Education, pedagogy and sport for development: Addressing seldom asked questions

This special issue features the growing field of Sport for Development. Importantly few questions have been raised about the educative quality of sport for development programs or the pedagogies by which they are delivered. This seems to be something of an oversight since; by definition development infers some sort of learning or educative process. This introductory paper provides an editorial commentary and summary on the papers included in this issue. We also comment on Sport for Development as a growing field of research and identify what might be some fruitful areas of research direction based on the papers included in the issue. Our reading of the papers suggest that there are important concerns related to pedagogy and educational practices in sport for development projects that stem from a dominance of neoliberal agendas, unintended though this may be. At the same time however, it is apparent that this challenge is being met head on by a growing number of researchers, and reports of this progress can be found in this issue.

Coaching knowledge, learning and mentoring in the Australian Football League

Understanding the work of Senior and Assistant Coaches in the AFL is important to better develop the next generation of performance coaches. Hence the focus of this research was to examine the knowledge, competences and learning of senior and assistant coaches in the Australian Football League. Specifically, the research sought to understand the ways in which Senior and Assistant Coaches in the AFL have come to know their “craft” with the particular aim of enhancing future coaching practice. Performance coaching is generally regarded as a cognitive activity and therefore “getting inside the heads” of AFL coaches will assist in our understanding of the complex coaching work in which they are engaged. In-depth interviews provided coaches an opportunity to reflect on their practices and how they learned their craft. Fundamental to this research was an understanding that the AFL and each club within the league be regarded as learning organizations and workplaces where learning takes place. Moreover the process of mentoring is regarded as a central learning process and a significant factor contributing to improved professional coaching practice. This applied research aims to inform coach development in Australian football, the annual review process (quality of performance) of employed coaches, and the recruitment of coaches in the AFL. Improving the quality of coaching in the AFL will, in turn, improve the performance of the players and teams, and subsequently enhance the continued development and sustainability of the game.

Sport scandal and sponsorship decisions: Team identification matters

We conducted an experiment to investigate the impact of sport scandal on consumer attitudes toward a range of sport stakeholders. We examined the effects of fans’ social identity (fan of scandalized team vs. fan of rival team), scandal severity (single perpetrator vs. multiple perpetrators) and the sponsor brand’s response to the scandal (sponsorship retention vs. termination) on consumers’ attitudes toward the implicated team, the scandal perpetrators, the sport, and sponsor brand. We find evidence of differential reactions to scandal reflecting social identity, such that fans support their own team despite increased scandal severity but negatively judge a rival team’s transgressions. Results suggest that where fans are concerned, sponsors may be better served to continue with a sponsorship following scandal than to terminate, even for some forms of severe scandal. However, termination may receive more positive evaluation from rival team fans; hence continuation of sponsorship needs to accompany a tempered approach.

Accurate mass-based analysis in human sport doping control : Application of liquid chromatography - time-of-flight mass spectrometry

Human sport doping control analysis is a complex and challenging task for anti-doping laboratories. The List of Prohibited Substances and Methods, updated annually by World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), consists of hundreds of chemically and pharmacologically different low and high molecular weight compounds. This poses a considerable challenge for laboratories to analyze for them all in a limited amount of time from a limited sample aliquot. The continuous expansion of the Prohibited List obliges laboratories to keep their analytical methods updated and to research new available methodologies. In this thesis, an accurate mass-based analysis employing liquid chromatography - time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LC-TOFMS) was developed and validated to improve the power of doping control analysis. New analytical methods were developed utilizing the high mass accuracy and high information content obtained by TOFMS to generate comprehensive and generic screening procedures. The suitability of LC-TOFMS for comprehensive screening was demonstrated for the first time in the field with mass accuracies better than 1 mDa. Further attention was given to generic sample preparation, an essential part of screening analysis, to rationalize the whole work flow and minimize the need for several separate sample preparation methods. Utilizing both positive and negative ionization allowed the detection of almost 200 prohibited substances. Automatic data processing produced a Microsoft Excel based report highlighting the entries fulfilling the criteria of the reverse data base search (retention time (RT), mass accuracy, isotope match). The quantitative performance of LC-TOFMS was demonstrated with morphine, codeine and their intact glucuronide conjugates. After a straightforward sample preparation the compounds were analyzed directly without the need for hydrolysis, solvent transfer, evaporation or reconstitution. The hydrophilic interaction technique (HILIC) provided good chromatographic separation, which was critical for the morphine glucuronide isomers. A wide linear range (50-5000 ng/ml) with good precision (RSD<10%) and accuracy (±10%) was obtained, showing comparable or better performance to other methods used. In-source collision-induced dissociation (ISCID) allowed confirmation analysis with three diagnostic ions with a median mass accuracy of 1.08 mDa and repeatable ion ratios fulfilling WADA s identification criteria. The suitability of LC-TOFMS for screening of high molecular weight doping agents was demonstrated with plasma volume expanders (PVE), namely dextran and hydroxyethylstarch (HES). Specificity of the assay was improved, since interfering matrix compounds were removed by size exclusion chromatography (SEC). ISCID produced three characteristic ions with an excellent mean mass accuracy of 0.82 mDa at physiological concentration levels. In summary, by combining TOFMS with a proper sample preparation and chromatographic separation, the technique can be utilized extensively in doping control laboratories for comprehensive screening of chemically different low and high molecular weight compounds, for quantification of threshold substances and even for confirmation. LC-TOFMS rationalized the work flow in doping control laboratories by simplifying the screening scheme, expediting reporting and minimizing the analysis costs. Therefore LC-TOFMS can be exploited widely in doping control, and the need for several separate analysis techniques is reduced.

