supporting and promoting elite sport with the aim of inducing an increase in PA/sport practice in the general population, which may lead to a healthier population. That is why this proposed mechanism, also called the trickle-down effect, is often used by decision makers and policymakers to legitimize
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Alexis Lion, Anne Vuillemin, Florian Léon, Charles Delagardelle, and Aurélie van Hoye
Jens De Rycke, Veerle De Bosscher, Hiroaki Funahashi, and Popi Sotiriadou
Competition for medals at international stages is increasing, and many nations have adopted strategic approaches toward sporting success. Over time, this commitment has resulted in snowballing amounts of money invested in elite sport 1 development by many nations ( De Bosscher, Shibli, Westerbeek
Emma C. Neupert, Stewart T. Cotterill, and Simon A. Jobson
An effective training-monitoring system (TMS) can positively influence performance through monitoring program effectiveness and reducing the risk of illness or injury. 1 However, successfully implementing a TMS can be problematic in elite sport, with issues relating to end-user buy-in and a
Liam J.A. Lenten, Aaron C.T. Smith, and Ralph-Christopher Bayer
Performance-enhancing substance(s) (PES) use in elite sport has become so endemic that a global law enforcement body was established by International Olympic Committee (IOC) administrators to monitor its use and prosecute athlete transgressors. As established in 1999, the World Anti-Doping Agency
Suzanna Russell, Shona L. Halson, David G. Jenkins, Steven B. Rynne, Bart Roelands, and Vincent G. Kelly
Increased scientific attention has recently been directed toward exploring mental fatigue in elite sport, with impairments in physical, technical, tactical, and psychological aspects of athlete performance evidenced. 1 However, optimization of elite sporting performance requires effective
Astrid Schubring and Ansgar Thiel
Growing up in elite sport represents a challenging project. Young athletes must negotiate a career-defining transitional period while in the midst of adolescence. In this context, notably, the growth process can lead to health problems such as overloading and injuries. In this article, we investigate how adolescent elite athletes cope with problematic growth experiences. Taking a Bourdieusian perspective, we consider coping to be a socioculturally-located practice. Drawing on qualitative interviews and participant observation in German elite sport, our conversational analysis reveals five typical coping strategies among young athletes: (a) distancing, (b) rationalization, (c) active agency, (d) self-disciplining, and (e) responsibility transfer. We reflect on the health-compromising side effects of these strategies as well as the implications for the sporting community’s handling of growth problems.
Michael McDougall, Mark Nesti, and David Richardson
The challenges encountered by sport psychologists operating within elite and professional sports teams have arguably been inadequately considered (Nesti, 2010). It has been suggested that this may be due to the inaccessibility of elite team environments (Eubank, Nesti, & Cruickshank, 2014; Nesti, 2010). The purpose of this research was to examine the challenges facing practitioners who operate in elite environments and to illuminate how these were experienced. Qualitative interviews with six experienced applied sport psychologists were conducted and a narrative themed analysis undertaken. Four main themes emerged as most prevalent and meaningful: challenges to congruence, a broader role: managing multiple relationships, the influence of elite sport cultures, and surviving and thriving were presented in narrative form. Practitioners provided experiential insight into how specific challenges were understood and dealt with, and how they are able to provide an effective service while managing themselves and the demands of the environment.
Pål Augestad, Nils Asle Bergsgard, and Atle Ø. Hansen
In this article, we argue that neoinstitutional theory can increase our understanding of the different ways nations develop structures for top-level sport. Theorists of the neoinstitutional school concentrate on how and to what degree organizations adapt to both formal and informal expectations in their institutional environment. Elite sports organizations participate in different organizational fields, and that pulls the organization in different directions. The empirical case for our discussion is the organization of elite sport in Norway. We will attempt to place elite sport in Norway in an international context by relating its development, structure, and working procedures to the development of corresponding elite sport systems in other Western countries. In addition to striking similarities among various national models for the organization of top-level sport, there are distinguishing national features that result from different cultural and political traditions.
Jasper Truyens, Veerle De Bosscher, and Popi Sotiriadou
Research on elite sport policy tends to focus on the policy factors that can influence success. Even though policies drive the management of organizational resources, the organizational capacity of countries in specific sports to allocate resources remains unclear. This paper identifies and evaluates the organizational capacity of five sport systems in athletics (Belgium [separated into Flanders and Wallonia], Canada, Finland, and the Netherlands). Organizational capacity was evaluated using the organizational resources and first-order capabilities framework (Truyens, De Bosscher, Heyndels, & Westerbeek, 2014). Composite indicators and a configuration analysis were used to collect and analyze data from a questionnaire and documents. The participating sport systems demonstrate diverse resource configurations, especially in relation to program centralization, athlete development, and funding prioritization. The findings have implications for high performance managers’ and policy makers’ approach to strategic management and planning for organizational resources in elite sport.
Michael McDougall, Noora Ronkainen, David Richardson, Martin Littlewood, and Mark Nesti
. At the time of writing, however, no study in sport psychology (to our knowledge) has utilized this framework in empirical research. The aim of this study is, therefore, to use these three perspectives to explore the cultural understanding of social actors in elite sport through complementary lenses
