Sport and Physical Activity in the 21st century

4thYear SPORT AND THE PHYSICAL ACTIVITY IN THE 21st CENTURY [PHYSICAL EDUCATION]Enjoy watching sport and just do physical activity a life style 1

[PHYSICAL EDUCATION] 4th Year SPORT AND THE PHYSICAL ACTIVITY IN THE 21ST CENTURY INDEX:1. INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................................................ 32. CONCEPT OF SPORT ....................................................................................................................................... 33. THE DIFFERENT WAYS OF UNDERSTANDING SPORT IN OUR SOCIETY .................... 44. SOCIETY SPORT ................................................................................................................................................. 4 4.1. THE SPORTS PRACTICE ...................................................................................................................... 4 4.1.1 SPORTS PRACTICE IN SPAIN.......................................................................................................... 5 4.2. THE PRESENCE OF SPORT IN SHOOLS .................................................................................... 5 4.2.1. SPORT FOR ALL................................................................................................................................... 5 4.2.2. THE OFFER AND THE SPORTCONCEPTIONS .................................................................. 65. INSTITUTIONALIZATION AND APPEARING OF NEW WAYS OF ORGANIZATION . 6 5.1. SOME INSTITUTIONS THAT REGULATE SPORT ................................................................ 6 5.1.1. AT AN INTERNATIONAL LEVEL .......................................................................................... 6 5.1.2. AT A NATIONAL LEVEL ............................................................................................................. 7 5.1.3. AT AN AUTONOMOUS LEVEL ............................................................................................... 76. THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE AFFILLIATED AND THE POPULAR SPORT. 8 2

[PHYSICAL EDUCATION] 4th Year 1. INTRODUCTION Sport is one of the most important phenomena happened in the last 100 years. It’s an activity with plenty of advantages: physical, mental, educative and social. But, on the other hand, a misuse of sport can cause problems, interests and conflicts. We must create a critical opinion, so: How is sport nowadays? Which are its characteristics? Which are the most important expressions? Which are its values? 2. CONCEPT OF SPORT The concept includes many different activities, carried out in different fieldsand with many different goals. It is complicated to get a single definition ofsport but there are common features among the different sport activities: Driving situation, there are mates and opponents that try to cooperate or make more difficult my actions.  Game, free participation to have fun.  Competition, a desire for self-improvement.  Rules, they must exist to define the characteristics of the activity.  Institutionalization, an institution must state the development and the regulations of the game. Therefore, we aren´t going to look for a unique and true definition of sport because there isn´t only one. The common features stated above have to do with individual and collective behaviours which human beings have always had. This is the definition of sport thatwe can find in the European Letter of Sport: Any kind of physical activity that by means of an organizedparticipation or not, has as an aim the expression or improvement ofthe mental or physical condition, the development of the socialrelationships or the obtaining of scores in every competition. 3

[PHYSICAL EDUCATION] 4th Year 3. THE DIFFERENT WAYS OF UNDERSTANDING SPORT IN OUR SOCIETY We can say that sport is a social phenomenon, everybody plays sport, it’s fashionable, and we can see it on the media, on advertisement… On the one hand, we consider sport as a mass spectacle where great amounts of money are moved. On the other hand, another social reality is developed and this is also sport, a big percentage of the world population practices it in an anonymous way, people who work in a club or for a sport association, millions of students who play at school, the disabled or the old age people… So important is sport that our governments pass laws regulating its practice in every field (political, educational or economic measures) to foster the physical activity. However, we ask ourselves some questions, Is really our society a sport society? Is good sport for society? Which factors can harm sport as a social good? 4. SOCIETY SPORTThe physical activity started as an inborn behavior to the human beings related tophysiological or psychological needs. Its development and evolution as sport, therecently created games, the complexity of rules, the need of organization and aboveall its presence in society cause its institutionalization.In other words, sport went from more or less free activities to perfectly regulatedsituations controlled by official bodies: clubs, sports associations, federations….At the same time, the competitive aspect became the main aspect for those whopractice as sport and for those who watch it. Therefore, competitivity will be oneof the characteristics of the 21st society.That competitivity is a dominant value in our contemporary society as well as theperformance and the result.‘the sports behaviours are due to cultural phenomena and to customs ofthe community they belong to’ 4.1. THE SPORTS PRACTICE For a long time, in Spain there were a greater number of spectators watching a sport than the number of people who practiced it. This tendency has changed in the last decades. Great clubs have seen how the number of spectators has been reduced. That’s the reason why they have resorted to 4

