scholarly journals Health prevention in youth sports: innovative and interdisciplinary experiences at the Lausanne 2020 Youth Olympic Games

The Youth Olympic Games were introduced in 2010 with the aim to bring young athletes not only an experience of competition on the world stage, but also to help them learn about the Olympic values, explore other cultures and develop the skills to become true ambassadors. The Lausanne 2020 Games provided an excellent opportunity to develop innovative concepts for health promotion and sports-related prevention. The enthusiasm across various sectors of society (political, academic and economy) empowered us to bring together multiple skills to materialize the IOC’s pledge. We developed communication concept around key sports-related issues targeting the competitors and population of our region. We set up pavilions hosting the various modules in Lausanne, at the Olympic Villages (Lausanne Vortex and St. Moritz), where the modules could be tested and videos were presented. Deep Impact is a virtual reality immersion into concussion, And You …? explores the perceptions of sports-related abuse through five excerpts of blockbuster movies. The Safety Clips for youth athletes introduce ten typical adolescent sports medicine topics in a youth-friendly format. Youth and elite (role model) athletes delivered the messages rather than professionals, whilst the content was true to current scientific knowledge. Three key elements emerged. 1. The power of interdisciplinarity and innovation to promote healthy sports. 2. Adolescence is the best time to sensitize athletes and their entourage. 3. The need for strong institutional and political support to develop health prevention in sport. We look forward to building on these positive experiences and bring prevention and health in sports forward.

Competitive and elite sport often challenges the balance between health and performance, especially when it involves youth athletes. As Lausanne was getting ready to host the 2020 winter Youth Olympic Games, we had the opportunity to reflect on these challenges and on what they mean for sports medicine practitioners. Elite sport pushes athletes to the limit, be it through their own intrinsic drive to achieve ever more, or through the pressures of the multiple stakeholders around sport.


2007 ◽  
Vol 55 (3) ◽  
pp. 611-631 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Burdsey

This article examines the rapid rise to fame of teenage British Asian boxer Amir Khan following his silver medal at the 2004 Olympic Games, and provides a critical discourse analysis of the way that he was subsequently constructed and represented by politicians and the media as a role model for multiethnic Britain. The analysis demonstrates that in the periods directly after both the 2004 Olympic Games and the 7 July 2005 London bombings, the majority of discourses about, and representations of, Khan were inextricably related to contemporary debates around multiculturalism, national identity, and religious extremism and/or deviance amongst young British Muslim men. This article argues that despite the ostensibly positive portrayals of Khan as an individual, a broader, more critical reading of these texts uncovers how they actually reproduce the contradictions and problems inherent to New Labour's policies on citizenship, community cohesion, the ‘war on terror’ and ‘diversity management’. The article concludes that the almost ubiquitous configuration of Khan as a positive role model is in danger of obscuring the continued existence of discourses and practices of racism and social exclusion in contemporary Britain.


2018 ◽  
Vol 64 (4) ◽  
pp. 614-626
Author(s):  
Tishyarakshit Chatterjee

With India’s well-intentioned environmental laws and legal interpretations in place, there is still a perceptible weakness in the enforcement of her environmental regulations. This is ascribed to the centralised departmental structure and process of implementation, which prioritise clearances of developmental projects over monitoring and cleaning up of already polluted environments. Although in a democratic set-up, a lack of transparency and participation of knowledgeable stakeholders in decision-making are other process weaknesses noticed. Establishing an Independent Environmental Regulatory Authority has been tried repeatedly but given up mainly because its effectiveness depends on the same resources support as at present, on reliable primary field-level environmental data, not gathered regularly now and on sustained political support. Technically analysing the issues involved, this article suggests a process shift towards a locally relevant, transparent, decentralised, participative and area-science–value-based approach that can strengthen environmental regulation from below.


