Designing a Development Strategy for the Public Sport – a Case Study in Mazandaran Province

The aim of this study was to design a development Strategy for the Public Sport in Mazandaran province. A sample of 73 individuals who were the physical education teachers of higher education institutions, senior managers of the department of the youth and sports, senior experts, heads of the state offices, provincial and municipal authorities and bodies of sports participated in this study. A researcher-made questionnaire was used to collect the data its validity was confirmed by several experts and its reliability was confirmed through Cronbach's alpha (α=0.92). The questionnaire consists of 46 items rated on strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats to Public Sport of the province. The findings revealed that one of the main reasons for the unfavorable sports situation in Mazandaran was the lack of development strategy for Public Sport. The results of the analysis were extracted after analyzing the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats and after evaluating the matrix of the internal and external factors for the Public Sport .SO strategies include the development of the sport in the state offices and the provision of sport facilities in the province. ST strategies include the provision of raw sport materials which are easily accessible to the athlete and which are with an affordable price. WO strategies include an increase of the resources and funds for improving the programs of the Public Sport. WT strategies include the use of modern sport facilities and the involvement of senior officials in the Promotion of the Public Sport.