1,720,998 research outputs found
“The Legacy Element.. It Just Felt More Woolly”: Exploring the Reasons for the Decline in People With Disabilities’ Sport Participation in England 5 Years After the London 2012 Paralympic Games
No full textThis article explores why sports participation of people with disabilities in England has declined since the London 2012 Paralympic Games (LPG). Thirty semistructured interviews were conducted with staff employed in a variety of sports and disability-specific organizations. Our preliminary findings suggest that the decline is a result of a complex interplay between multiple factors. A competency gap and a lack of relevance between Paralympians and the rest of the community of people with disabilities might have limited the impact of the legacy. In addition, an absence of coordinated leveraging of the LPG, and a decline in the media coverage of disability sport in the aftermath of the LPG, might also have dulled the legacy. Finally, our data show that austerity and negative media coverage of people with disabilities deterred some people from participating in sport
Towards an Olympic volunteering legacy: Motivating Volunteers to serve and remain - A case study of London 2012 Olympic Games Volunteers
No full textVolunteers are often seen as 'soft infrastructure' following the legacy plans of host nations aiming to stage the Olympic Games. This refers to social mobility and the potential of further utilising such volunteer resources for other future events and activities that would benefit the community. The purpose of this study is to examine the determinants of a volunteer legacy following volunteers' involvement with the London 2012 Olympic Games. A total of 163 volunteers involved with the transport department of London 2012 completed a web-based survey. Factor analysis was employed to summarise volunteers' motivations. The analysis yielded five reliable dimensions of their motivations. Regression analysis was then applied to identify which motivations, sociodemographic characteristics and sport engagement variables had an impact on future intentions for volunteering. The implications of the findings for a potential social legacy of volunteering are explored
Yes we can!” Paralympic Athletes Beyond Stereotype: how media can change and promote no-discriminatory sports
No full textRecent data from Eurostat show that one in four people (25.4%) in the EU has a disability ranging from mild to severe (EUROSTAT, 2021). In Italy, there are approximately 3.1 million disabled people (5.2% of the population) (ISTAT, 2019). However, people with disabilities are scarcely visible in Italian mass media. News with a focus on disability when it rarely happens, is often misguided, and tends to perpetuate negative stereotypes. One of the opportunities that exist for the mass media to portray disabled people in an empowering and positive way is through the Paralympic Games.
Based on an Italian National project, in this paper, we explore the views and perceptions of Paralympic athletes themselves on how certain representations make them feel, think or react and ask how sport and disability should be better represented at the Paralympic Games to provide a more positive representation of disability. The core overarching aim of our study is in line with the European Disability Strategy and its key term "self-determination", which reflects the right of disabled people to have a say in how they would like to be represented. The research project provides valuable educational and training resources on the promotion of non-discriminatory, inclusive, and empowering portrayal of disability aimed at: a) media professionals/journalists; b) Paralympic athletes; c) members of the disability community.
Through an interdisciplinarity approach between the sociology of sport, media history and disability studies, the project is designed to have a sustainable legacy for future sports editions (such as the PG in Milano-Cortina 2026)
Are mega-events a solution to address physical inactivity? Interrogating the London 2012 Paralympic sport participation legacies among people with disabilities
Full text linkUnderstanding why non-active people with disabilities have not participated in more sport since the London 2012 Paralympic Games is the focus of this paper. This research reviews the constraints preventing people with disabilities from participating in more sport, and the role the London 2012 Paralympic Games plays in this. Eighty-one people with disabilities in England who are non-active completed an online questionnaire exploring their constraints to participating in more sport. The data suggests attitudes towards the London 2012 Paralympic Games were not an important reason for the lack of sport participation: instead, systemic and social barriers are more constraining to participation in more sport. A factor analysis identified four components that constrain non-active people with disabilities: sport provision; economic; unawareness of how to include people with disabilities in sporting activities; and access to sport participation opportunities. The four components explained 72.93% of the total variance. It is recommended mega sporting events are not used as a policy intervention to increase sport participation of people with disabilities, as this does not account for constraining social and systemic barriers to sports participation. Instead, bottom-up solutions designed and managed in conjunction with people with disabilities may be more effective
Leveraging the London 2012 Paralympic Games to increase sports participation: the role of voluntary sports clubs
Full text linkPurpose: This study investigates the extent to which English voluntary sports clubs leveraged the London 2012 Paralympic Games, and what impact leveraging had on the sports participation of people with disabilities (PwD) at clubs. Research methods: Realist evaluation was used to frame the research. An online questionnaire was administered to English clubs between 27 January 2018 and 8 April 2018. Four hundred and thirty-three clubs were included in the final analysis. Findings: Most clubs did not leverage the London 2012 Paralympics. Clubs that leveraged were more likely to have increased their PwD membership. Holding taster sessions was the most effective leveraging activity. Principal components analysis revealed two leveraging constraints: knowledge of disability, and resources to leverage. A one-way MANOVA revealed clubs from inclusively funded national governing bodies were more likely to be constrained by their limited knowledge of disability. Implications: This study suggests specific disability provision at clubs was important to the successful leveraging of the 2012 Paralympics for increased sport participation of PwD. The intention and capacity of the club to support leveraging were also important factors. Research contribution: This study produces empirical data on the role and effectiveness of clubs as sites for sport participation for PwD following the Paralympic Games
