Running Events Research Articles

Risk Management for Running Events’ Organization on the Example of Half Marathons in Poland

Sports activities, running in particular, are becoming increasingly popular in Poland. Amateur runners are more and more often taking part in organized sports races, especially in half marathons (21.1 km). The great interest of amateur runners is reflected by many half marathons organized in Poland.

An operational support approach for Mining Unstructured Business Processes

The refined process mining framework contains a set of activities that use extracted information from event logs, discovered models and normative ones. Among these activities, we find those dealing with running events in a Structured Business Process (SBP) context, which are the Detect, the Predict and the Recommend activities. These three activities are nominated as an operational support system that aims at detecting deviations, predicting events and recommending actions. In this regard, operational support systems perform well on SBP while, it stills a challenging task for an Unstructured Business Process (UBP). This puts forward the difficulty of predicting events and recommending actions for UBP, because of its complex structure. In this context, simplification and structuring operations must be applied. Therefore, the intervention of other process mining activities is required for business process simplification and structuring. To this end, we present an operational support approach dealing with UBP, using the refined process mining framework activities.

Infectious Diseases Outbreak Management Tool for endurance mass participation sporting events: an international effort to counteract the COVID-19 spread in the endurance sport setting

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused considerable economic damage throughout the world in addition to a severe health crisis. Social distancing is the main preventative measure for person to person transmission...

Running event quality: conceptualization and measurement scale

This paper aims to develop event quality measurement scale in running event context. This particular type of track event became more popular in many countries in recent years. The Big Five destinations of running events: Berlin, Boston, Chicago, London, and New York are among those final destinations of runners around the world. To attract these runners, quality of the event would be the key success factor. For this paper, the measurement scale has been divided into three dimensions: physical environment, staff attitude and experience of runner after participating in the running event. Samples has been selected using, first, cluster sampling method according to the running event organized in Bangkok during March 2019. The Ultra Park Run Thailand 100 was selected due to the number of participants, approximately 5,000 runners, and it was the only big running event during that time. Second, 109 runners who participated in running events has been selected using simple random sampling method. There are 18 items for this measurement scale. The result of exploratory factor analysis illustrated that all items have factor loading more than 0.4 exempt one item, st-att5 has factor loading close to 0.4 with communalities is 0.268, thus it is deleted during this stage. Furthermore, result of reliability coefficient test shows that all dimensions have Cronbach’s a higher than 0.7. The alpha coefficient for physical environment dimension was 0.868, staff attitude was 0.821, and experience was 0.771. Therefore, all items are correlate to each other and it is sufficient to explain the running event quality construct.

Organisation of running events – reducing exclusions and improving the quality of life

Physical activity is a basic factor of human development – it brings satisfaction, vitality, energy, has a therapeutic dimension and affects the quality of life. Among the large group of amateur athletes, there are people vulnerable to social exclusions related to disabilities, psychological dysfunctions, sex and social status. For these people sport is a cure for loneliness and lack of self-confidence, as well as it positively affects their motivation to overcome barriers, which is reflected in other spheres of their lives. One sport that in particular integrates different social groups is running, as confirmed by the growing number of amateur runners, training activities dedicated to them and running events organised for them. However, it is important that organisers of such events ensure the safety of participants and take care of their satisfaction and comfort by holistic planning of all organisational activities. The study hypothesised that factors concerning the safety, comfort and satisfaction of participants play a vital role in organising running events. The aim of the article was to identify and assess the risk of organising running competitions for amateurs in the context of ensuring safety and satisfaction for all participants of the event. In particular, the author noted the risk factors of a social nature, conducive to integration, associated with countering exclusions. The paper presents test results for national competitions involving 21 and 42 km runs. The identification of risk factors was performed by 10 experts (the Delphi method) and 27 representatives of 7 running events organised in Poland (2017–2018) (risk estimate, a questionnaire) took part in the risk estimation. Risk estimation was carried out on the basis of average (effect and probability). The results of the study provide unequivocal information about the spheres of organising sporting events which in the highest degree can affect the safety and comfort of their participants and the perception of the competition itself. Among the key risks there were: inadequate financial and organisational resources, route capacity, or technical problems. Moreover, the paper includes an attempt to discuss results of other research.

Relative Age Effect: A Systematic Discrimination against Biologically Younger Athletes

Physical differences associated with birth-date among athletes of the same selection year have been described as the Relative Age Effect (RAE). The aim of this study was to examine whether RAE still exists in soccer and running sport disciplines as well as to evaluate its progress among different gender, age, and sport context and if it has an effect on performance. Using official archives of the international sports’ associations (World Athletics-UEFA), birthdates and performance were collected for 7226 athletes (4033 males; 3198 females) who participated in soccer and running events. A chi-square test was used to assess differences between observed and expected birth date distributions. The study showed an over-representation of athletes born in the first quarter of the selection year for both soccer and running events. RAE is more obvious in younger age groups and in sports that require higher explosive speed, strength, power and anaerobic capacity such as soccer and short distance sprints. It was also found that RAE is associated with performance. In conclusion, athletes of younger age groups with greater biological age have a physical advantage in explosive sports (i.e. soccer and short distance running) that probably does not predict their future development.

