Risk taking in Extreme Sports: A phenomenological perspective

Participation in extreme sports is enjoying incredible growth while more traditional recreational activities such as golf are struggling to maintain numbers. Theoretical perspectives on extreme sports and extreme sport participants have assumed that participation is about risk-taking. However, these theory-driven methodologies may reflect judgments that do not necessarily relate to participants' lived experience. In this paper I review current risk-oriented perspectives on extreme sports and present research findings that question this assumed relationship between extreme sports and risk and thus reposition the experience in a hitherto unexplored manner. Risk taking is not the focus. Participants acknowledge that the potential outcome of a mismanaged mistake or accident could be death. However, accepting this potential outcome does not mean that they search for risk. Participants argue that many everyday life events (e.g., driving) are high-risk events. Participants undertake detailed preparation in order to minimise the possibility of negative outcomes because extreme sports trigger a range of positive experiential outcomes. The study is significant as it followed a hermeneutic phenomenological process which did not presuppose a risk-taking orientation. Hermeneutic phenomenology allows for a multitude of data sources including interviews (10 male and 5 female extreme sports participants, ages 30 to 72 years), auto-biographies, videos and other firsthand accounts. This process allowed this unexpected perspective to emerge more clearly.

Content-based video indexing for sports applications using integrated multi-modal approach

To sustain an ongoing rapid growth of video information, there is an emerging demand for a sophisticated content-based video indexing system. However, current video indexing solutions are still immature and lack of any standard. This doctoral consists of a research work based on an integrated multi-modal approach for sports video indexing and retrieval. By combining specific features extractable from multiple audio-visual modalities, generic structure and specific events can be detected and classified. During browsing and retrieval, users will benefit from the integration of high-level semantic and some descriptive mid-level features such as whistle and close-up view of player(s).

Analyzing and predicting events in soccer and tennis using spatiotemporal data

In this paper, we summarize our recent work in analyz- ing and predicting behaviors in sports using spatiotemporal data. We specifically focus on two recent works: 1) Predicting the location of shot in tennis using Hawk-Eye tennis data, and 2) Clustering spatiotemporal plays in soccer to discover the methods in which they get a shot on goal from a professional league.

Using viewer’s facial expression and heart rate for sports video highlights detection

Viewer interests, evoked by video content, can potentially identify the highlights of the video. This paper explores the use of facial expressions (FE) and heart rate (HR) of viewers captured using camera and non-strapped sensor for identifying interesting video segments. The data from ten subjects with three videos showed that these signals are viewer dependent and not synchronized with the video contents. To address this issue, new algorithms are proposed to effectively combine FE and HR signals for identifying the time when viewer interest is potentially high. The results show that, compared with subjective annotation and match report highlights, ‘non-neutral’ FE and ‘relatively higher and faster’ HR is able to capture 60%-80% of goal, foul, and shot-on-goal soccer video events. FE is found to be more indicative than HR of viewer’s interests, but the fusion of these two modalities outperforms each of them.

Sports anti-siphoning laws and the controversy of sports broadcasting: A case study of Pakistan

Controversies between private and public broadcasters over the broadcasting of live sports, especially cricket, during important sports events have emerged as a serious legal issue in Pakistan. Controversy between Geo Super and Pakistan Television over live telecast of the ICC Cricket World Cup is a typical example of such controversies. An aggressive legal battle, during a most important cricketing event, not only hampered the enjoyment of cricket viewers across the country but also gave Pakistan a bad name across the globe. This article discusses in detail this controversy and highlights lacunas in the existing sports broadcasting regime of Pakistan. There are no clear and well defined sports broadcasting laws in Pakistan. The Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) rules are of general nature. Secondly, PEMRA rules are not comprehensive and explicit enough to provide clear guidelines about sports broadcasting. This may be a possible reason why sports broadcasting controversies reach the highest court in Pakistan, the Supreme Court of Pakistan. Despite these ugly battles between broadcasters, the government of Pakistan has never given due importance to this issue and no efforts have been made at any level to come up with legislation on sports broadcasting to avoid such controversies or to resolve them amicably in the light of well-defined laws on this subject. The purpose of this article is to draw the attention of the concerned authorities towards this important issue because in future more such controversies may be expected in the absence of a sports broadcasting regime in the country.

