African Sport Research Articles

Coaching in South Africa

The South African government and the South African Sport Confederation and Olympic Committee (SASCOC) have committed to the creation of an active and winning nation through sport. As part of the national sports plan, coaching has been identified as a key element in the success of the South African sports system. In this context, SASCOC commissioned the development of the South African Coaching Framework, which was formally launched in 2011. The development and launch of the Framework has been accompanied by the gathering of research and scoping data to inform the processes of planning, implementation and impact evaluation. This article describes the current position of coaching in South Africa and the key issues being addressed through the South African Coaching Framework. The challenges that remain to be faced in maximising the contribution of sport coaching to the sporting and social vision of the nation are also identifed.

The African Political Organisation’s contributions to South African sports, 1914-1915 (Part II)

The history of South African sport remains an under researched area. According to the historian, Ander Odendaal, the racist nature of 20th Century South African society implies that there are “past exclusions that persist” (Odendaal, 2006:27) In order to address this situation, a scientifichistorical enquiry into the publications of the official mouthpiece of the African Political Organisation (APO) was undertaken. The APO official mouthpiece or newspaper was also called “The APO”. A descriptive account of organized sport that received coverage in “The APO” during the period 1914-1915, is presented in this article. Research in this area was previously conducted for the period 1909 – 1913 (see Cleophas & Van der Merwe, 2010). It is imperative that the two articles be read together, in order to get a clear understanding of the connection between the APO and sport. The APO provides sport historians with a panoramic view of participation practices of historically marginalised communities in urban centres, as well as in obscure rural villages. The newspaper also provides a comprehensive overview of sportparticipation levels during the early years of the 20th century.Key words: African Political Organisation (APO), sport, South Africa.

Physiotherapists’ knowledge of pain: A cross-sectional correlational study of members of the South African Sports and Orthopaedic Manipulative Special Interest Groups

Background. Pain is the most common complaint for which patients seek the help of a physiotherapist. Furthermore, pain has been identified as the fifth vital sign, indicating the attention with which physiotherapists should be assessing pain. Previous studies have found deficits in pain knowledge among healthcare providers. Poor knowledge about pain is recognised to lead to poor assessment ability, and subsequently, to poor pain management.Objective. To investigate the pain knowledge of sports and orthopaedic manipulative physiotherapists in South Africa (SA).Methods. Data were collected online by means of a demographic questionnaire and Unruh’s Revised Pain Knowledge and Attitudes Questionnaire (RPKAQ). Participants were members of the Sports Physiotherapy Group and Orthopaedic Manipulative Physiotherapy Group of the South African Society of Physiotherapy.Results. The mean score for the RPKAQ was 65.5% (standard deviation (SD) ±8.6). Only 14.45% of the physiotherapists scored ≥75%. Lowest scores were obtained for the ‘assessment and measurement of pain’ (47.6%; SD ±15.6) and ‘developmental changes in pain perception’ (58.7%; SD ±20.8) sections of the RPKAQ, while the highest mean score was obtained for the ‘physiological basis of pain’ section (76.8%; SD±14.6). Gender, ethnicity (defined by home language), academic training and clinical experience did not contribute significantly to overall pain knowledge.Conclusion. There is an inadequate level of pain knowledge among members of the sports and orthopaedic manipulative physiotherapy groups in SA, particularly in the areas of the assessment and measurement of pain, and developmental changes in pain perception.

Physiotherapists’ knowledge of pain: A cross-sectional correlational study of members of the South African Sports and Orthopaedic Manipulative Special Interest Groups

