The Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on High Performance Secondary School Student-Athletes

Author: Isabella Q. Liu1

1John McCrae Secondary School, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

Corresponding Author:
Isabella Q. Liu
P.O. Box 34102, 3781 Strandherd Drive
Ottawa, ON, Canada, K2J 5B1
isabellaqqliu@hotmail.com
613-825-6788

Isabella Liu is a rising senior student in the High Performance Athlete Program at John McCrae Secondary School in Ottawa, Canada. She has been doing artistic swimming for the past nine years, and is currently training with GO Capital Synchro Club’s national-stream program. She was a member of the 2019 Ontario Artistic Swimming Junior Provincial Team and competed with them at the 2019 UANA Pan American Artistic Swimming Championships.

The Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on High Performance Secondary School Student-Athletes

ABSTRACT

Purpose: The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a worldwide disruption of the sporting industry. Secondary school student-athletes, as a distinct population, are facing unique social and academic challenges. It is important to identify some of the unique challenges this population currently faces, and understand where our student-athletes are at mentally and physically. This is in order to ensure their needs are addressed, and the health and wellbeing of this population is protected. This study aimed to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Canadian high performance secondary school student-athletes.

Methods: On April 29, 2020, six weeks after a lockdown was imposed in Ontario, Canada, a Google Forms online survey was sent out to local secondary school students participating in high performance sports to collect data on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on their sports and themselves.

Results: In 24 hours, 115 surveys were completed. The median age of respondents was 16/17, with 66 (57.4%) females and 49 (42.6%) males. 93% of respondents had at least one cancellation or postponement of important competitions or meets due to the COVID-19 outbreak. The athletes reported negative psychological impacts from the pandemic, with 90.5% expressing feelings of isolation and disconnection and 79.1% having feelings of anxiety, depression, and frustration. 86.1% of the respondents identified a worry for a loss of fitness during this time, with 91.3% concerned about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on their next season. Nonetheless, 84.3% of the respondents still plan to return to training once the pandemic is over, and 74.8% believe they can catch up to their previous strength/technical level after the pandemic.

Conclusions: Findings of this study suggests that more attention should be paid to secondary school student-athletes, as they are young and tackling both academic and athletic challenges.Student-athletes should be provided additional mental health support during this maelstrom of changes. Specific in-home virtual training during COVID-19 outbreak may be further strengthened and improved to protect the mental health of the athletes, especially to reduce the risk of anxiety and depression.

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2020-08-04T10:14:38-05:00July 22nd, 2020|Research, Sports Health & Fitness|Comments Off on The Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on High Performance Secondary School Student-Athletes

The Coronavirus and Sport Management Pedagogy: Developing Student Learning Opportunities Based on Participatory Sport Businesses Impacted by the Pandemic

Author: Michael J. Diacin

Corresponding Author:
Michael J. Diacin, Ph.D.
University of Indianapolis
1400 E. Hanna Ave.
Indianapolis, IN 46227
diacinm@uindy.edu
317-791-5703

Michael J. Diacin is an Associate Professor in the Department of Kinesiology, Health, and Sport Sciences. His research interests include sport management education and curriculum.

The Coronavirus and Sport Management Pedagogy; Developing Student Learning Opportunities Based on Participatory Sport Businesses Impacted by the Pandemic

Abstract

The presence of the Coronavirus and subsequent mandates to suspend operations has affected ownership, employees, and customers of community-based sport and recreation focused business. When operations resume, these businesses will aim to accomplish objectives of attracting new and repeat customers. These businesses will need to create messages in order to reassure consumers and create incentives in order to entice customers to return. The purpose of this essay is to articulate challenges community-based sport and recreation businesses will face when permission to resume operations is granted and propose tactics that could be utilized in order to rebuild the customer base. In addition, this pandemic provides an authentic learning opportunity for students in sport communication/management programs. As a result, suggestions for developing a learning opportunity for students based on community-based sport and recreation business affected by Coronavirus related shutdowns will be offered.

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2020-07-06T10:37:10-05:00July 15th, 2020|Sports Management|Comments Off on The Coronavirus and Sport Management Pedagogy: Developing Student Learning Opportunities Based on Participatory Sport Businesses Impacted by the Pandemic

Validity of 3-D Markerless Motion Capture System for Assessing Basketball Dunk Kinetics – A Case Study

Authors: Dimitrije Cabarkapa1, Andrew C. Fry1 and Eric M. Mosier2

  1. Jayhawk Athletic Performance Laboratory, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS
  2. Northwest Missouri State University, Maryville, MO

Corresponding Author:
Dimitrije Cabarkapa, MS, CSCS, NSCA-CPT, USAW
1301 Sunnyside Avenue, Lawrence, KS 66045
University of Kansas
E-mail: dcabarkapa@ku.edu
Phone: +1 (785) 551-3882

Validity of 3-D Markerless Motion Capture System for Assessing Basketball Dunk Kinetics – A Case Study