Risk Assessment Using the FMEA method in the Organization of Running Events

It is characteristic of the current period that the importance of risk and the need to address it the importance of risk is becoming increasingly serious, whether from the point of view of the environment or individual processes in the organization. With increasing number of risks that organizations are facing, its complexity and interdependence are increasing as well. For a more effective assessment of process risks, it is possible to apply the Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA) method, which has application not only in the business sphere, but also in various organizations of public administration or self-government, sports and cultural organizations. The essence of this article is a suggestion to modify the procedure of FMEA method application for the conditions of organizing running events and assessment of the most severe risks in organizing the Rajec marathon, in order to increase the safety and quality of the event. The application of the FMEA method brings increased value to the process, so that responsible managers can assess possible human errors, propose measures to reduce risks and serve as a source of knowledge and lessons for the future implementation of processes. The benefit of the suggested solution is to facilitate the work of responsible employees in assessing the risks of processes in the field of organizing sports events, which will improve the quality and increase the safety of the overall process.

The Relationship between Self-classification of Running Involvement and Event Attachment among Runners: Focusing on Participants in a City Marathon

The Relationship between Self-classification of Running Involvement and Event Attachment among Runners: Focusing on Participants in a City Marathon

Sacred and profane in the Olympic running event of Antiquity

Stadion (running race) is the first and for a long time the only type of Olympic Agon, the “founder” of sports in its modern sense. The sociocultural background related to the emergence, development and modification of running sport of Antiquity is the spiritual foundation of the athletic competitiveness of modernity (“Olympism”), which underlines the philosophical importance and the relevance of research. The dualism of sacred and profane permeated not only athletic Agons, but Antiquity as w whole, being its Zeitgeist – 0 “spirit of the time’”. Through the prism of this binary opposition, running race is viewed as the original type of Olympic competitions. The acquired results can be applies in social philosophy, philosophical anthropology, and philosophy of sports. The novelty of this article consists in determination of attributes of the sacred (gratitude to the gods, obedience to their will, fear of their anger, and being rewarded by the deity), as well as attributes of the profane (cultivated “sprint” race as a symbol of a higher stage of development of the society, professionalization of running, running as a means of upbringing, health promotion and social dynamics, an indicator of civic maturity, etc.) components of the Olympic running race of Antiquity. The author also conducts their dialectical correlation within the framework of explanation of the straight trajectory of Olympic running, unity of the peacekeeping and military-applied significance of the Agons, as well as the pursuit of God-likeness and channeling of the socially dangerous energy of ambitiousness in running competitions of the athletes.

Conceptualization of Perceived Risk from the Participant Perspective in Trail Running Events

Conceptualization of Perceived Risk from the Participant Perspective in Trail Running Events

A comparative analysis of pace, work and gait during national championship cross-country and road running events

A comparative analysis of pace, work and gait during national championship cross-country and road running events

An Analysis of Participation and Performance of 2067 100-km Ultra-Marathons Worldwide.

This study aimed to analyze the number of successful finishers and the performance of the athletes in 100-km ultra-marathons worldwide. A total of 2067 100-km ultra-marathon races with 369,969 men and 69,668 women competing between 1960 and 2019 were analyzed, including the number of successful finishers, age, sex, and running speed. The results showed a strong increase in the number of running events as well as a strong increase in the number of participants in the 100-km ultra-marathons worldwide. The performance gap disappeared in athletes older than 60 years. Nevertheless, the running speed of athletes over 70 years has improved every decade. In contrast, the performance gap among the top three athletes remains persistent over all decades (F = 83.4, p < 0.001; pη2 = 0.039). The performance gap between the sexes is not significant in the youngest age groups (20–29 years) and the oldest age groups (>90 years) among recreational athletes and among top-three athletes over 70 years. In summary, especially for older athletes, a 100-km ultra-marathon competition shows an increasing number of opponents and a stronger performance challenge. This will certainly be of interest for coaches and athletes in the future, both from a scientific and sporting point of view.

Running on Air

During the Second World War, middle-distance runner Gunder Hägg set 15 world records and became a media sport star of unprecedented magnitude in Sweden. This article focuses on the role of radio broadcasts in the formation of the Swedish ‘Hägg mania’. When analysed in terms of blindness and co-presence, radio broadcasts from this era reveal how the announcers actively engaged with audiences to establish moments of suspense and ritualised drama. The concept of dimensional listening is used to explain how radio as a ‘blind’ medium could evoke forceful imagery, while the audience’s use of stopwatches to time running events offers an example of how broadcasters encouraged audience interactivity, reinforcing the experience of simultaneity and national community.