Direito Desportivo Internacional: a influência das normas e das decisões jusdesportivas internacionais no ordenamento jurídico brasileiro

Este trabalho tem como escopo analisar as influências das normas e das decisões jusdesportivas internacionais no ordenamento jurídico brasileiro. Para isso, alinharam-se as predileções do autor por Esporte, Direito Internacional e Relações Internacionais, assim como por outras ciências, como Geografia. Indubitável a importância do tema para a conjuntura atual, sendo o Brasil sede dos dois principais megaeventos esportivos em 2014 e 2016, a Copa do Mundo Fifa e os Jogos da XXXI Olimpíadas, os Jogos Olímpicos. Essa dissertação foi dividida em quatro capítulos. O primeiro trata da relação entre Esporte, Globalização e Geopolítica, e o segundo capítulo versa sobre o Esporte sob a perspectiva dos Direitos Humanos. Após estudar o Esporte sob a perspectiva do Estado e do Homem, analisam-se as fontes do Direito Desportivo Internacional e o ordenamento jusdesportivo. Os Estados não são os únicos produtores de normas jurídicas. Entidades privadas são capazes de produzir normas, em cooperação ou em conflito com o Estado. Admite-se, portanto, pluralidade de produção normativa. No caso do Direito Desportivo Internacional, optou-se por abordar quatro organizações esportivas internacionais: COI, Wada, Fifa e TAS/CAS, tema do derradeiro capítulo. A influência de seus regulamentos e de seus estatutos se mostrará não apenas nos estatutos e nos regulamentos de suas afiliadas, mas também na legislação nacional. Essas organizações não governamentais de alcance transnacional/internacional têm sua natureza jurídica de acordo com seus estatutos constitutivos. A tentativa de unificação de sistemas jurídicos deve ser abandonada, dando lugar à concepção de harmonização. A dificuldade de harmonização é causada pela pluralidade de Estados e de atores privados que tentam normatizar as relações jurídicas que envolvem o esporte. Desse modo, as influências dessas normas internacionais de caráter privado são marcantes no ordenamento jurídico pátrio. Analisa-se como ocorrem essas influências e de que forma cada produtor de norma jurídica poderia atuar para que prevaleça a cooperação entre eles no âmbito jusdesportivo.

Effects of El Niño–Southern Oscillation events on catches of Bigeye Tuna (Thunnus obesus) in the eastern Indian Ocean off Java

The effects of El Niño–Southern Oscillation events on catches of Bigeye Tuna (Thunnus obesus) in the eastern Indian Ocean (EIO) off Java were evaluated through the use of remotely sensed environmental data (sea-surface-height anomaly [SSHA], sea-surface temperature [SST], and chlorophyll a concentration), and Bigeye Tuna catch data. Analyses were conducted for the period of 1997–2000, which included the 1997–98 El Niño and 1999–2000 La Niña events. The empirical orthogonal function (EOF) was applied to examine oceanographic parameters quantitatively. The relationship of those parameters to variations in catch distribution of Bigeye Tuna was explored with a generalized additive model (GAM). The mean hook rate was 0.67 during El Niño and 0.44 during La Niña, and catches were high where SSHA ranged from –21 to 5 cm, SST ranged from 24°C to 27.5°C, and chlorophyll-a concentrations ranged from 0.04 to 0.16 mg m–3. The EOF analysis confirmed that the 1997–98 El Niño affected oceanographic conditions in the EIO off Java. The GAM results indicated that SST was better than the other environmental factors (SSHA and chlorophyll-a concentration) as an oceanographic predictor of Bigeye Tuna catches in the region. According to the GAM predictions, the highest probabilities (70–80%) for Bigeye Tuna catch in 1997–2000 occurred during oceanographic conditions during the 1997–98 El Niño event.

Sports Law

The term sports law is fourfold in nature and encompasses: (a) traditional areas of law, such as contract, tort, criminal, administrative and EU law, as applied to disputes of a sporting origin; (b) the particular impact that a range of statutory provisions might have on sport; for example, legislation governing discriminatory and unsafe practices in a workplace or monopolistic or fraudulent behaviour in an industry; (c) issues of public and social policy otherwise influencing the legislature and the courts, from the allocation of resources to the allocation of risk; and (d) lex sportiva, where that term is taken to reflect the various internal administrative regulations and awards by dispute-resolving mechanisms in sport. As a matter of practice, sports law tends to be concerned with the application of contract and commercial law principles to professional sport - and namely the application of such branches of law to disputes relating to the following "three pillars" of modern, professional sport i.e., disputes relating to the payment, sponsorship or endorsement of those who play sport for a living; disputes arising from decisions made by sports governing bodies; and disputes arising from the application of law to the holding of sports events.