2020 ◽  
Vol 33 (20) ◽  
pp. 42-46
Author(s):  
A.M. Kulish ◽  
V.V. Turpitko

Sport has always served to establish peace, to help different peoples of the world to study each other’s culture, to create conditions for the humane resolution of conflicts, to be an opportunity to express their talents. Therefore, he never fell out of sight of society. In this work, the authors present the formation and development of sports in Ukraine and abroad. The main features of the primitive community were identified. It is determined that the invention of the chariot for the physical culture of the states: Babylon, Ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, Ancient India, China, Persia became the starting point for the further development of sports in this region. It has been found that ancient Greece made a significant contribution to the development of sports. After all, it was the basis of the main principles of modern professional sport. Attention is drawn to the Olympic Games that took place in Ancient Greece: their appearance, conditions, prohibition, and revival Pierre de Coubertin. Further new competitions (Paralympic Games, Olympic Games, etc.) were added to them. It is revealed that international organizations and institutions have been set up to control such competitions. The authors found that religion had a great influence on the formation of physical culture during the Middle Ages and during the Renaissance. Trends in the development of modern sport and the factors that influence it was found out. As a result, it was concluded that sports are currently in the process of transformation. Therefore, the authors indicate what has the greatest influence on the formation and continued existence of sports. The main stages of the formation of physical culture in Ukraine were analyzed. It is also established that Ukraine has built a domestic sport in accordance with world experience in this field. Keywords: sports, physical culture, Olympics, doping, consolidating function.


1985 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 168-176
Author(s):  
Heyward L. Nash

Atmosphere ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (12) ◽  
pp. 479 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andreas Matzarakis ◽  
Dominik Fröhlich ◽  
Stéphane Bermon ◽  
Paolo Emilio Adami

The effect of weather on sport events is largely discussed in the sports medicine and exercise physiology context. It is important, both for event organizers and for medical staff, to know whether the competition is happening at a time and place with extreme weather or in general not appropriate weather and climatic conditions. In order to find out, whether a place or time is appropriate, two factors should be included when establishing the effect of atmospheric conditions on visitors and athletes. These are the main climatic conditions, based on long term data, and the quantification of extreme events, like heat waves. The present analysis aims at determining what kind of data are required for an appropriate quantification of weather and climate thermal stress. For the analysis, indices like Physiologically Equivalent Temperature (PET) and mPET (modified PET) are applied. The advantage of these indices is the consideration of both, thermo-physiological and meteorological factors to provide results and information that can be used for decision making. In this paper, we analyzed the Tokyo area with regards to the upcoming Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympic Games. The results show that this kind of event may not be appropriate for visitors, if it is placed during months with extreme conditions. For Tokyo, this is the period from May to September, when conditions cause strong heat stress to the visitors for the vast majority of hours of the day. A more appropriate time would be the months from November to February or the early morning and the late afternoon hours, when thermally comfortable conditions are much more frequent. The methods that are applied here can quantify the thermal conditions and show limitations and possibilities for specific events and locations. Should the organizers still want to have these competitions organized during these months with extreme conditions, they should promote and propose all possible countermeasures for the spectators, workforce, and athletes.


2016 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
pp. e13-e14
Author(s):  
Chris Koutures ◽  
Valarie Wong

2004 ◽  
Vol 97 (9) ◽  
pp. 880
Author(s):  
Richard H. Gross

Author(s):  
David R. Bell ◽  
Traci Snedden ◽  
Kevin Biese ◽  
Evan Nelson ◽  
Andrew Watson ◽  
...  

Context: A single, widely accepted definition of sport specialization does not exist. A consensus definition is necessary to guide youth sport stakeholders on issues associated with sport specialization. Objective: The aim of this study was to develop a consensus definition of youth sport specialization and to identify elements that support the construct of specialization. Design: Delphi Study Setting: Directed Surveys Patients or Other Participants: A consensus panel of 17 experts was created to provide a broad multidisciplinary perspective on sport specialization in youth athletes. Data Collection and Analysis: The final definition was developed per an iterative process that involved four rounds of review. A comprehensive review of literature and expert input supported our initial proposed umbrella definition that included six additional elements. The study team reviewed the results after each round and changes were made to the definition based on panel feedback. Main Outcome Measure(s): Panel members were provided with the definition and six elements and then asked to rate each specific to importance, relevance, and clarity using a 4-point Likert scale. Results: In four Delphi consensus rounds, 17 experts reviewed the umbrella definition and six elements before consensus was reached. The umbrella definition and three of the initial six elements achieved >80% agreement for importance, relevance, and clarity after the fourth round of review. The remaining 3 components did not reach >80% agreement even after iterative edits and were removed. The process resulted in a final consensus definition: Sport specialization is intentional and focused participation in a single sport for a majority of the year that restricts opportunities for engagement in other sports and activities. Conclusions: A consensus-based conceptual definition for sport specialization has been developed using a Delphi method. This definition has important implications for clinicians and sports medicine professionals who support youth athletes.


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