Design, implementation and assessment of a more sustainable model to manage plastic waste at sport events

The implementation and assessment of sustainable initiatives at sport events has a great importance for researchers and practitioners to improve the effects on the hosting territory. All three pillars of sustainability (environmental, economic and social) must be considered. In running events, such as marathons, one of the main issues is the environmental impact of the great quantity of waste, and particularly of plastic waste. A recent tendency is to shift to a “plastic-free” model. However, some single-use plastic products have unrivalled properties and their replacement with other materials may not be the most sustainable solution, at least in the short term. In this paper, a new model for managing plastic waste at a marathon is proposed. It does not aim to eliminate plastics at sport events, but to better manage waste by increasing collection, and sorting and recycling efficiency, following the circular economy paradigm. To demonstrate the sustainability of the model, a precise and quantitative methodology is applied to an innovative visualisation tool, developed by the University of Bologna, to assess circular initiatives and some key performance indicators (KPIs) to compare the sustainability of the new model to waste management in the previous editions of the same event. With this approach, it is demonstrated that a marathon can be completely sustainable: (i) from an environmental point of view, plastic collection efficiency increased by 120.5%; the recycling rate by 157.0% and the landfill rate decreased by 75.4%; (ii) from an economic point of view, it was demonstrated that, with the technological level of the involved recycling plant, the initiative is cost-effective when the virgin PET price is greater than €776/tonne; and (iii) with regard to the social impact, it was proved that the direct engagement of participants (runners and walkers) and their positive perceptions about the initiative achieved the highest score for the two selected qualitative KPIs (3/3). Moreover, some insights have been derived to improve plastic management, covering different disciplines: technical standardisation of plastics, consumer training and legislative support for technological innovation in the industrial context.

Study of the Motivation of Spanish Amateur Runners Based on Training Patterns and Gender.

The objectives of the present study are to analyze the different training patterns of the amateur runners, according to their gender, and to find out a correlation between the training pattern and the motivation. The sample was composed of 457 amateur runners. For the collection of data, a two-part questionnaire was used. The first part consisted of questions about sporting and healthy patterns and the second part consisted of the Perception of Success Questionnaire (POSQ), adapted to Spanish. The obtained results indicated that their motives for starting to practice running and to continue their involvement are health and fun. The training pattern is as follows: they practise one to three days per week, running from three to five hours overall plus additional stretching and high intensity training. They participated in less than one running event per month. Most of them did not belong to an athletic club, did not have a coach, were not federated and have more than four years’ experience of running. What concerns the gender differences, the men trained more than the women, and they did it with relatives and friends; women preferred to do it with friends or by themselves with the assistance of a coach. Age and running hours per week were the best variables to predict the task goal orientation, especially for men. For women, training hours per week predicted the goal orientation but to the ego. This finding could be especially helpful for coaches. A high number of training hours for men was linked with a task goal orientation, and on the other hand, for women it meant an ego goal orientation. The consequences of their behaviours were likely to be markedly different.

A Study of the Thermal Environment and Air Quality in Hot–Humid Regions during Running Events in Southern Taiwan

It is quite difficult to investigate thermal comfort in hot–humid regions, and there have not been many real case studies or research related to this issue. In this article, four running events held in nearby popular travel spots in Kaohsiung, the largest city in southern Taiwan, were selected to analyze the influence of thermal environment and air quality on thermal comfort. Mostly real time environmental monitoring data were applied for estimating thermal indicators, along with Sky View Factor (SVF) data taken at the sites of the running scheduled routes, to analyze the thermal performance of participants at running events. Compared with runners, walkers (local residents, fans, and staff of the events) would be exposed to a greater risk of thermal discomfort with increasing time spent on the routes. With the integrated analysis, mPET (modified physiologically equivalent temperature) can be viewed as a relatively comprehensive indicator in considering both environmental thermal conditions and the biometrical differences of activities and clothing types. From the results, a good correlation between mPET and solar radiation/SVF was obtained, which indicated that mPET could be sufficiently sensible in revealing the thermal condition variation from one site to another during the route with time. Based on the discomfort risk assessment, for runners, the event held in autumn with lower SVF at the route sites would be less risky of thermal discomfort, while the event held in spring with lower solar radiation would be more comfortable for walkers. As for air quality condition, the inappropriateness of holding winter outdoor activities in Kaohsiung was obviously shown in both real time monitoring data and long term analysis.