What’s in a surname? Physique, aptitude, and sports type comparisons between Tailors and Smiths

Combined heredity of surnames and physique, coupled with past marriage patterns and trade-specific physical aptitude and selection factors, may have led to differential assortment of bodily characteristics among present-day men with specific trade-reflecting surnames (Tailor vs. Smith). Two studies reported here were partially consistent with this genetic-social hypothesis, first proposed by Bäumler (1980). Study 1 (N = 224) indicated significantly higher self-rated physical aptitude for prototypically strength-related activities (professions, sports, hobbies) in a random sample of Smiths. The counterpart effect (higher aptitude for dexterity-related activities among Tailors) was directionally correct, but not significant, and Tailor-Smith differences in basic physique variables were not significant. Study 2 examined two large datasets (Austria/Germany combined, and UK: N = 7001 and 20532) of men’s national high-score lists for track-and-field events requiring different physiques. In both datasets, proportions of Smiths significantly increased from light-stature over medium-stature to heavy-stature sports categories. The predicted counterpart effect (decreasing prevalences of Tailors along these categories) was not supported. Related prior findings, implicit egotism as an alternative interpretation of the evidence, and directions for further inquiry are discussed in conclusion.

Non-uniform printed antenna array for wireless communications in sports arenas

Wireless communications had a great development in the last years and nowadays they are present everywhere, public and private, being increasingly used for different applications. Their application in the business of sports events as a means to improve the experience of the fans at the games is becoming essential, such as sharing messages and multimedia material on social networks. In the stadiums, given the high density of people, the wireless networks require very large data capacity. Hence radio coverage employing many small sized sectors is unavoidable. In this paper, an antenna is designed to operate in the Wi-Fi 5GHz frequency band, with a directive radiation pattern suitable to this kind of applications. Furthermore, despite the large bandwidth and low losses, this antenna has been developed using low cost, off-the-shelf materials without sacrificing quality or performance, essential to mass production. © 2015 EurAAP.

Automatic measurement of key ski jumping phases and temporal events with a wearable system.

We propose a new method, based on inertial sensors, to automatically measure at high frequency the durations of the main phases of ski jumping (i.e. take-off release, take-off, and early flight). The kinematics of the ski jumping movement were recorded by four inertial sensors, attached to the thigh and shank of junior athletes, for 40 jumps performed during indoor conditions and 36 jumps in field conditions. An algorithm was designed to detect temporal events from the recorded signals and to estimate the duration of each phase. These durations were evaluated against a reference camera-based motion capture system and by trainers conducting video observations. The precision for the take-off release and take-off durations (indoor < 39 ms, outdoor = 27 ms) can be considered technically valid for performance assessment. The errors for early flight duration (indoor = 22 ms, outdoor = 119 ms) were comparable to the trainers' variability and should be interpreted with caution. No significant changes in the error were noted between indoor and outdoor conditions, and individual jumping technique did not influence the error of take-off release and take-off. Therefore, the proposed system can provide valuable information for performance evaluation of ski jumpers during training sessions.

Late pleistocene ice export events into the Arctic Ocean from the M'Clure Strait Ice Stream, Canadian Arctic Archipelago

Rapidly-flowing sectors of an ice sheet (ice streams) can play ail important role in abrupt climate change through tile delivery of icebergs and meltwater and tile Subsequent disruption of ocean thermohaline circulation (e.g., the North Atlantic's Heinrich events). Recently, several cores have been raised from the Arctic Ocean which document the existence of massive ice export events during tile Late Pleistocene and whose provenance has been linked to Source regions in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. In this paper, satellite imagery is used to map glacial geomorphology in the vicinity of Victoria Island, Banks Island and Prince of Wales Island (Canadian Arctic) in order to reconstruct ice flow patterns in the highly complex glacial landscape. A total of 88 discrete flow-sets are mapped and of these, 13 exhibit the characteristic geomorphology of palaeo-ice streams (i.e., parallel patterns of large, highly elongated mega-scale glacial lineations forming a convergent flow pattern with abrupt lateral margins). Previous studies by other workers and cross-cutting relationships indicate that the majority of these ice streams are relatively young and operated during or immediately prior to deglaciation. Our new mapping, however, documents a large (> 700 km long; 110 km wide) and relatively old ice stream imprint centred in M'Clintock Channel and converging into Viscount Melville Sound. A trough mouth fan located on the continental shelf Suggests that it extended along M'Clure Strait and was grounded at tile shelf edge. The location of the M'Clure Strait Ice Stream exactly matches the Source area of 4 (possibly 5) major ice export events recorded in core PS 1230 raised from Fram Strait, the major ice exit for the Arctic Ocean. These ice export events occur at similar to 12.9, similar to 15.6, similar to 22 and 29.8 ka (C-14 yr BP) and we argue that they record vigorous episodes of activity of the M'Clure Strait Ice Stream. The timing of these events is remarkably similar to the North Atlantic's Heinrich events and we take this as evidence that the M'Clure Strait Ice Stream was also activated around the same time. This may hold important implications for tile cause of the North Atlantic's Heinrich events and hints at tile possibility of a pall-ice sheet response. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Sports and mediatization : a case of women´s ski-jumping

