In this feature article, Klara Boije af Gennäs presents her Ph.D. project at Malmö University Her main concern is the prevalence and severity of injuries in youth equestrian sports, and not only acute injuries from riding accidents but also overuse injuries resulting from hard labor in the stable. Applying a multi- and interdisciplinary research approach as well as a mix of qualitative and quantitative methodologies, her aim is to extend and strengthen the understanding of stable- and riding injuries among youth equestrians. (Published in English 230913.)
Review of: Cunningham, George B. (2007) Diversity in Sport Organizations. Scottsdale: Holcomb Hathaway, Publishers, Inc.’, for Idrottsforum.org 2008 (update #96)
Recension av: Linda A. Sharp, Anita M. Moorman & Cathryn L. Claussen Sport Law: A Managerial Approach 688 sidor, hft., ill. Scottsdale, AZ: Holcomb Hathaway 2006 ISBN 1-890871-70-2
Genom att ställa frågan om huruvida idrottsvetenskap är eller kan bli (samhälls-)vetenskapligt intressant syftar Bo Carlsson i den här essän till att diskutera idrottsvetenskapens karaktär, status, utveckling och dess inneboende problem – samt dess inneboende möjligheter. Via en genomgång av ämnesområdets utveckling, och dess relation till praktiken, diskuteras dess (bristande) hantering av bland annat normativitet, instrumentalism, kontextualism och relativism. Härigenom definieras ämnets samhällsvetenskapliga potential, och bland annat sportifieringsprocessen lanseras som ett möjligt bidrag till vår förståelse av vårt (post)moderna samhälle. Vidare granskas och presenteras några texter – varav några som tillkommit utanför den idrottsvetenskapliga disciplinen – som intressanta och framgångsrika exempel på denna utveckling av ämnets potential, bortom den mer eller mindre förblindande och förförande idrotten. Slutsatsen är att idrottsvetenskap har stora möjligheter att utvecklas som en intressant, relevant och givande samhällsvetenskap – om inte idrotten och dess praktik tillåts driva fram instrumentellt och normerande tunnelseende
Sport has developed into an essential phenomenon in popular culture and in (post)modern society, and seems to have, which is the rational of this essay, a great deal to tell us about human life and (post)modernity. The process of sportification of popular culture is the main thrust of the argument, as well as presenting an alternative strategy for the study and understanding of the relationship between sport and society, and the influence and impact of sport. The essay does not focus on various added values, such as integration, health and economic growth. Neither is the ambition to present society’s impact on sport logics. The essay analyses, as an alternative, sport as a general (mental) horizon in society. It focuses on the sportification of popular culture, and specifically on the television reality show called Masterchef. The essay conceptualises docusoaps in light of the phenomenon of sport. In a wider perspective, initial attempts at sportification of science are also considered. Given the observed amalgamation of sport with the entertainment industry, the essay argues for a revitalisation of Guttmann’s theses, and suggests a broadened concept, in line with ‘from ritual to event(ification)’.
This article is a philosophical examination of the six-part documentary series, Cheer, which debuted on Netflix on the 8th of January 2020 to widespread enthusiasm. It centres around a dedicated young cheerleading squad at Navarro College in Corsicana, Texas, and their celebrated coach who rulesthe team with an iron fist, as they prepare forthe annual college cheerleading championship. Part of the attention garnered by the documentary series was directed towards the coach and her unconventional, stern methods of leadership, which, to some, seemed to forego the best interests of the cheerleaders in favour of the pursuit of results. In applying the philosophy of Nietzsche, notably his perhaps most famed work, the enigmatic Thus Spoke Zarathustra, I present an alternate interpretation of the events. Through concepts like the overman, self-overcoming and the will to power, I discuss the possibility of attaining meaning, purpose, self-satisfaction and happiness through suffering. I then conclude by letting the argument propagate into and include the field of sports in general, likening the arduous training and attainment of mastery in sports to what I call the Nietzschean transcendence.
This is the fifth edition of this textbook about human performance and motor learning, published with the same title since 1982. In this new edition there are several sidebars with up to date information on key researchers, historical papers or specific concepts in motor learning. Highlight boxes present research issues and historical connections relevant to the chapters’ topics. The 581 pages include an appendix with logarithms, a glossary, author presentations, and an author index as well as a subject index.
Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka balans- och koordinationsförmåga hos några gymnasiesärskoleelever som deltar i projektet “Unga handigolfare – ett utvecklingsprojekt för barn och unga med funktionsnedsättning”.
