‘Playing with space’: a conceptual basis for investigating active sport tourism practices

Abstract

+41 27 205 73 23 This paper proposes a conceptual tool, the expression 'playing with space', for the analysis of active sport tourism as a meaningful social practice. The expression issues from practice theories and pragmatic understandings of space, which emphasize the processual and contextual dimensions of human action and seek to seize altogether the corporealities and shared conceptions that constitute action. On such views, sport tourists are considered as reflexive and embodied beings, enjoying sensations, mobilities and places, and constantly (re)making sense of their own practices. I argue that the notion of 'play' allows for a comprehensive understanding of the ways active sport tourists engage with space, where space is viewed as an object or material for this play. Three major dimensions of active sport tourism are then identified: a set of playful and game-like practices with global space resulting in shared imaginaries and large-scale mobilities; a kinaesthetic play, based on freedom and sensations and deeply engaged in the materiality of the places; and the omnipresent media practices that support the other dimensions of play while being fully integrated into the experience of sport tourism. This conceptual framework is a way to better understand the motives and practices of sport tourists; it is also a way to underline wider trends of contemporary leisure cultures: such cultures are increasingly integrated into the daily spheres of activity, increasingly playful and increasingly mediatized. This picture (Figure 1) is one of the most famous views, of one of the most famous places, for the rock climbing community: it has been shot from the back of the Grande Grotta, in the Greek island of Kalymnos. A climber is being lowered down from a route, seemingly overlooking the deep blue water of the Mediterranean Sea and the rugged island of Telendos. The landscape is spectacular, the climbing potential huge, the rock near-perfect and the atmosphere relaxed:everything is gathered to make of this place one of the world's major spots for climbing tourism.Such a picture, iconic of the practice of active sport tourism, is the result of many spatial actions and conceptions of space. The climber as well as the photographer have flown there from abroad, attracted by the reputation of the place and by the prospect of having a good time; the climber has ascended the route before dangling at the end of the rope, enjoying the said landscape and the satisfaction of having achieved a route perceived as beautiful. In many respects, it is a highly pleasurable experience of space.By proposing to view active sport tourism as a playful practice of space, this article is an attempt to give one key, among others, to making sense of active sport tourism as a social practice. I will show how this perspective takes place in the present literature on sport, tourism and sport tourism; how this may apply to the several dimensions and several scales of those specific practices; and, in conclusion, how such a theoretical approach enri...

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Levada walks and canyoning as mountain sport products in nature tourism

“…As Weed (2008) argues, what makes a sports tourism experience unique is the combination of three elements: the local identity where the activity takes place, people's involvement and the sporting activity. The new concept for active sport tourism is based on the expression "playing with space" (Geffroy, 2017), where sports tourists are considered as reflexive and embodied beings, enjoying sensations, mobilities and places, and constantly (re)making sense of their own practices.…”

Motivations for participation in active sports tourism: a cross-national study

“…Prior research on AST behavioral intention has been linked with an event per se, along with destination attributes, nostalgia, service quality, and inspiration sources (Newland and Yoo, 2021;Zhou et al, 2018). Several researchers in AST focused on developing motivation scales and typologies to segment active sports tourists (Terzi c et al, 2020;Geffroy, 2017;Hodeck and Hovemann, 2016;Hungenberg et al, 2016). Other studies have emphasized the impact of cultural influences on tourist behavior (Tomik et al, 2017;Hungenberg et al, 2016;Reynolds and Hritz, 2012;Papadimitriou and Gibson, 2008;Williams and Gibson, 2004).…”