Ski jumping was the only sport included in the Winter Olympics, where women were not allowed to take part until the first week of April 2011, when IOC decided to let them in to the Olympic family, a major victory for women´s ski-jumping. Since 2004 the Norwegian media had women ski jumping as one important topic in their media coverage. The third of March 2010 the new Holmenkollen ski-jumping hill was inaugurated. It had been rebuilt for the World Championships 2011. The first jump on the hill was surrounded by an intense debate. Annette Sagen was decided to be the first jumper on the hill after a poll on the social media channel Facebook that gave Annette Sagen over 40 000 votes.  However Tuesday the second of March Björn Einar Romören, a world cup jumper, did the first jump during a training session. This act started a significant chain of events. The biggest Norwegian web – magazines Verldens Gang and Aftenposten made this the head story and they invited the readers to interaction. Within 24 hours 11 000 comments were written, most of them in favor of Sagen and against Romören´s behavior. The Norwegian Ski Association excluded Romören from two World Cup competitions. What did happen during these days in the media?  I want to present the activities, which went on in two web-magazines, and analyze the articles written on the topic. Main issues are to show what an impact a social media network had on the sport in this specific case and how different actors appeared in the media and discuss if Romörens exclusion was a result of the mediatization.

Segurança em jogo: a questão da segurança pública face à vocação do Rio de Janeiro em sediar eventos de grande porte

Os mega-eventos internacionais diferem muito nos seus propósitos, que podem ser econômicos, políticos, de meio ambiente, culturais, turísticos, esportivos etc. Independente dos seus propósitos, a essência de todos, é sediá-los com sucesso, proporcionando segurança às pessoas que deles participam. Esses eventos representam uma grande oportunidade para a cidade e para o país que os hospeda, pois permitem divulgar ao mundo inteiro seu potencial cultural e turístico, mas, por outro lado, a responsabilidade é um grande desafio para as autoridades envolvidas na organização. Este trabalho aborda a questão da segurança pública no Estado do Rio de Janeiro, perante a realização dos próximos eventos internacionais, como o Mundial de Futebol de 2014 e as Olimpíadas de 2016. O objetivo principal que norteou esta investigação foi identificar os fatores necessários para a construção de uma agenda coletiva que oriente o trabalho matricial de segurança no planejamento destes eventos. Para esse efeito, realizamos uma ampla pesquisa bibliográfica, entrevistas e observação para coletar as informações. Concluímos que esses fatores são: a integração entre governos (Federal, Estaduais e Municipais); a integração das comunidades e de toda a sociedade civil; o planejamento de responsabilidades; conhecimento prévio de cenários anteriores; cooperação com instituições nacionais e internacionais; administração orçamentária e participação logística dos recursos.

Efeitos da dieta suplementada com ômega-3 no músculo sóleo de ratos submetidos à natação: análise histológica e morfométrica

As lesões musculares têm sido observadas como as mais frequentes nos esportes. Considerando a produção de espécies reativas de oxigênio como um fator de risco para instalação de lesões e características antioxidantes e anti-inflamatórias do ômega-3, o objetivo deste trabalho foi verificar as alterações histológicas e morfométricas do músculo sóleo de ratos que realizaram natação, associado a uma dieta suplementada com ômega-3. Para sua realização foram utilizados 31 ratos Wistar divididos em quatro grupos, sendo os grupos A e C suplementados com azeite de oliva e B e D com 3g/dia de ômega-3 por quatro semanas. Os grupos C e D foram submetidos à natação cinco dias/semana por 28 dias, com acréscimo de 5% do peso corporal a partir da segunda semana, enquanto que os grupos A e B não realizaram treinamento. Após este período os animais foram sacrificados, o músculo sóleo retirado e corado com Hematoxilina-eosina para avaliação morfológica. Análise de variância bifatorial, com nível de significância de 5%, foi utilizada para análise dos valores do menor diâmetro das fibras musculares. Os grupos A e B (sedentários) apresentaram padrões histológicos de normalidade. O grupo C apresentou aumento do tecido endomisial e do número de núcleos, presença de fibras fagocitadas e de contornos poligonais não mantidos, enquanto que o grupo D apresentou poucas fibras fagocitadas e de contornos poligonais preservados. Com relação à medida do menor diâmetro das fibras musculares, as análises mostraram diferenças para o fator treinamento, mas não para o fator suplementação e a interação entre eles. As alterações histológicas induzidas pelo exercício foram atenuadas no grupo suplementado com ômega-3, sugerindo um efeito protetor da suplementação, contudo, o aumento do diâmetro das fibras para os grupos expostos ao exercício está relacionado ao efeito do treinamento e não à suplementação.