 2004). The conflicting research that has been conducted on the coaching process leads to a belief that coaching may be too complex to be modelled as the contradictory understanding affects the accuracy of each model.

Although coaching is clearly a very complex process it has still been looked at from a rationalistic viewpoint in an attempt to model the process. Lyle suggests that for an improvement in coaching education to occur we must first understand the coaching process in principle (Lyle, 1999). By using a rationalistic perspective to look at the coaching process Lyle suggests the process can be modelled and will therefore have a subsequent effect on improving coaching education (Lyle, 1999). In the research conducted by Lyle it also suggests that there are two types of models for coaching, these are models of and for the coaching process. Models for coaching come from an idealistic perspective that derives from the use of assumptions made about how the process is carried out; On the other hand models of coaching lean more towards analysing successful coaching practice to produce a method of the coaching process (Cushion et al., 2006; Lyle, 1999).Categorising the types of research helps to identify the purpose of current models as well as identifying the structures of such models.

In 1987 the objectives model was created by Fairs, this was developed by using a systematic approach to identify the key sections that form the coaching process structure. This model identifies that coaching follows a number of structured stages that are also seen as being interrelated (Cushion et al., 2006; Fairs, 1987). This model can therefore be used to effectively represent coaching in a diagrammatical form, however the nature of the model still allows for flexibility due to an emphasis on analysing and reassessment of targets (Cushion et al., 2006).The objectives model does link in well with the coaching process whilst still being logical, however this model has taken criticism due to the overly simplistic nature throughout the structure of the model (Cross and Ellis, 1997; Jones and Wallace, 2005; Lyle, 1999).The criticism has arose mainly due to the lack of detail when looking into the coach athlete relationship. There are many contextual factors that haven’t been accounted for which therefore leads to the model not being directly specific to the coaching process (Jones and Wallace, 2005). The main downside to the objectives model is that the athlete coach dynamic isn’t highlighted to show a good representation of the interpersonal relationship that is clear for anyone who has taken part in sport, due to this there is a lack of validity because of the lack of connection to real coaching practice (Cushion et al., 2006).

Following the critique of Fairs (1987) objective model Lyle (1999) produced a model that would aim to support that the coaching process does follow a rationalistic and sequential process but also wanted to take into account the complex contextual factors that the objective model lacked. Lyle’s model has also been criticised for its lack of flexibility when trying to adapt to the messy reality of practice (Cushion et al., 2006), for example; the model fails to reflect on how a coach may have to adapt to not many people turning up, this occurs regularly in sport as there is a constant flow of power between the coach and athlete showing that nobody is ever completely powerless (Layder, 1994). Although these models are beneficial to outlining the coaching process and its factors, they are still limited as to how much they can be used as an educative tool, this is due to the overall lack of in depth knowledge relating to the social dynamics that occur between the coach and athlete (Cushion, 2004).

As the need for a fixed model to describe and show how the coaching process happens is large research has almost been forced to condense the process in an attempt to conceptualise and rationalise coaching, this however has led to the models being unable to make sense of the ambiguous nature that occurs during coaching practice (Jones et al., 2004; Jones and Wallace, 2004). Although in some cases models have attempted to investigate the interactions between coach and athlete they haven’t been able to understand the realistic complexity that underpins the relationships (Jones and Wallace, 2005). Viewing coaching as an inherently ambiguous activity leads us to begin to see that attempting to model coaching is counterproductive when trying to understand the practical applications of coaching (Jones et al., 2004; Jones and Wallace, 2005).

Poczawardowski et al (2002) attempted to understand the coaching process further by taking a phenomenological approach to investigate the coach/athlete dynamic. This approach supported the theory that the athlete/coach relationship doesn’t follow certain patterns and have fixed reciprocal interactions (Poczawardowski et al., 2002). Again the complex athlete coach relationship was found to be unique for each individual interaction, this supports that both the athlete and coach personally author their own actions during the interactions. Jones and Wallace (2005) suggest that in order to improve coaching practice as a whole the coaches should practice situations where they themselves have low controllability and incomprehensibility, this will benefit the coaches as they will develop skills to quickly evolve to changing circumstances that require different measures of organisation and planning, doing so will lead to a more realistic expression of actual coaching practice (Jones and Wallace, 2005). Using this method suggests that coaching is linked to orchestration as it has been shown that expert coaches recognise the parameters and respond by acting in an unobtrusive and flexible manner so as to adapt to the ever changing situation that coaching is subjected to (Jones et al., 2004).