ABSTRACT

Basketball is one of the most popular international sports, but the current sport science literature does not directly address on-court performance such as force and power during a game. This case study examined the accuracy of a three-dimensional markerless motion capture system (3-D MCS) for determining the biomechanical characteristics of the basketball dunk. A former collegiate (NCAA Division-I) basketball player (age=26 yrs, height=2.08 m, weight=111.4 kg) performed 30 maximum effort dunks utilizing a two-hands, no-step, two-leg jumping approach. A uni-axial force plate (FP) positioned under a regulation basket sampled data at 1000 Hz. Additionally, a 3-D MCS composed of eight cameras placed 3.7 m high surrounding the recording area collected data at 50 Hz, from which ground reaction forces were derived using inverse dynamics. The dunks were analyzed by both systems for peak force and peak power. Peak force (X±SD) was similar (p<0.05) for both systems (FP= 2963.9±92.1 N, 3-D MCS= 3353.2±255.9 N), as was peak power (FP= 5943±323, 3-D MCS= 5931±700 W). Bland-Altman plots with 95% confidence intervals for both force and power indicated all measurements made with the 3-D MCS accurately assessed peak force and peak power during a basketball dunk as performed in the current study. These data provide strength and conditioning professionals with a better understanding of the magnitude of forces and powers that athletes experience during a basketball game, as well as validate use of a novel technology to monitor athletes’ progress and optimize overall athletic performance.

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2020-05-06T09:16:36-05:00June 19th, 2020|Research, Sports Health & Fitness|Comments Off on Validity of 3-D Markerless Motion Capture System for Assessing Basketball Dunk Kinetics – A Case Study

The Working Alliance and Satisfaction with the Coach-Athlete relationship among Norwegian elite swimmers

Authors: F. Moen(1), R. Anstensen(1), M. Hrozanova(2), T. C. Stiles(3)

Corresponding Author:
Frode Moen, PhD
Department of Education and Lifelong learning, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, N-7491 Trondheim, Norway
frode.moen@ntnu.no
+47 93 24 87 50

Frode Moen is a mental trainer for elite athletes and coaches at the Norwegian Olympic Sports Center in the Mid-Norway region, where he also is the manager. He is also an associate professor at the Department of Lifelong Learning and Education at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology where his research focuses on coaching in business, coaching in sport, communication, performance psychology, athlete burnout, attention, motivation, education, and relationship issues.

1) Centre for Elite Sports Research, Department of Education and Lifelong Learning, Faculty of Social and Educational Sciences, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
2) Centre for Elite Sports Research, Department of Neuromedicine and Movement Science, Faculty of Medicine and Health Science, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
3) Department of Psychology, Faculty of Social and Educational Science, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway

The Working Alliance and Satisfaction with the Coach-Athlete relationship among Norwegian elite swimmers

ABSTRACT
The current study investigates how the three dimensions of the Working Alliance Inventory (WAI); bond, goal and task, uniquely explain the perceived satisfaction among Norwegian swimmers with their coach-athlete relationships. The current study uses regressions analysis to investigate the research question and the analysis shows that only the bond dimension uniquely explains the swimmers’ satisfaction with their relationships with their coaches. Bond explains 50% of the variance in athletes’ satisfaction with their coaches. The results are discussed in regard of applied implications and possible future research. (more…)

2018-10-29T14:44:22-05:00November 15th, 2018|Research, Sports Studies and Sports Psychology|Comments Off on The Working Alliance and Satisfaction with the Coach-Athlete relationship among Norwegian elite swimmers

Relationship Between Physical Training, Ratings of Perceived Exertion, and Mental Toughness in Female NCAA Division I Volleyball Players

Authors: Mathieu Castello, Jacob P Reed, Robin Lund, Mick Mack
Kinesiology, Allied Health, and Human Services
University of Northern Iowa
Cedar Falls, IA 50614

Corresponding Author:
Jacob Reed
University of Northern Iowa
203 Wellness and Recreation Center
Cedar Falls, IA 50614
Phone: 319-273-2071
Email: jacob.reed@uni.edu

Relationship Between Physical Training, Ratings of Perceived Exertion, and Mental Toughness in Female NCAA Division I Volleyball Players


ABSTRACT
The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between participating in a conditioning program, ratings of perceived exertion, heart rate (HR), and mental toughness. Thirteen Division I Volleyball players were recruited while 10 participated in an 8-week off-season conditioning program aimed at improving physical fitness. Before and after the training period, the Yo-Yo intermittent recovery test and Mental, Emotional, and Bodily Toughness Inventory (MeBTough) were completed. While performing the Yo-Yo intermittent recovery test, heart rate was collected. During the 8-week program, session rating of perceived exertion (sRPE) was obtained following each training session. Significant improvement in physiological capacity was observed following the 8-week training protocol; pre (844m ± 196.37) to post (980m ± 200.67), t(9) = -5.50, p = 0.00. Mental toughness scores (as assessed by the MeBTough) did not change significantly during that same time period; pre (145.2 ± 12.3) to post (144 ± 16.72), p > 0.05. Additionally, no significant correlation between the capacity to perform on the physical test, the mental toughness score, sRPE, or maximum HR was found.

Based on these observations, coaches should be cautious in their judgement of an athlete’s mental toughness based on fitness, sRPE, and HR. Finally, it appears that an 8-week conditioning program was not enough to elicit any changes in mental toughness. Mental toughness is a complex phenomenon. As such, coaches should be cautious when assessing an athlete’s mental toughness based solely on the results of a physical test or values provided from the session RPE. Furthermore, the researchers observation that mental toughness did not change over an 8-week training protocol demonstrates that hard physical training does not necessarily improve mental toughness. This result is not definitive but does warrant further investigation.
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2018-06-29T10:34:30-05:00August 9th, 2018|Sports Studies and Sports Psychology|Comments Off on Relationship Between Physical Training, Ratings of Perceived Exertion, and Mental Toughness in Female NCAA Division I Volleyball Players
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