This study aimed to investigate the student-athletes' capability to face the academic, sport, and social challenges during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) lockdown and to disclose novel aspects of dual careers. A 32-item online survey encompassing demographic characteristics, sport and university engagement, support and dual-career benefits, physical activity, sitting time, and the time deemed necessary to recover the previous level of performance was developed. Four hundred sixty-seven student-athletes (males: 57%, females: 43%) from 11 countries, competing in 49 different sports (individual: 63.4%, team: 36.6%) at regional (17.5%), national (43.3%), and international (39.2%) levels, and enrolled at high school (21.9%) and university (78.1%) levels completed the survey. During the lockdown, the respondents decreased the time dedicated to sport and academics, although they maintained an active lifestyle. Student-athletes from countries under severe contagion were more likely to train at home, dedicate to academics, and receive support from the coach but less likely receive support from their teachers. With respect to their team sport counterparts, athletes competing in individual sports trained more and were more likely to receive support from their coaches. International athletes showed the highest training time and support from their coaches and as student-athletes. High school students received more support from their coaches and teachers, whereas university students were more likely considering dual careers useful to cope with the COVID-19 pandemic. This study substantiates the relevant role of competitive sports participation in the maintenance of active lifestyles, with student-athletes considering home training and e-learning valuable resources during the lockdown. Furthermore, their sport and academic commitments helped student-athletes cope with the emergency of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The aim of the present research was to assess elite student-athletes’ perception of the dual career during the lockdown caused by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, compared with a group of elite student-athletes who could develop their dual career under normal conditions. A total of 150 elite athletes who were also undergraduate or postgraduate students self-completed the “Perceptions of dual career student-athletes (ESTPORT)” questionnaire. From them, 78 did it during the mandatory lockdown period due to the state of emergency caused by COVID-19 (COVID-19 group) and 72 completed it in the previous year to Rio 2016 Olympic Games (control group). The COVID-19 group was found to spend a significantly higher number of hours per week studying, while no significant differences were observed between groups in any training time variable. Student-athletes of the COVID-19 group showed better perception of whether their sport career could help them cope with their academic career and better general perception of remote learning and the use of tasks and videoconferencing as learning support tools. A lower percentage of athletes of the COVID-19 group than of the control group wished to continue with their sport career once they finished their studies. To conclude, student-athletes of the COVID-19 group show adaptations with regard to the organization of their studies and the importance they give to them and to the services provided by dual-career programs, compared with student-athletes from an ordinary pre-Olympic year. In general, student-athletes’ perception of the dual career is very positive.
Previous studies have found that student-athletes (S-As) have difficulties in achieving dual career (DC) success. However, no studies have analysed the opinion of the S-As on the functioning of DC with a qualitative methodology. The aim of the present work was to collect the opinions of elite university S-As in relation to DC policy adopted by their academic institutions in different European countries. In total, 77 athletes (F = 35, M = 42; age range: 20–25 years) participated in 15 national face-to-face focus groups in five different countries, to discuss aspects that higher education institutes should implement in relation to: 1) the athletes’ needs; 2) assistance/tutorship: 2) curricula requirements; 3) financial support; 4) logistic support; 5) social support; and 6) dual career policies. Fifty of the athletes competed in individual sports and twenty-seven team sports. Of them, 57 was enrolled at undergraduate, 17 was enrolled in a master and 3 in a PhD. The athletes were presented with 13 open-ended questions one by one, and were ensured freedom to interact. All the discussions were recorded. After this, a general discussion took place in which the participants identified and agreed on a final list of statements from their focus group deemed to be relevant to DC athletes as university students. Then, at a consensus meeting, the findings were combined, repetitions were eliminated, and fragmented statements were condensed into broader ones. A final list of 31 statements, organized in six related content units, were identified in relation to the athletes’ needs (n = 5), assistance/tutorship (n = 5), curricula requirements (n = 4), financial support (n = 4), logistic support (n = 4), social support (n = 6), and DC policies (n = 3), respectively. In conclusion, this cross-national qualitative research study synthesized the S-As views about their needs and the most relevant DC policies and provisions that higher education institutes should provide to ensure them with positive academic experiences towards the achievement of a degree.
The dual career allows elite athletes to attain their maximum competitive and academic performance, but the COVID-19 pandemic hindered their development and changed their perception of the importance given to the sporting and educational environment. For this reason, the aim of the present study was to determine the differences in the motivations and perceived barriers, the importance given to academic qualifications, and the perception of the dual career from a multifactorial perspective, of elite athletes according to sex, type of sport practiced, job performance, time of sports career, type of athlete, and type of scholarship received. A total of 100 student-athletes participated in the research study by completing the “Perceptions of dual career student-athletes” questionnaire. The results showed that athletes from individual modalities (p = 0.012) and those who did not receive any scholarships described more barriers (p < 0.001). In addition, women studied more because they enjoyed it (p = 0.007); athletes from individual modalities studied to work later (p = 0.008); athletes who do not work perceived a greater influence between study and sports performance (p = 0.029); at the beginning and at the best stage of their sports career, a greater influence of academics on performance was perceived (p = 0.016); and athletes who considered themselves professionals, and athletes who did not receive any scholarships (p = 0.025), reported that the conciliation between sports and academic life was difficult (p = 0.034). The results obtained point to the importance of dual career scholarships for student-athletes, as well as the need for the programs implemented for these athletes to consider sex, sport modality or type of scholarship granted.
