Search results for " Athletes"

2019

Athletic performance in competitive sports relies heavily on the ability to cope effectively with stressful situations. In contrast, some athletes report that their thoughts revolve around the future or past and not around the actual demands during competitions. In those specific stressful situations, the lack of focus like an unintended fixation on repetitive cognitions can have fatal consequences with regard to the performance. Especially when competitors are close in their athletic capabilities, differences in effectively coping with stress and mental stability may decide about winning and losing. One established factor of performing effectively under pressure is the individual tendency …

A Reciprocal Effects Model of the Temporal Ordering of Coping and Defenses

2016

This study aimed to examine how coping and defenses are related over time, using a two-wave cross-lagged panel design. Coping and defenses were assessed before and after a sport competition in a sample of 296 competitive athletes. Partial least squares path modeling results showed that (a) pre-competitive mature defenses predicted increases in the use of task-oriented coping during competition; (b) pre-competitive immature defenses predicted an increase in the use of disengagement-oriented coping during competition; and (c) pre-competitive task-oriented coping predicted an increase in the use of immature defenses during competition. Overall, our findings suggest that defenses predict the us…

Development of School and Sport Burnout in Adolescent Student-Athletes: A Longitudinal Mixed-Methods Study.

2018

We investigated the development of school and sport burnout in adolescent student-athletes (N Time 1 = 391, N Time 2 = 373) during their first year in upper secondary school using an embedded mixed-methods design. The questionnaire-based data were analyzed with growth mixture modeling and four burnout profiles were identified among student-athletes. From the found burnout profiles, two were typical for the interviewed subsample of elite athletes (n = 17), that is, burnout risk and non risk profiles. We generated rich descriptions of well-being and ill-being, showing that elite athletes in two burnout profiles differed in their experienced demands and resources related to individual and envi…

Composite vignettes of Swedish male and female professional handball players’ career paths

2019

The aim of this study was to describe gender-specific career paths of Swedish professional handball players. A reanalysis of Ekengren et al. (2018) career interviews with nine male and nine female players led to creating two composite vignettes using the athletes’ own words, accounted for typical features in the male and female players’ career paths. Seven themes were identified in the analysis of the men’s transcripts and eight themes derived from the women’s transcripts. Further, the themes of both vignettes were aligned with career stages described in our previous study (Ekengren et al. 2018). The male players’ vignette is interpreted as a performance narrative congruent with elite handb…

From athletic talent development to dual career development? A case study in a Finnish high performance sports environment

2020

The focus of dual career (DC) research has shifted from exploring individual experiences within Athletic Talent Development Environments (ATDEs) toward understanding the impact of the environment and the broader cultural context on individuals’ developmental trajectories in Dual Career Development Environments (DCDEs). To comply with national and EU recommendations for socially responsible elite sport, many successful ATDEs list DC as one of their primary values and advertise themselves as DCDEs in order to attract more athletes. The present study aimed to evaluate whether and how a talent development environment for youth athletes in Finland has transformed from an ATDE to DCDE by explorin…

Detection of behavioural patterns in Olympic male taekwondo athletes

2017

The relationship between athletes’ behaviours is relevant for developing defensive and offensive strategies. Traditionally, sequential analysis has been conducted to assess relationships between two behaviours (one considered as focal and the other as conditioned). The aim of the study was to examine Olympic taekwondo athletes’ behavioural patterns by conducting sequential analyses of tactical actions in bouts. Seventy-five male matches of the London Olympic Games in 2012 were studied to analyse tactical actions: attack (direct and indirect), counterattack (anticipatory, simultaneous and posterior), defensive (cuts, blocks and dodges), and opening actions. A sequential analysis of 2 lags (i…

High performance Athletes dual career support opportunities in the context of the European Union

2015

This article aims to provide an overview of high performance athletes - students dual-career support opportunities in the European Union, in order to create dual career support system in Latvia. The paper provides an explanation of terms, and analyzes the UK, Ireland, Germany, Belgium and other countries' experience in the dual career. In the process is created a comparative overview of the possibilities for support in several European countries. High-performance athletes main types of support are flexible exam schedule, individual study plan, consultations with lecturers, distance learning studies (e-learning), the mentor's advice, and reduced requirements for entrance exams. In Latvia the…

Employment status in amateur sport in Italy

2016

This paper examines the social status of amateur athletes in respect of discrimination they may encounter in comparison with professional athletes. It also addresses the issue of the Italian ‘vincolo sportivo’ and correlative violations of EU law on the free movement of workers. Finally, some possible solutions are proposed.

Effects of extra-virgin olive oil enriched with E-vitamin and Q10-coenzyme on the heart rate variability and plasma antioxidant status in athletes

2010

OBJECTIVES: To examine whether the assumption of extra virgin olive oil enriched with E-vitamin and Q10-coenzyme may improve the plasma anti-oxidant/pro-oxidant balance and be associated with favorable changes in heart rate variability (HRV). METHODS: Four male athletes, mean age 22 (range 21-24), were recruited. They assumed 20 ml per day of the integrator (20 mg Q10 and 15 mg Vit E) for one month. The plasma antioxidant capacity (AC) was evaluated by the crocin bleaching assay. The frequency-domain analysis of HRV was carried out using Cardioline Cube recorder and specific software to obtain, from an autoregressive power spectrum approach, the power in normalized units (nu) of the low-(LF…

Retrospective Analysis of Functional Pain among Professional Climbers

2022

Climbing became one of the official Olympic sports in 2020. The nociplastic pain mechanism is indicated as important in professional sports. Functional pain, which has not been examined in climbers until now, can be an example of nociplastic pain. This study aimed to determine functional pain locations in climbers according to gender and dominant climbing style. Climbers (n = 183) and healthy subjects (n = 160) completed an online survey focused on functional pain occurrence in the head, spine, and upper limbs. The logistic regression showed that climbing predisposes one to functional pain at: Gleno-humeral joint (odds ratio (OR): 3.06; area under the curve (AUC): 0.635), elbow (OR: 2.86; A…