From the Olympic dream to a down to earth approach: Lausanne's sports events hosting strategy

In the context of globalized competition among territories, cities, regions and countries have to find new ways to be attractive to companies, investors, tourists and residents. In that perspective, major sports events (such as the Olympic Games or the FIFA World Cup) are often seen as a lever for territorial development. Based on that idea, many sports events hosting strategies have emerged in the 1980s and 1990s. However, the growing competition in the sports events' market and the gigantism of those major events, forced some territories to turn to smaller events. This necessary resize of their strategy raises the question of their capacity to meet the initial objectives, which aim usually at developing the economy and promoting the image of the host destination. This essay sketches out the evolution of a sports events hosting strategy in a city that does not have the resources (either financial, human or in terms of infrastructures) to attract major international sports events. The challenges they have to face and a possible solution based on the event portfolio perspective are discussed through the article.

CSR : a new governance approach for regulating professional sport ? : the case of french professionnal sports clubs

The purpose of this paper is to examine the CSR practices and their implementation in the context of French professional sports clubs. In doing so, it analyses the link between the governance of sports clubs and CSR, which is viewed as a component of governance expanded to stakeholders and contributing to the creation of shared value. Drawing on interview data with key stakeholders of four professional sport clubs (football and basketball) and secondary material, the study sheds light on the determinants, the implementation as well as the impact of CSR on the governance of the professional clubs under examination.

Neck Muscle Function and Adolescent Headache

Muscular function of the neck region may be of importance for the etiology of headache, especially of tension-type headache. However, very few data exist on the association of neck muscle function with different types of headache in adolescents. The main aim of the study was to examine the association of neck muscle function with adolescent headache. The associations between leisure time activities, endurance strength of the upper extremities (UE endurance) and mobility of the neck-shoulder region and adolescent headache were studied. In addition, the associations of force production, EMG/force ratio, co-activation and fatigue characteristics, and cross-sectional area (CSA) of neck muscles with adolescent headache were studied. The study is part of a population-based cohort study of 12-year-old children with and without headache. The study had five phases (years 1998-2003). At the age of 13 years, a sample of 183 adolescents (183/311) participated in endurance strength and mobility measurements of the neck-shoulder region. In addition, the type and level of physical and other leisure activity were elicited with open and structured questions. At the age of 17 years, a random sample of 89 adolescents (89/202) participated in force and EMG measurements of the neck-shoulder muscles. In addition, at the age of 17 years, a sample of 65 adolescents (65/89) participated in CSA measurements of the neck muscles. At the age of 13 years, intensive participation in overall sports activity was associated with migraine. Frequent computer use was associated both with migraine and tension-type headache. The type of sports or other leisure activity classified them on the basis of body loading was not associated with headache type. In girls, low UE endurance of both sides, and low cervical rotation of the dominant side, were associated with tension-type headache, and low UE endurance of non-dominant side with migraine. In boys, no associations occurred between UE endurance and mobility variables and headache types. At the age of 17 years, in girls, high EMG/force ratios between the EMG of the left agonist sternocleidomastoid muscle (SCM) and maximal neck flexion and neck rotation force to the right side as well as high co-activation of right antagonist cervical erector spinae (CES) muscles during maximal neck flexion force were associated with migraine-type headache. In girls, neck force production was not associated with headache types but low left shoulder flexion force was associated with tension-type headache. In boys, no associations were found between EMG and force variables and headache. Increased SCM muscles fatigue of both sides was associated with tension-type headache. In boys, the small CSA of the right SCM muscle and, in girls, of combined right SCM and scalenus muscles was associated with tension-type headache. Similarly, in boys, the large CSA of the right SCM muscle, of the combined right SCM and scalenus muscles, of the left semispinalis capitis muscle, of the combined left semispinalis and splenius muscles was associated with migraine. No other differences in the CSA of neck flexion or extension muscles were found. Differences in the neuromucular function of the neck-shoulder muscles were associated with adolescent headache, especially in girls. Differences in the cross-sectional area of unilateral neck muscles were associated with headache, especially in boys. Differences in the neuromuscular function and in the cross-sectional area of the neck muscles also occurred between different types of headache. It remains to be established whether the findings are primary or secondary to adolescent migraine and tension headache. Keywords: adolescent, cross-sectional area, electromyography, endurance strength, fatigue, force, headache, leisure time activity, migraine, mobility, neck muscles, tension-type headache

Longitudinal monitoring of endogenous steroids in human serum by UHPLC-MS/MS as a tool to detect testosterone abuse in sports.

The detection of testosterone abuse in sports is routinely achieved through the 'steroidal module' of the Athlete Biological Passport by GC-MS(/MS) quantification of selected endogenous anabolic androgenic steroids (EAAS) from athletes' urines. To overcome some limitations of the "urinary steroid profile" such as the presence of confounding factors (ethnicity, enzyme polymorphism, bacterial contamination, and ethanol), ultrahigh performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) measurements of blood concentrations of testosterone, its major metabolites, and precursors could represent an interesting and complementary strategy. In this work, two UHPLC-MS/MS methods were developed for the quantification of testosterone and related compounds in human serum, including major progestogens, corticoids, and estrogens. The validated methods were then used for the analyses of serum samples collected from 19 healthy male volunteers after oral and transdermal testosterone administration. Results from unsupervised multiway analysis allowed variations of target analytes to be assessed simultaneously over a 96-h time period. Except for alteration of concentration values due to the circadian rhythm, which concerns mainly corticosteroids, DHEA, and progesterone, significant variations linked to the oral and transdermal testosterone administration were observed for testosterone, DHT, and androstenedione. As a second step of analysis, the longitudinal monitoring of these biomarkers using intra-individual thresholds showed, in comparison to urine, significant improvements in the detection of testosterone administration, especially for volunteers with del/del genotype for phase II UGT2B17 enzyme, not sensitive to the main urinary marker, T/E ratio. A substantial extension of the detection window after transdermal testosterone administration was also observed in serum matrix. The longitudinal follow-up proposed in this study represents a first example of 'blood steroid profile' in doping control analysis, which can be proposed in the future as a complement to the 'urinary module' for improving steroid abuse detection capabilities.