Recension av: Hur är det i praktiken? Lärare utforskar ämnet idrott och hälsa. ISBN 978-91-980862-8-7
Motor learning and control is a matter of communication between the central nervous system and the musculoskeletal system, i.e. that the brain sends out signals to the body in order to achieve coordinated movements and similar motor responses. Motor development is thus about both cognitive and physical development. Motor training is of paramount importance in the young child's development, particularly in cases where the motor development doesn’t come as easy as in most cases. There are gross motor and fine motor skills, where the former deals with larger body movements and the latter of for example dexterity. In Sweden, research on motor skills is mainly concerned with the effects of determined motor training during the first years of school, showing not only improved motor skills as a result, but also significant positive effects in other school subjects, such as mathematics and Swedish. The leading Swedish researcher in this area is Ingegerd Ericsson, and it seemed natural to ask her to review the second edition by Cheryl A. Coker’s Motor Learning & Control for Practitioners (Holcomb Hathaway). In an informed and critical review Dr. Ericsson points to certain problems in the book, but she insists on its value as a textbook in that it has a good pedagogical tone and a balanced presentation of theory, research, and practical implications.
There seems to be what amounts to complete consensus about the need, nay necessity, for physical activity. We must constantly move our bodies on its journey from cradle to grave, because the human body is so constructed. In the last few decades, this understanding has had a marked influence on research in the intersection of health science and sports. The latter is unchallenged as an organized movement whose be-all and end-all is body movement; the former has increasingly favored prophylactic over palliative care. A central theme is how to maintain the childhood fascination with endless variations of human bodily movements throughout the life cycle; thus the motor development of the child has been the in the focus of research. A leading Swedish authority in this area is Dr. Ingegerd Ericsson; her studies within the Bunkeflo Project has been groundbreaking in determining the relationship between motor development on the one hand and cognitive development and learning abilities on the other. We asked Dr Ericsson to read and review a new American book in this field, Physical Education for Young Children: Movement ABCs for the Little Ones by Rae Pica (Human Kinetics). The book, concludes our reviewer, works well within its own limitation, partly defined by a preference of words over pictures and a glaring paucity of references.
Review of Haibach, Pamela S., Reid, Greg & Collier, Douglas Holden, Motor learning and development, Human Kinetics, Champaign, IL, 2011, ISBN 978-0-7360-7374-5.
Recension av Brendan O’Mearas bok "Six Weeks in Saratoga: How Three-Year-Old Filly Rachel Alexandra Beat the Boys and Became Horse of the Year".
Recension av Mike Huggins, ”Horse Racing and British Society in the Long Eighteenth Century”
The aim of this paper is to chart the relationship between men, women and horses with focus on equestrian sports. The degree of internationality of these sports, as well as the question of whether a sport can be seen as international if only men or women participate, are discussed. Furthermore, the diffusion of equestrian sports are presented; in short, equestrian activities spread internationally in different directions up until the late 19th century. Since then Olympic Equestrian events (dressage, show jumping and eventing) have been diffused from Europe. Even though men and women are allowed to compete against each other in the equestrian events, the number of men and women varies widely, irrespective of country, and until this imbalance is redressed, equestrian sports cannot be seen as truly international.
The purpose of this article is to map and analyze how people within equestrian sports in Sweden and Norway define the environmental challenges of the sport, as well as, with a starting point in the COM-B model, identify capabilities, opportunities, and motivation to develop a more environmentally sustainable horse sector. The study is based on a questionnaire answered by 697 people. In summary, the horse sector has developed a stronger environmental commitment than it had 15 years ago (cf. Svala 2008). At the same time, many of the informants feel that they lack the opportunity to influence. An analysis of the answers using the COM-B model (cf. Mitchie et al., 2011; Mitchie et al., 2014) shows that the capability (C) for change exists (even if there are people who wish for more knowledge). In relation to the opportunity (O) component, however, there appear to be higher barriers to change. Physical opportunities, such as location, resources and time appear to be difficult for the individual agent to influence and economic factors are also pointed out as obstacles. The opportunity component also includes cultural norms, which may be used to overcome some challenges. The stable does not stand out as a littered place if you compare, for example, with cities or roads, but littering could mean a kind of general disorder. In the stables, everyone is expected to keep their belongings and common areas in order. Even if this orderliness does not primarily concern what we usually mean by ecological challenges, perhaps it can be something to build on when it comes to environmental sustainability work in equestrian sports.