The aim of this study was to analyze the psychometric properties of the Portuguese version of the Motivational Climate Sport Youth Scale (MCSYSp) and invariance across gender and different sports (swimming, soccer, handball, basketball, futsal). A total of 4,569 athletes (3,053 males, 1,516 females) from soccer (1,098), swimming (1,049), basketball (1,754), futsal (340), and handball (328) part...

The purpose of this study was to identify racial differences in physical activity (PA), fitness, and BMI in female 8th-grade sports participants and nonparticipants. Girls from 31 South Carolina middle schools (N = 1,903, 48% White; mean age = 13.6 +/- 0.63) reported PA and previous year sports-team participation, completed a submaximal fitness test, and had height and weight measured. Sports t...

BACKGROUND Use of Global positioning system (GPS) technology in team sport permits measurement of player position, velocity, and movement patterns. GPS provides scope for better understanding of the specific and positional physiological demands of team sport and can be used to design training programs that adequately prepare athletes for competition with the aim of optimizing on-field performan...

The historical process of computer science in sports has arrived at a state where technical limitations are increasingly overcome by the general technological development. This allows to devote more time and effort to theoretical problems concerned for example with model building in sports. In order to find an appropriate description for training as well as for competition in game sports, there...

Ethical issues present a challenge for health care professionals working with athletes of sports teams. Health care professionals-including the team physician, the physical therapist, and the athletic trainer-are faced with the challenge of returning an athlete to competition as quickly as possible but as safely as possible. Conflicts of interest arise due to conflicting obligations of the team...

Efficiency in team sports depends on the strength of the team’s weakest link. Sport practice and a plethora of studies showed that athletes’ performance often deteriorates during competition (Gaudreau & Blondin, 2004; Wilson, Raglin, & Pritchard, 2002). Regardless of whether they are good athletes, many of them are bad competitors. The main reason for this is poor psychological preparation or i...

BACKGROUND Studies of the relationship between sports activity and smoking among adolescents and young adults report contradictory results. We examined the association between sports activity (intensity and type of sport) and the current use of snus (Swedish snuff), cigarette smoking, and the combined use of cigarettes and snus (dual use) among young males in Finland. METHODS Data were collec...