Background. Pain is the most common complaint for which patients seek the help of a physiotherapist. Furthermore, pain has been identified as the fifth vital sign, indicating the attention with which physiotherapists should be assessing pain. Previous studies have found deficits in pain knowledge among healthcare providers. Poor knowledge about pain is recognised to lead to poor assessment ability, and subsequently, to poor pain management.Objective. To investigate the pain knowledge of sports and orthopaedic manipulative physiotherapists in South Africa (SA).Methods. Data were collected online by means of a demographic questionnaire and Unruh’s Revised Pain Knowledge and Attitudes Questionnaire (RPKAQ). Participants were members of the Sports Physiotherapy Group and Orthopaedic Manipulative Physiotherapy Group of the South African Society of Physiotherapy.Results. The mean score for the RPKAQ was 65.5% (standard deviation (SD) ±8.6). Only 14.45% of the physiotherapists scored ≥75%. Lowest scores were obtained for the ‘assessment and measurement of pain’ (47.6%; SD ±15.6) and ‘developmental changes in pain perception’ (58.7%; SD ±20.8) sections of the RPKAQ, while the highest mean score was obtained for the ‘physiological basis of pain’ section (76.8%; SD±14.6). Gender, ethnicity (defined by home language), academic training and clinical experience did not contribute significantly to overall pain knowledge.Conclusion. There is an inadequate level of pain knowledge among members of the sports and orthopaedic manipulative physiotherapy groups in SA, particularly in the areas of the assessment and measurement of pain, and developmental changes in pain perception.

Physiotherapists’ knowledge of pain: A cross-sectional correlational study of members of the South African Sports and Orthopaedic Manipulative Special Interest Groups

Background. Pain is the most common complaint for which patients seek the help of a physiotherapist. Furthermore, pain has been identified as the fifth vital sign, indicating the attention with which physiotherapists should be assessing pain. Previous studies have found deficits in pain knowledge among healthcare providers. Poor knowledge about pain is recognised to lead to poor assessment ability, and subsequently, to poor pain management.Objective. To investigate the pain knowledge of sports and orthopaedic manipulative physiotherapists in South Africa (SA).Methods. Data were collected online by means of a demographic questionnaire and Unruh’s Revised Pain Knowledge and Attitudes Questionnaire (RPKAQ). Participants were members of the Sports Physiotherapy Group and Orthopaedic Manipulative Physiotherapy Group of the South African Society of Physiotherapy.Results. The mean score for the RPKAQ was 65.5% (standard deviation (SD) ±8.6). Only 14.45% of the physiotherapists scored ≥75%. Lowest scores were obtained for the ‘assessment and measurement of pain’ (47.6%; SD ±15.6) and ‘developmental changes in pain perception’ (58.7%; SD ±20.8) sections of the RPKAQ, while the highest mean score was obtained for the ‘physiological basis of pain’ section (76.8%; SD±14.6). Gender, ethnicity (defined by home language), academic training and clinical experience did not contribute significantly to overall pain knowledge.Conclusion. There is an inadequate level of pain knowledge among members of the sports and orthopaedic manipulative physiotherapy groups in SA, particularly in the areas of the assessment and measurement of pain, and developmental changes in pain perception.

Professional Football in Apartheid South Africa: Leisure, Consumption and Identity in the National Football League, 1959–1977

A growing body of academic and popular literature considers the history of South African football. These and existing publications pay little or no attention to the emergence of white professional football in apartheid South Africa. The National Football League (NFL) challenged the amateur game and introduced professional football to the country. During its 17-year existence, the NFL grew each season with large attendances until its demise in 1977. In addition, the NFL imported a range of international players, invited foreign teams and actively engaged in the political debates in South African sport at the time. The NFL was instrumental in popularising the game across the country for all South Africans. The NFL became the most popular sports entertainment of choice for South Africans during this period. Finally, the NFL actively engaged in a campaign of destroying rival non-racial anti-apartheid leagues while simultaneously co-opting less progressive organisations.

‘Here Come “Chelsea” of Sweden’: Djurgården Football Club on Tour in Apartheid South Africa

In this article we argue that while apartheid, boycotts and South African sport have received significant coverage and focus, this has primarily been restricted to Britain and former white colonies of the Commonwealth such as Australia and New Zealand. In addition, sports such as cricket and rugby receive most attention. We argue that it is useful to consider other countries and sports engaged in apartheid South Africa. We consider Swedish engagement with apartheid South Africa and focus the case study of our analysis on the tour by champions Djurgården to the country in 1955. The tourists received favourable and widespread support in South Africa and Sweden. Yet towards the end of the tour sections of the Swedish press asked critical and probing questions of the club's tour to South Africa. We contend that the tour can be viewed as naïve and apolitical and in a similar vein to the organization of Swedish sports at that time. Only after the intensification of suppression of opposition to apartheid in South Africa from the 1960s onwards do we see a change in stance on the part of Swedish sports authorities.