Travelling to compete: antecedents of individuals’ involvement in small-scale sports events

ABSTRACT This study is to develop a conceptual model linking motivation, involvement, and changes in travel style to the selection of destinations and choice of events among amateur participants involved in small-scale sports events. Partial least squares and fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis were implemented to test this model, based on the responses collected during a local athletic event in Greece. A longitudinal study was conducted to better establish the effectiveness of the proposed model utilising two data sets of the same 99 non-professional athletes, representing the vast majority of participants in the Sfendami small-scale running events held in 2014 and 2016, respectively. The results showed that the influences of destination and event choice factors on involvement were not significant while the effect from changes in travel style were significant for both 2014 and 2016 cases. Two of the four hypotheses were verified and useful managerial insights for small-scale event managers are suggested for supporting the viability of small-scale local sport events.

Search for low-energy neutrinos from astrophysical sources with Borexino

We report on searches for neutrinos and antineutrinos from astrophysical sources performed with the Borexino detector at the Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso in Italy. Electron antineutrinos (ν¯e) are detected in an organic liquid scintillator through the inverse β-decay reaction. In the present work we set model-independent upper limits in the energy range 1.8–16.8 MeV on neutrino fluxes from unknown sources that improve our previous results, on average, by a factor 2.5. Using the same data set, we first obtain experimental constraints on the diffuse supernova ν¯e fluxes in the previously unexplored region below 8 MeV. A search for ν¯e in the solar neutrino flux is also presented: the presence of ν¯e would be a manifestation of a non-zero anomalous magnetic moment of the neutrino, making possible its conversion to antineutrinos in the strong magnetic field of the Sun. We obtain a limit for a solar ν¯e flux of 384 cm–2 s–1 (90% C.L.), assuming an undistorted solar 8B neutrinos energy spectrum, that corresponds to a transition probability pνe→ν¯e< 7.2 × 10–5 (90% C.L.) for Eν¯e > 1.8 MeV. At lower energies, by investigating the spectral shape of elastic scattering events, we obtain a new limit on solar 7Be-νe conversion into ν¯e of pνe→ν¯e< 0.14 (90% C.L.) at 0.862 MeV. Last, we investigate solar flares as possible neutrino sources and obtain the strongest up-to-date limits on the fluence of neutrinos of all flavor neutrino below 3–7 MeV. Assuming the neutrino flux to be proportional to the flare’s intensity, we exclude an intense solar flare as the cause of the observed excess of events in run 117 of the Cl-Ar Homestake experiment.

Improving Search Quality in Crowdsourced Bib Number Tagging Systems Using Data Fusion

Today, crowd computing is successfully applied for many information processing problems in a variety of domains. One of the most acute issues with crowd-powered systems is the quality of results (as humans can make errors). Therefore, a number of methods have been proposed to process the results obtained from the crowd in order to compensate human errors. Most of the existing methods of processing contributions are constructed based on a (natural) assumption that the only information available is unreliable data obtained from the crowd. However, in some cases, additional information is available, and it can be utilized in order to improve the overall quality of the result. The paper describes a crowd computing application for community tagging of running race photos. It presents a utility analysis to identify situations in which community photo tagging is a reasonable choice. It also proposes a data fusion model making use of runners’ location information recorded in their Global Positioning System (GPS) tracks. Field experiments with the applications show that community-based tagging can collect enough contributors to process photosets from medium-sized running events. Simulation results confirm, that the use of data fusion in processing the results of crowd computing is a promising technique, and the use of probabilistic graphical models (e.g., Bayesian networks) for data fusion allows one to smoothly increase the quality of the results with an increase of the available information.

Prevalence and risk factors of running-related injuries in Korean non-elite runners: a cross-sectional survey study.

Due to the lack of consensus definition of running-related injuries, the prevalence and incidence of running-related injuries had been reported to vary between 19% and 92%. Moreover, the epidemiology of running-related injuries in Asian populations has been rarely investigated. The purpose of this study was to use the consensus definition of running-related injuries and investigate the epidemiology of running-related injuries in a Korean population. Using the cross-sectional design, an online survey was circulated among various running communities in Korea. The questionnaire contained information on the presence and location of pain attributed to running, demographic characteristics, weekly running mileage, participation in high-intensity training, running pace, the longest running event participated, the type of shoes, foot strike, the reason for running, and exercise experience prior to running. Among 1046 runners (male=624, female=422) who responded, 94.7% experienced pain while running, but only 37% were categorized as having running-related injuries. The most common site of injury was the knee followed by the ankle. Exercise experience prior to running (OR=1.57 95% CI: 1.13-2.21), setting specific running goals (OR=1.57 95% CI: 1.08-2.27), increases in weekly running mileage (OR=1.66 95% CI: 1.05-2.62), and the longest running event participated (OR=2.15 95% CI: 1.22-4.05) were associated with significant increases in running-related injuries. To avoid running-related injuries, runners should be careful when increasing weekly mileage. Moreover, runners with previous exercise experience may need to approach running more cautiously. Setting goals and pursuing longer-distance running events may be motivating, but at the same time, can increase the risk of running-related injuries.