Even though there is rapid increase in acknowledgement of the coaching process as a whole and in the area, there is still a lack of a definitive list of concepts and factors to create a clear conceptual base to understand the coaching practice accurately (Cushion et al., 2006). All of the rationalistic models created to help better understand the coaching practice have been criticised, generally where all concepts fail is in the understanding of the unpredictable situations that arise during coaching, the main part of which is the extraneous variables that occur during both the athlete/coach relationship and factors that may affect training (Gould et al., 1990). Detailed research by Jones and Wallace (2005) and Poczwardowski et al (2002) revealed the real complexity of the coaching process by stating it as an ‘inherently ambiguous activity’ (Jones and Wallace, 2005). After looking at the literature surrounding the coaching process it has become clear that the coaching process is too complex to be modelled and attempting to do so is counterproductive.

Reflective Observation Report

My observation was of a level two football coach. I attended a session once a week for three weeks with the same group. Staying with the same group was beneficial as I was able to see the development of the athletes and see the full variety of coaching techniques and styles of learning that was applied by the coach. The age group was fifteen to eighteen year olds and the sessions lasted 3 hours.
The coach would generally use a variety of teaching styles throughout their sessions. One style used was the cognitive learning style. On a basic drill of finding movement in a limited space some players found it hard to identify where space is often found and how to exploit it. The coach took these players aside and made them view the game from an outside perspective. By making the players view the game and try to solve the problem of limited space, cognitive learning took place. After viewing the drill once over the coach sent the players back in and they showed a visible change of tactics and in the specific game a definite improved level of ability. The coach used a similar technique in a different session. The holding playmaker of the team was struggling with their passing vision. The player couldn’t identify when and where to pass to keep possession. The coach realising this set the player homework. The coach gave the player a dvd, which included the basic five areas of a playmakers passing range and had examples of elite footballers performing the set passes. In the next session the player was showed improvement and displayed a calmer performance in the session’s end game. This involved participation, thinking and memory some key traits of the cognitive learning style.
When certain players were disobedient the coach was quick to act and make example of the players. Punishments such as press-ups, sit-ups and sprints were all included. These punishments set the tone of the football field. Be disobedient to the coach or other teammates and receive punishment. When doing the punishments the other players watched and passively acknowledged how to act on a football field. With this a regular occurrence the players were subject to the behavioural learning style. Learning information based on the environment that an individual is placed in. The environment that the footballers were placed in sets a positive tone of not to be disobedient with the coach or teammates.
The sessions I attended were at the early part of the football season. Gaining match fitness was vitally important. The way that this was achieved was done so in a very democratic way. The coach hadn’t previously worked with this particular group and was unsure of fitness levels. The coach therefore negotiated the set targets with the players. The captain of the team was at the front of the negotiations. The coach used this as a bonding activity and gained social connection with the players. This inactive passive approach showed the players the level of respect that the coach had for them. This increased the players’ motivation and the coach had players achieving fitness goals which were set by the players thus easing the pressure off them.
One of the more technically difficult drills the coach set up was set piece training. The coach set two teams of defenders and attackers. They were also told to act if in a game situation. This clear use of team based competition was a sign of team based learning. The defenders were left to figure out how best to set up their defensive unit. The attackers would have to make decisions on how best to attack the goal. The ball could either be crossed or shot at from one of the more technically better players in the team. This kind of match environment is a sign of further behavioral learning. The coach let the drill go on and took a passive approach but when the attackers failed to score after a maintained period of time the coach felt it was time to intervene. The coach displayed a simpler option which created more goal scoring chances. The simple change of tactics developed more chances on goal than before. This is a sign of constructive learning. The coach let them develop a basic structure of attacking the goal but when they reached their limit the coach just gave a few bits of information to help them go slightly more advanced. The attackers learnt a basic understanding themselves and were only developed on when necessary by the coach. Shortly after doing this the coach did the same with the defending team. A simple suggestion of putting two players on the post denied many accurate shots by the attacking team. By allowing the players to steadily improve themselves and only having coach interference when absolutely necessary the coach became a facilitator not a lecturer which is a key trait of constructive learning. By determining the state and needs of the players by intervening to assist in improvement, the coach showed signs of instructional design learning.
During the end of the third session the coach again took a passive approach. A drill was set up to inspire freedom and creativity. Samba music was played and the drill was to beat your opponent one on one. Skills and tricks were encouraged to develop the creativity and flair of the players. This allowance of free roaming and putting faith in the players that they would create and use complex skills was a sign of humanism.
To summarize, I believe the coach was of a high level and was able to teach complex drills with ease. I saw a variety of drills taught and a wide range of learning styles incorporated. There weren’t many set goals in the sessions. Instead there was a more general development of a wide range of skills. Maybe this was due to the coach unsure of how long his placement was with this particular group of players. The key focus of all the sessions was largely dominated by fitness. In doing this the coach showed his primary from of teaching was done in a democratic way. The players were of a sufficient ability to improve on their own fitness and the coach was merely enforcing the idea not the actual practice itself.