On the Way to the Marathon—Motivation for Participating in Mass Running Events Among Children and Adolescents: Results of the Poznan Half Marathon Pilot Study

Abstract

The market for mass sports events geared towards adults is already saturated, while more new initiatives are exclusively targeting children and adolescents. Mass sports events for amateur athletes can be a great way to encourage young people to exercise regularly, such as in cases where physical education classes do not fully play this role. A lot of research has already been conducted on the subject of adult motivation for participating in amateur sports events, i.e., marathons, ultramarathons, duathlons or triathlons. However, the research niche is children and adolescents’ motivation. The aim of this study is to recognize motivation among children aged 12 for participating in children’s running events in Poland. The study was conducted via a diagnostic survey using the Motives for Physical Activity Measure–Revised (MPAM-R) scale to determine what motivation is most important for young athletes and whether there are any differences in terms of gender. The highest values were obtained by motivation related to fun and enjoyment during sporting events, while the lowest values were obtained by motivation related to social affiliation. Aspects associated with good fun should be promoted during activities related to the marketing of sporting events for young people. This article contains the results obtained from the Poznan Half Marathon pilot study and recommendations for future lines of research. Such results will allow us to understand the motivation behind modern young amateur athletes and to better manage mass sports events that target children and adolescents.

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