While degenerative lumbar spine conditions are common in the general population, there are unique considerations when diagnosed in high-level athletes. Genetic factors have been identified as a more significant contributor to the development of degenerative disc disease than occupational risks, however, some have postulated that the incessant training of young, competitive athletes may put them...

UNLABELLED Analyses of elite competitive performance provide useful information for research and practical applications. PURPOSE Here the authors analyze performance times of cross-country skiers at international competitions (World Cup, World Championship, and Olympics) in classical and free styles of women's and men's distance and sprint events, each with a total of 410-569 athletes competi...

BACKGROUND In this study we describe (1) the implementation of a novel web-based injury and illness surveillance system (WEB-IISS) for use by a team of physicians at multisport events and (2) the incidence and characteristics of injuries and illness in athletes during the London 2012 Paralympic Games. METHODS Overall, 3565 athletes from 160 of the 164 participating countries were followed dai...

substance abuse, violation and sexual behavior are the main reasons of fatality in adolescents and the youth. most risky behaviors including cigarettes, alcohol, drugs and unsafe sexual contacts occur under the age of 18. traditionally, sport is regarded as a means to encourage and develop healthy behaviors and a factor to protect and prevent risky behaviors. the present study studied 406 stude...

In this study we utilized the concept of commitment to explain the impact of coaching practices on student-athlete's behaviour. We examined the impact of commitment to the coach on the coaching outcome of in-role behaviour, and the influence of coaching practices, of information sharing, training, and encouraging teamwork, on the formation of relationships. We adopted measures from the organiza...

Athlete endorsement industry continues to expand fast. Reports argued country of origin could be a cue to explain the endorsement gap among athletes from different nations. With the growing marketing potential in athlete brand, it is imperative to take country of origin as a cue to predict endorsement value. The conceptual model from Arai et al (2013; 2014) on athlete brand equity is adopted in...

[Purpose] The purpose of this study was to compare the foot and ankle condition between elite athletes and non-athletes. [Subjects] The elite athletes group included 85 subjects (28 males and 57 females) and the non-athletes group included 85 subjects (38 males and 47 females). [Methods] All subjects were evaluated for pain (visual analogue scale, VAS) and foot and ankle condition (The Foot and...

The present study investigates: (i) differences in menstrual characteristics of athlete and non-athlete adolescents; (ii) relationship between menstrual characteristics, anthropometric variables, athletic status and socioeconomic status. The present study was conducted among 159 unmarried adolescents (80 non-athletes and 79 athletes) of age 15 to 19 years. The study participants belong to Benga...