Conclusions and future directions for sports events management scholarship

The book adopts a unique stakeholder perspective, structured around the groups and individuals who have an interest in and co-create sports events, including organising committees, promoters, sport organisations, spectators, community groups, sponsors, host governments, the media and NGOs. Each chapter addresses a specific stakeholder, defines that stakeholder and its relationships with sports events, describes the managerial requirements for a successful event, assesses current research and directions for future research, and outlines the normative dimensions of stakeholder engagement (such as sustainability and legacy)

Influència de la motivació en equips de futbol masculins de categoria juvenil

El present projecte exposa un estudi sobre la motivació, un dels factors psicològics que intervenen en l’àmbit esportiu, concretament en el futbol. Es fa èmfasi en els tipus de motivació, les teories, els factors que hi intervenen, les tècniques que s’utilitzen i també el paper que desenvolupa l’entrenador en aquest àmbit. La investigació es situa en tres equips de futbol de categoria juvenil masculí, en la qual es pretén conèixer i analitzar com influeix en els jugadors la motivació i la seva participació en aquest esport. Es conclou sobre la necessitat de seguir treballant la motivació en cada equip per tal d’afavorir una major implicació dels jugadors i un clima més òptim de treball i sobre la importància de noves actuacions i tècniques que tinguin en compte la motivació a dos nivells: individual i col·lectiu.

A rationalist perspective on the autonomy of international sport governing bodies : towards a pragmatic autonomy in the steering of sports

International sport governing bodies (ISGBs) are built on the foundations of freedom of association and traditionally enjoy a large degree of autonomy in their decision-making. Their autonomy is increasingly confined, however, and their hierarchical self-governance is giving way to a more networked governance, in which different stakeholders exert power in different ways and in different contexts in a complex web of interrelationships. Taking a rationalist perspective on the autonomy of ISGBs, this article demonstrates that ISGBs are deploying strategies to safeguard their waning governing monopoly over international sport. Opting for an inductive approach, the authors present four possible conceptualizations of autonomy as applied to ISGBs, namely political autonomy, legal autonomy, financial autonomy and pyramidal autonomy. For each dimension, they describe the different strategies ISGBs wield in order to safeguard different dimensions of their autonomy. This article uses governance theories to hypothesize that the autonomy of ISGBs can be understood as 'pragmatic autonomy' since ISGBs only cede certain aspects of their autonomy under particular circumstances and when being subject to specific threats. Acting in a rationalist manner, they are able to keep control over governance developments in sport by using indirect and more subtle forms of governance.

La construcción de la marca ‘Qatar’ a partir del deporte: ‘sports place branding’ y prensa deportiva catalana

Los grandes eventos deportivos se han utilizado con fines promocionales para los territorios desde el siglo XIX. En este sentido, la Copa del Mundo de la FIFA de 2022, que se celebrará en Qatar, deviene una excusa ideal para el gobierno de la nación para legitimar su posicionamiento internacional, así como para participar activamente en el negocio mundial del fútbol. Además, desde 2011, Qatar Foundation (QF) ejecuta un acuerdo de patrocinio con el FC Barcelona, último campeón de la UEFA Champions League (ECL) y del Mundial de Clubes de la FIFA (2011), que le permitirá desarrollar proyectos sociales vinculados a la marca Barça en todo el mundo. Este artículo tiene el objetivo de analizar el posicionamiento internacional de Qatar, canalizado mediante un proceso de construcción de marca protagonizado por el deporte y proyectado a través de los medios de comunicación qataríes (AlJazzera) y los propios de los territorios donde el gobierno qatarí invierte, como es el caso de Cataluña.

Troubles du comportement alimentaire (TCA), sports de remise en forme et motivations de pratique = Fitness sports, sport motives and eating disorders

Cet article a pour but d'identifier et de mieux comprendre les liens entre les motivations des pratiquantes de sports de remise en forme, les troubles du comportement alimentaire (TCA) et les troubles psychologiques associés (i.e., insatisfaction corporelle, dépendance à l'exercice physique). Au total, 1270 pratiquantes ont répondu à un questionnaire et 40 ont participé à un entretien semi-directif. Les motivations de perte de poids et/ou modification de l'apparence corporelle sont en lien avec les TCA et l'insatisfaction corporelle. La dépendance à l'exercice physique n'est pas systématique chez les femmes avec TCA. Les pratiquantes de sports de remise en forme motivées uniquement par la perte de poids et/ou la modification de l'apparence sont plus à risques dans levdéveloppement des TCA. The aim of this study was to identify and to better understand links between females' motives in fitness sports, eating disorders (ED) and associated psychological disorders (i.e. body dissatisfaction, exercise dependence). In all, 1270 women were asked by questionnaire and 40 by semi-structured interview. Weight loss/body appearance change motives are related to ED and body dissatisfaction. Exercise dependence are not systematic in women with ED. Fitness sports are at risk in the development of ED for women motivated only by weight loss/body appearance change motives