African women and sport: the state of play†

This discussion of the ‘state of play’ of writing on sports in Africa gives particular emphasis to the study of female athletes across the continent. It highlights the rich seam of work that has been forthcoming about athletics in southern Africa as well as conceptual frameworks that have been used to good effect. Empirical historical material is introduced to demonstrate, following Bourdieu, how far sport requires management of the body, which is ‘central to the acquisition of status’.

‘Black as Kenenisa Bekele in a tunnel’: Representation of African athletes in Slovenian Olympic broadcasting

Western/international media often portray African athletes in stereotypical terms similar to those applied to most other topics related to Africa. This study analyses how the identity, ethnicity and nationality of African athletes are negotiated in Olympic broadcasting in Slovenia, a post-socialist member of the European Union. The author conducted a critical analysis of the commentary by network reporters during 44 hours of athletics and swimming broadcasts of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games on Slovenian public television. Naturalised athletes, many of them Africans, were occasionally labelled as ‘imported’ and deemed ‘untrue’ nationals. Such negative framing was not prevented by the network management. Peculiar representations of African athletes highlighted and potentially enhanced the perceived difference between them and the viewers. Despite being aired on a public service broadcaster, Olympic programming in Slovenia provides little information and education on African sports.

The relationship between visitor spending and repeat visits: An analysis of spectators at the Old Mutual Two Oceans Marathon

Purpose: The purpose of this research is to determine the relationship between visitor spending patterns, and previous and planned return visits as well as demographic and trip characteristics of supporters to the Old Mutual Two Oceans Marathon held annually in Cape Town. Problem investigated: Spectator sport is a significant segment of the tourism industry which also has a considerable economic impact on host communities. For this reason, communities and destinations have recognised and attempt to capitalise on hosting large sporting events. In this regard visitor spending is crucial since information concerning the latter can provide sport event organisers to focus their marketing efforts to attract optimal economic benefits. In addition, the relationship of previous visits to a sport event and intended re-visits to visitor spending has received increasing attention since it is believed that repeat visitation is associated with higher levels of expenditure. However limited attention is currently being paid to the relationship between spectator spending patterns and previous and planned return visits in a South African sport spectator context even though the latter has a direct impact on the future sustainability of an event. Methodology: A supporter survey was done for the first time in 2010 (30 March - 2 April 2010) at the event and 430 questionnaires were completed. Factor analysis and regression analysis are used to analyse the data and to identify the relationship between repeat visits and visitor spending patterns. Findings: Results from this study shows that it is predominantly socio-demographic variables that influence travel behaviour. The significant socio-demographic determinants that influence spending per person are gender, language and province of origin while the only behavioural determinant was group size. The results also revealed that there is no significant relationship between spectator spending, repeat attendance and intention to re-visit. However, repeat attendance does have a significant influence on spectators' intention to re-visit and spectators who have attended the race more times have a higher intention to revisit in the future.Originality and conclusion: Results from his innovative study showed that although no statistically significant relationship was established, a strong relationship between repeat visits and intention to revisit was found. A significant contribution to the literature is evident since the focus is on spectators at a sports event as opposed to participants. It was the first study of its kind in South Africa and the importance of the role and function of spectators at an event is highlighted. As a further contribution, prominent differences regarding the participants were evident when compared to previous studies on participants at other South African sports events. Event organisers can use this information to effectively promote the event in order to attract supporters and to generate revenue for Cape Town during the event but especially months after the race. The latter will also greatly contribute to the long-term sustainability of the marathon.

La permanence de la condition d’immigré sportif africain: Une socio-histoire des footballeurs professionnels camerounais en France (1954–2010)

This study examines the lives of four generations of professional Cameroonian soccer players in first and second division French clubs from 1954 to 2010. Through qualitative analysis of 15 “life story” interviews conducted in France and Cameroon, we study the conditions of African sport immigrants in France. From the 1950s to the present, their status has evolved little. Although players’ monthly salaries have increased and they now enjoy stronger legal protection through FIFA and improved representation through their agents, the similarities between the periods are striking. Just as those who went before them, players in the 2000s are regularly victims of discrimination and racism, as evidenced by their systematic salary inequality in relation to their European counterparts, the pressures around quotas for authorized foreign players and their nationality, and the insults hurled from the stands. We see as permanent the conditions affecting African sports immigrants in France and Europe.