Sport, body and power: Reassessing the myth of President Kekkonen

Former President of Finland Urho Kekkonen was not only a powerful politician but also a well-known sportsman and keep-fit enthusiast. The president’s sports hobbies were covered and celebrated in the media and thus became an integral part of his public persona. This paper looks at Kekkonen’s athletic and able-bodied image and its significance for his power from the perspective of gender. In his exercise activities, Kekkonen was able to display his bodily prowess and demonstrate his version of masculinity, which emphasized both physical and mental strength. The union of mind and muscle in turn buttressed his political ascendancy. Kekkonen’s athletic body served as a cornerstone of his dominance over his country and, simultaneously, as a shield protecting Finland from both internal and external threats. Furthermore, Kekkonen’s sports performances were essential elements in the myth that was created around the president during his term and which was carefully conserved after his fall from power. Drawing upon scholarship on men and masculinities, this paper reassesses the still-effective mythical image of Kekkonen as an invincible superman. The article reveals the performative nature of his athletic activities and shows that in part, his pre-eminence in them was nothing more than theatre enacted by him and his entourage. Thus, Kekkonen’s superior and super-masculine image was actually surprisingly vulnerable and dependent on the success of the performance. The president’s ageing, in particular, demonstrates the fragility of his displays of prowess, strength and masculinity, and shows how fragile the entanglement of body and power can be.

Costs and benefits of the presence of leopards to the sport-hunting industry and local communities in Niassa national reserve, mozambique

Sport hunting is often proposed as a tool to support the conservation of large carnivores. However, it is challenging to provide tangible economic benefits from this activity as an incentive for local people to conserve carnivores. We assessed economic gains from sport hunting and poaching of leopards (Panthera pardus), costs of leopard depredation of livestock, and attitudes of people toward leopards in Niassa National Reserve, Mozambique. We sent questionnaires to hunting concessionaires (n = 8) to investigate the economic value of and the relative importance of leopards relative to other key trophy-hunted species. We asked villagers (n = 158) the number of and prices for leopards poached in the reserve and the number of goats depredated by leopard. Leopards were the mainstay of the hunting industry; a single animal was worth approximately U.S.$24,000. Most safari revenues are retained at national and international levels, but poached leopard are illegally traded locally for small amounts ($83). Leopards depredated 11 goats over 2 years in 2 of 4 surveyed villages resulting in losses of $440 to 6 households. People in these households had negative attitudes toward leopards. Although leopard sport hunting generates larger gross revenues than poaching, illegal hunting provides higher economic benefits for households involved in the activity. Sport-hunting revenues did not compensate for the economic losses of livestock at the household level. On the basis of our results, we propose that poaching be reduced by increasing the costs of apprehension and that the economic benefits from leopard sport hunting be used to improve community livelihoods and provide incentives not to poach.

Ruwan Kanya reservoir in Kano State as a model small scale sport fishing ground

The paper examined the Ruwan Kanya Reservoir in Kano State. It gave a background information on the fisheries of the lake. Also discussed is tilapia transplantation from Jakara to Ruwan Kanya reservoir. The transplantation revealed a tremendous improvement on the Lake fisheries species now recorded include Lates niloticus, Tilapia, Hydrocynus, Gnathonemus, Mormyrops mabpterurus and others. The proximity of the Ruwan Kanya Reservoir to Tiga Lake and the tourism resort near it, affords the place a good opportunity to serve as a good sport fishing ground. Procedures for transforming the reservoir to sport fishing ground have been advanced

Characteristics of the sportsmanship and unsportsmanlike conduct evaluation tools in youth sport

World Conference on Psychology and Sociology 2012

Socioeconomic status, parental support, motivation and self-confidence in youth competitive sport

World Conference on Psychology and Sociology 2012

Species Trends in Sport Fisheries, Monterey Bay, Calif., 1959-86

Three surveys spanning 28 years were examined for changes in species caught by recreational fishermen from small boats (skiffs) and commercial passenger fishing vessels (CPFV's) in California's Monterey Bay region. As fishing effort increased, the catch of certain nearshore species of rockfish, Sebastes spp., declined. CPFV fishing was conducted farther from port and in deeper water to compensate for declining abundance while most skiffs remained in traditional areas close to port. The trend toward deeper water CPFV fishing has been interrupted only temporarily by increased availability of nearshore species. Life history characteristics of rockfish including residential behavior, variable recruitment, and natural longevity contribute to a vulnerability to localized overfishing for several species.