Competitive balance in athletics

Superior Sporting Performance in Athletics: Determinants and Sustainability

“…It can be stated that not only athletes improve their performances by achieving season's best or world record performances, but also elite sports systems of countries become more dominant in competition. (:38)…”

“…Only men's long‐distance running had become less international as new countries such as Kenya and Ethiopia had “overtaken” the market (Du Bois and Heyndels, ). More recent research conducted by Truyens, De Bosscher, and Heyndels (), who studied competitive trends in athletics in the Olympic Games and World Championships in the period 2000–2015, has drawn a slightly different picture. Truyens, De Bosscher, and Heyndels () detected a general decrease in competitive balance within athletics but found divergent trends for women's and men's competition and at discipline level.…”

“…More recent research conducted by Truyens, De Bosscher, and Heyndels (), who studied competitive trends in athletics in the Olympic Games and World Championships in the period 2000–2015, has drawn a slightly different picture. Truyens, De Bosscher, and Heyndels () detected a general decrease in competitive balance within athletics but found divergent trends for women's and men's competition and at discipline level. In general, both men's and women's competition were more dominated by the top‐performing nations.…”

“…However, there were substantial shifts in market leaders between 2000 and 2015 even in technical sports, which Du Bois and Heyndels (), as well as De Bosscher, Du Bois, and Heyndels () found to be dominated by incumbent strongholds. Hence, Truyens, De Bosscher, and Heyndels conclude:

that the dynamic changes in market leaders in athletics combined with a reduction in competitive balance represent a market structure in which new countries which are more successful than their predecessors dominate the international competition. It can be stated that not only athletes improve their performances by achieving season's best or world record performances, but also elite sports systems of countries become more dominant in competition.

…”

“…Over the last two decades, practitioners and scholars alike have become increasingly interested in understanding the determinants and dynamics of international sporting success. This research is not only of academic but also of practical relevance since, as Truyens, De Bosscher, and Heyndels (:38) have correctly emphasized, knowledge on the dynamics in international sport is of utmost importance for developing viable competitive strategies.…”