Visualizing politics in African sport: political and cultural constructions in Zimbabwean soccer

Football in Zimbabwe represents a variety of socio-economic and political interests, but has also become a means of engaging in dissent and resistance. Football has been a contested terrain – the state has tried to use the game as a means of achieving social control, but it has also been a critical medium for the expression and communication of dissent. In Zimbabwe, subordinate groups have developed forms of social and political representation in a sporting context to challenge authority. Soccer has also been a site for visualizing political contestation, where the visual becomes a means of making politics. Through soft-power discourses rooted in soccer, opposition political movements in Zimbabwe not only gained visibility but also acquired significant political and cultural capital. Football fans in Zimbabwe have used colours, signs and symbols to make political statements and to engage in political action. Football’s visual elements ensured political visibility and promoted safe and creative ways of engaging in politics under repressive conditions.

South African Sports Medicine Association Position Statement on Exercise in Pregnancy

South African Sports Medicine Association Position Statement on Exercise in Pregnancy

South African Sports Medicine Association Position Statement on Exercise in Pregnancy

There are many concerns about exercise during pregnancy, with medical advice historically dissuading women from continuing or initiating regular exercise programmes. However, research has shown that high levels of exercise are not associated with an increased incidence of negative events. Currently, many women of childbearing age wish to continue with their exercise programmes during pregnancy. Appropriate guidance and exercise counselling by the attending care provider can fulfil this need. This position statement aims to assist pregnant women and their care providers in assessing the merits and benefits of improving and maintaining fitness during this period.

The sports concussion note: should SCAT become SCOAT?

Sports concussion research and clinical guidelines have evolved rapidly. The most recent concussion consensus statement and guidelines (Zurich, 2008) provided clinicians with the Sports Concussion Assessment Tool version 2 (SCAT2)...

The injury burden ̶ sport and exercise scientists can contribute more to public health

SAJSM, vol 23 No. 4 2011

INTRODUCTION: AFRICAN AMERICANS AND THE HISTORY OF SPORT—NEW PERSPECTIVES

The importance of sports to American society is evident when watching television or reading popular magazines. Companies hire athletes to endorse their products and services, while masculinity and femininity are represented by athleticism, hard work and sweat, normative ideas of attractiveness, and fit bodies. While most people understand that the probability of a child becoming a professional athlete is remote, the dream of becoming a professional football, basketball, or baseball player is common for youth across race and class, particularly for males. Often, this dream is one of several youthful dreams that eventually fades, but, for many African Americans, dreams of professional athletic stardom are not so easily abandoned. (1) Black athletic achievement has often been excluded, downplayed, infantilized, or pathologized. Sadly, this has led to little scholarship historically on African Americans and sport. In 1939 Edwin B. Henderson's The Negro in Sports offered a mosaic of black athletic heroism, the strong work ethic and personal struggles, which he hoped would illuminate black success in sports and serve as evidence of black progress and increased acceptance by whites. A. S. Doc Young's Negro Firsts in Sports, published in 1963, documented the pioneering efforts of black sportswomen and men and the ups and downs of black inclusion in sports in the United States. In both of these works, a wide range of sports is coveied, rather than going into any depth to document the length of time African Americans had been involved, or their ability to master and excel as athletes. (2) The most recent historical account of the African American experience in sports is David K. Wiggins and Patrick B. Miller's The Unlevel Playing Field, a compilation of writings and commentary from leading African American athletes and intellectual figures over time from Frederick Douglass and W. E. B. Du Bois to Rafer Johnson. Wiggins and Miller's selections document the achievements of the most famous black athletes in their time and their experiences with white racism in their fields of competition. With the inclusion of expert commentary, this work shows how black leaders viewed athletics and African American athletes' contributions to the advancement of the race. (3) Robert Peterson and the late tennis legend and civil rights activist Arthur Ashe, Jr. added depth to the study of sports by investigating the experiences of African American athletes in numerous sports. Peterson covered African American experiences in baseball and basketball in two volumes. Only the Ball Was White and Cages to Jumpshots. (4) Each book details the beginning of African Americans in baseball and basketball and the development of all-black leagues and teams, and ultimately the integration of African Americans into the major professional leagues. Arthur Ashe extended Peterson's task by writing a three-volume history of African and African American involvement in sports from 1619 until 1991 in A Hard Road to Glory, and then added five more in-depth studies of the black athlete in boxing, track and field, baseball, football, and basketball. For each specific study, Ashe offered a lengthy reference section that includes the names of black athletes who first competed in the sport and their dates of involvement, how black college teams performed in the sport, and lists of noteworthy players (all-stars in most cases) for each college and professional organization through 1991. (5) Some other works have contributed to a greater understanding of African Americans' participation in sports and their impact on particular sports. Ron Thomas's They Cleared the Lane: The NBA's Black Pioneers profiled the first black professionals in the National Basketball Assocation and their athletic style, contributions, and fortitude in dealing with ongoing racism. In Bob Kuska's Hot Potato: How Washington and New York Gave Birth to Black Basketball and Changed Americas Game Forever, blackness is considered an aesthetic, demonstrating athleticism and creativity. …