Spain is one of the many countries highly affected by the COVID-19 crisis, establishing very restrictive measures with a complete lockdown for more than 3 months. This situation forced the complete closure of sport practice and national or international competitions, leading to a negative impact on physical and psychological health of high-performance athletes. Therefore, the objectives of this study were (a) to determine the effects of the COVID-19 health crisis on Spanish high-performance athletes in terms of sports practice, life quality, and emotional state and (b) to identify the profile with the greatest difficulties during and after the lockdown. A sample of 130 high-performance athletes aged between 18 and 34 years (67 women and 63 men) participated in this study (83.1% achieved a medal in National–International elite competitions; 86.9% were considered student-athletes). Measures included socio-demographic data through a 5-dimension ad hoc survey: physical activity and exercise using an adapted version from the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ); health status and limitations using an adapted version of SF-12 Health Questionnaire; Perceived stress (Short-PSS); and Mood States (29-item POMS). All participants have shown a significant decrease pre–post-lockdown in both health and performance perception, especially in women, individual athletes, medalists, and student-athletes. Strong limitations of training, attention, and motivation as well as a moderate negative emotional state during lockdown were reported, in women, individual athletes, medalists, and student-athletes. Even with an improved emotional state and energy level in the post-lockdown period, moderate-to-high stress scores were reported by women and medalists. Our findings highlight the importance of paying attention to the physical and psychological health of elite athletes on three profiles: team athletes (due to social distance), student-athletes (dual-career issues), and women athletes (prevalence of implicit gender inequalities in sport).
The practice of sport by adolescents is influenced by multiple factors, which could create differences in sports participation according to gender. The objectives of this study were to determine which types of sports were most practiced by adolescent males and females; and to analyze the relationship of gender stereotypes, the type of sport observed and the personal environment, to the type of sport practiced, depending on the adolescent’s gender. To this end, a total of 632 adolescents completed the questionnaire “Lifestyle in Sport with a Gender Perspective”. The results showed significant differences according to gender in the type of sport practiced (p < 0.05), in the membership to sports clubs (p < 0.001), and in the participation in competitions (p < 0.001). It was found that family (p < 0.005) and friends (p < 0.05) were the social agents that most influenced the choice of the type of sport practiced, and that the type of sport watched live (p < 0.005), and in the media (p < 0.001), was related to gender and the type of sport practiced. In contrast, the gender stereotypes of the adolescents themselves were not related to the practice of sports. In conclusion, the environment closest to the adolescents was related to the type of sport practiced by those adolescents.
El objetivo del presente estudio fue analizar los factores socio-demográficos, económicos y deportivos relacionados con los resultados de participación del equipo olímpico español en los JJ.OO. de Pekín 2008, Londres 2012 y Rio de Janeiro 2016, analizando si el sexo del deportista provoca variaciones en el modelo. Se obtuvieron datos de 875 deportistas olímpicos pertenecientes al equipo español entre los años 2005 y 2016, así como de diferentes parámetros socio-demográficos, económicos, y deportivos. Se realizó un análisis de componentes principales que mostró que la población, el presupuesto deportivo, las licencias deportivas, los deportistas de alto nivel (DAN), los deportistas becados, la brecha de género y el PIB explicaban un 79,81% de la varianza total. Al realizar el modelo en función del sexo se encontró un modelo similar al general en mujeres y hombres. En conclusión, la participación de hombres y mujeres en el olimpismo español se debe a una gran amalgama de variables, no existiendo grandes diferencias en la influencia de las mismas en función sexo. Abstract. The aim of this study was to analyze the socio-demographic, economic and sports factors related to the results of the Spanish Olympic team's participation in the Olympic Games of Beijing 2008, London 2012 and Rio de Janeiro 2016, analyzing whether the sex of the athlete causes variations in the model. Data was obtained from 875 Olympic athletes belonging to the Spanish team between 2005 and 2016, as well as from different socio-demographic, economic and sports parameters. A main component analysis was carried out which showed that the population, sports budget, sports licenses, top level athletes (TLA), scholarship awarded athletes, gender gap and GDP explained 79.81% of the total variance. When the gender model was carried out, a similar pattern to the general one was found in women and men. In conclusion, the participation of men and women in the Spanish Olympics is due to a great amalgam of variables, and there are no great differences in the influence of these variables according to gender.
This paper estimates the technical efficiency of Olympic disciplines in which Spanish athletes participate, taking into account the results obtained in the last three Olympic Games. A stochastic production frontier model (normal-exponential), using two control variables linked to economic factors such as budget and sports scholarships, is estimated in order to obtain different Olympic sports’ efficiencies distinguished by gender, using data from 2005 to 2016. The results detect some differences among the considered disciplines. In all the cases, athletics, canoeing, cycling, swimming, and tennis, depending on the gender, reach better values. This paper’s novelty lies in the efficiency analysis carried out on the Olympic disciplines and athletes of a country and not on the country’s efficiency, which allows managers and stakeholders to decide about investments concerning disciplines and athletes.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.