The organisational performance of national disability sport organisations during a time of austerity: a resource dependence theory perspective
No full textAusterity measures implemented by the UK Coalition government have had a negative impact on disabled people. This article utilises the resource dependence theory to explore the challenges national disability sport organisations (NDSOs) have faced in their attempts to achieve growth, whilst discussing some of the tactics used to overcome these challenges. Secondary quantitative data from the 2011–2015 NDSO accounts were analysed, which suggests that increased income has been accompanied by increased cost, with fluctuations between surpluses and deficits across the financial years. Funding from Sport England, the government body for grassroots sport in England, was either awarded for the first time or increased. Nine in-depth interviews were conducted with senior managers from seven NDSOs, the English Federation of Disability Sport, and Sport England. It was found austerity presented challenges for the NDSOs in accessing charitable grants and funding and that some disabled people were fearful of losing their disability benefits if they were seen to be active. The management of relationships with national governing bodies and county sport partnerships was also a challenge. The formation of alliances, the building up of financial reserves and the generation of knowledge have been some of the tactics used by the NDSOs in the management of their resources. This research highlights how some NDSOs have achieved growth amid an uncertain economic backdrop, and how these organisations have managed their scarce resources
A case study investigating the impact of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games on participation in two non-traditional English sports, Judo and Fencing
No full textThe hosting of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOPG) brought with it detailed legacy plans aiming to ‘Inspire a Generation’. The idea that hosting a sports mega-event will encourage the host population to engage in more physical activity is commonly used by governments to justify the large investments they make. The aim of this research paper was to investigate the impact that hosting the 2012 Games had on grass-root sports participation within the host nation. This paper focuses on two non-traditional English sports, Fencing and Judo and investigated the changes in mass sports participation. The membership rate analysis of our sample highlighted an overall increase in participation between 2007 and 2013, in both Judo and Fencing. The data gathered from the interviews with the head office staff at the National Governing Bodies (NGBs) and local club coaches suggested that the grass-root participation programmes were the most effective way of increasing participation, rather than the reliance, solely on the inspiration effect from hosting the LOPG itself. The study highlighted the importance of strengthening communication between local voluntary clubs and the NGB, to ensure sports could promote themselves and capitalise on this global sporting phenomenon, which provided unprecedented media coverage and opportunities for these non-traditional sports. This case study provides initial results relating to the effect that a major international multi-sport event can have in the development of non-traditional sports in the host population, in terms of membership variations, participation programmes and organisational dynamics
Paralympic legacies: A critical perspective
No full textParalympic legacy has received scant attention by scholars. Much of the evidence reported is based on anecdotal or post-hoc evidence. This chapter focuses on the evidence for Paralympic legacies, discussing both tangible and intangible legacies from previous Paralympic Games. The utility of the Paralympic Games as an empowering movement is briefly discussed, followed by a critical review of the legacy themes from the 2004 to 2016 Summer Paralympic Games
The media coverage of female athletes with disability. Analysis of the daily press of four European countries during the 2000 Sidney Paralympic Games
No full textData concerning mediatization of the female athletes are showing that on the one hand, women are less represented than men and, on the other hand, their image is frequently sexualized. In addition, contrary to men, media often focuses on their social roles as mother, wife, etc, i.e. female athletes are frequently portrayed in scenes non related with the sports dimensions. It is also known that media treatment of disabled athletes is quite different from those of others athletes. But, which are the peculiarities concerning media treatment of female athletes with disabilities? In the present study a qualitative and quantitative analysis of the Paralympic Games in Sydney 2000 has taken place, including 108 articles from German, English, Spanish, and French newspapers. Our data shows that, contrary to what was expected, women with disabilities are not specially underrepresented compared to men; quantitatively there is no presence of a specific stigmatization. But a qualitative analysis of texts and photos shows that a stigmatization process is taking place through a more insidious form: the female Paralympic athletes are largely “infantilized” and “trivialized” (Jones et al., 1999) in the newspapers which cover the Paralympic Games
Physiotherapists’ experiences with a four-week mindfulness-based stress reduction program
Full text linkObjective: The study sought to gather the perceptions and experiences of a group of physiotherapists who took part in mindfulness-based stress reduction program (MBSR). Methods: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight physiotherapists who took part in a four-week formal and self-directed mindfulness meditation program. The data collected were analysed by implementing a thematic analysis. Results: Themes were identified in relation to perceived health benefits (stress reduction and increased attentiveness), the perceived impact of the MBSR on their professional practice and the perceived difficulties in practicing mindfulness. Conclusion: The data from this study offer qualitative evidence that mindfulness practise can become an important element in a physiotherapists’ stress reduction toolkit, by helping them deal with the challenges of their professional practise. The main difficulties encountered with the program were related to the feelings of sleepiness that MBSR induced in them in the beginning. The participants also reported that the long duration of the sessions was another obstacle, suggesting that a brief form of meditation would be preferable and more convenient
- …