Visuele stereotipering van sportvroue in die sportmedia

Despite various attempts at achieving gender equality in sport, the media is still dominated by stereotypical representations of sportswomen. The purpose of the present research was to describe gender subjectivity and gender stereotyping in the visual portrayal of sportswomen in one of the largest South African sports magazines, and to determine the value of vector analysis as a visual-grammatical analysis instrument in identifying and opposing dominant ideologies. A literature review of published research on under-representation and stereotyping of sportswomen in the media was undertaken. The theoretical and methodological framework was Critical Discourse Analysis and Kress and Van Leeuwen's (1996; 2006) 'visual grammar', with specific emphasis on vector analysis. The types of vectors operating in visual representations and their relationship to the stereotypical constructions of sportswomen in the media were determined. Five photographs were critically analysed, one example from each stereotypical construct: ‘Athletic’ (the positive stereotype) as opposed to ‘homosexual’, ‘loser’, ‘model’ and ‘sex object’ (negative stereotypes) were identified. The most important conclusions are that sportswomen were predominantly stereotyped negatively in the sports magazine under scrutiny, and that vector analysis is a useful heuristic tool in identifying and confirming visual subjectivity.Keywords: Women in sport; Critical discourse analysis; Gender stereotyping in sport; Gender inequality; Gender ideology; Vector analysis; Visual grammarArticle text in Afrikaans

Tourist displacement in two South African sport mega-events

Crowding-out (or displacement) of non-event visitors has received little attention in the literature on the impact of sports events, largely because it cannot be measured accurately. This paper discusses such effects in conceptual terms and reports the results of an analysis of data on tourist arrivals in South Africa aimed at estimating the displacement effects of two sports events held in 2009: the Indian Premier League cricket tournament and the British and Irish Lions rugby tour. Using monthly tourist arrivals in South Africa from specific countries, we find that some tourists from countries not participating in these events were displaced; the much stronger effect, however, was that tourists from the participating countries re-arranged their visits to coincide with an event. While confirming the inherent difficulty of measuring crowding-out effects, this paper shows that characteristics of events can sometimes be exploited to obtain useful information on displacement from readily available data.

An economic analysis of sports performance in Africa

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to develop insight into the socio‐economic determinants of African sports performance. Previous studies have argued that a country's success in sports is directly related to the economic resources that are available for those sports. However, factors that are used to determine the levels of success for developed countries are not necessarily the same, or bear the same weight, as for developing countries.Design/methodology/approachThe premise of this study is to identify specific factors that increase success in sports in developing countries by means of several econometric specifications using cross sectional data for African countries.FindingsThis study finds evidence that suggests that Africa's performance in sports is dependent on a range of socio‐economic factors, which in some respects confirms worldwide studies. Money does indeed matter: GDP was the overwhelmingly consistent dependent variable in all four models tested. Interestingly, important shades of distinction between the various dependent variables are found.Originality/valueThere is a lack of research in the field of sports and organizational economics especially in emerging countries. Previous studies have treated countries as a homogeneous grouping and allowed the broad aggregates to reveal the determinants. This study focuses on a sub‐group of countries that are relatively poor, have had a complex past with colonial masters, and that generally have weak administrative structures.