Exploring administrative legacies from the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games: impacts on processes and professionalisation of parasport NGBs in Brazil

Abstract

ABSTRACT This research explores the perceptions of managers of national parasport organisations in Brazil regarding administrative legacies created through the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games. It contributes to furthering knowledge about how the Paralympic Games influenced enduring changes in administrative processes related to the implementation of elite parasport programs in national parasport organisations, which were conceptualised in this article as administrative legacies. The effect of such changes on the professionalisation of parasport organisations was also explored in this research. This qualitative study drew on semi-structured interviews with twenty-six managers from five national parasport organisations in Brazil. A thematic analysis was used to identify what managers of parasport organisations considered to be administrative legacies attributed to the Paralympic Games cycle in Brazil. The perceived legacies included changes in the administrative processes of parasport organisations such as new or modified process designs and controlling and monitoring tasks. Further, increased professionalisation was perceived as enhancing the organisational capacity of investigated organisations. However, managers described problematic administrative changes, for instance, that increased internal bureaucracy has negatively affected the efficiency of certain administrative process. Despite some problematic effects, parasport managers perceived the Paralympic Games in Brazil as improving the capacity of their organisations to better implement elite parasport programs. This research advances knowledge about how administrative legacies were produced through the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games. The research also extends the limited evidence base concerning how the Games catalyse the professionalisation of administrative practices in parasport organisations, thereby improving their organisational capacity.