Sport and physical activities: actual Ukraine’s strategic narrative (in terms of encyclopedias)

Abstract

Background and purpose Outline the importance of sports encyclopedias as a form of spreading and promoting a healthy lifestyle and popularizing high-achieving sports for the social and humanitarian development of Ukraine. Material and methods In the article, the primary used research methods are overview and descriptive analysis (an overview of academic publications indexed in Scopus, PubMed, Google Scholar, and National Library of Ukraine, as well as data on Ukrainian encyclopedias from the Corpus of Ukrainian Encyclopedias). This is a basis for descriptive analysis the capability of sports activities to improve the physical and mental (emotional, moral-volitional) resilience of the Ukraine’s population during wartime difficulty, the overall health level of the nation, and the demographic and accordingly economic situation in the country. Additionally, based on descriptive analysis, the potential of encyclopedias on sports and athletes in promoting a healthy lifestyle and physical activities among the population is examined). Reflection method is also used: authors offer a vision of how encyclopedic knowledge about sports and athletes should be structured to help improve the nation’s health, demographic, and economic situations, and thus resistance to Russian aggression). Results The war in Ukraine significantly damages the population’s health, adversely affecting the demographic and economic situation in the country. As a result, state humanitarian policy must focus on finding ways to counter these threats and emerging from this crisis. The article emphasizes that targeted, systematic development of sports and physical culture should be among the state policy priorities, as sports and physical activities improve population health. Authors show that promoting physical culture and a healthy lifestyle is crucial in this process, necessitating the studying of various information sources that can disseminate sports relevant knowledge and identifying the most effective ones. Conclusions Based on extensive justifications, the article proposes the idea of creating a Ukrainian sports encyclopedia as a means of promoting a healthy lifestyle among the Ukrainians, particularly essential in the post-war period. This would contribute to Ukraine's restoration by improving its demographic, socio-economic situation, and encouraging the return of Ukrainian refugees. The potential of a sports encyclopedia lies in highlighting and popularizing distinguished athletes who have achieved success and are respected globally, serving as role models, especially for the young generation of the country. The encyclopedic promotion of famous Ukrainian athletes is considered an effective mechanism for fostering a healthy lifestyle and patriotic feelings among Ukrainian citizens. The preparation of such a publication should rely on global encyclopedic-biographical experience, modern information technologies, and academic knowledge.