[PHYSICAL EDUCATION] 4th Year advertising, television and sports marketing. On the contrary, our towns and cities filled with a greater number of people who do sport. The sports facilities have increased dramatically, also the number of professionals devoted to training and the sports teaching. 4.1.1 SPORTS PRACTICE IN SPAIN AT A GENERAL LEVEL Nearly 16 million of people over 14 do sport in Spain. EVOLUTION OF THE SPORTS PRACTICE IN THE LAST 30 YEARS (1980-2010) Population between 15 and 65, the practice has increased in these years, it has gone from 25% to 45% nowadays. SPORTS PRACTICE DEPENDING ON GENDER There is a 31% of women that do sport and the percentage of men is 49%. REASONS TO PLAY SPORT Nowadays the reasons have changed; we have the desire of adventure, the need of having fun, the physical appearance or the human interaction. 4.2. THE PRESENCE OF SPORT IN SHOOLS After many years, Physical Education appears as a subject in schools in all levels: more qualified teachers, more facilities and materials. Students are constantly in contact with the physical education. Moreover, sport out of schools has been fostered but we must go on growing to get a society with habits of physical education to preventcardiovascular illnesses, to improve our mind and to make us feel as member of agroup thanks to the sport practice. In this way, we will consider the importance ofour BODY in MOTION. 4.2.1. SPORT FOR ALL For a long time the tracksuit and doing sport have been associated with children and young people with higher social classes or a high cultural level with the male sex… Nowadays sport is within everybodys reach: children, older….., women. The economic or cultural level is not a problem to carry out physical activities, everybody can do sport and everywhere can be practiced. 5

[PHYSICAL EDUCATION] 4th Year 4.2.2. THE OFFER AND THE SPORTCONCEPTIONSMany activities and new sports have appeared, activities and sports that widen thepossibility of a sport practice for us.Together with this, we find new conceptions such a sport in nature, adventuresports, sport as a meeting point…Currently, we should analyze the advantages and disadvantages of sport:  Sport as physical and mental health.  Popular sport or entertainment sport.  Professional sport as spectacle sport.  Sport at a high competitive level.  Education sport. 5. INSTITUTIONALIZATION AND APPEARING OF NEW WAYS OF ORGANIZATION Governments have created institutions that make the organization of this phenomenon easier. Besides, greater administrative, economic and political resources go to improve its management. 5.1. SOME INSTITUTIONS THAT REGULATE SPORT 5.1.1. AT AN INTERNATIONAL LEVEL  IOC (International Olympic Committee)  INTERNATIONAL FEDERATIONS  ASSOCIATIONS OF PROFESSIONAL SPORTSMEN They are the institutions that regulate the greatest competitions in oursociety such as the Olympic Games, the World Cups of every sport and thecompetitions of Clubs. It would be the professional sport devoted to earn millions ofeuros. All the international federations of the Olympic Games are included in theInternational Committee. In the mass sports there are ASSOCIATIONS OF PROFESSIONALSPORTSMEN in golf or tennis; the PGA in golf or the WTA in tennis for women. 6

[PHYSICAL EDUCATION] 4th Year 5.1.2. AT A NATIONAL LEVEL  SPORTS COUNCIL  NATIONAL FEDERATIONS  PROFESSIONAL LEAGUES This sport depends directly on the government of each country and itsdevelopment depends on this Council which depends at the same time on theMinistry of Education and Culture. Each NATIONAL FEDERATION regulates the competitions in every sportas well as its organization and promotion. The sports with a higher number of licenses in Spain: FOOTBALL, BASKETBALL, HUNTING, GOLF, CLIMBING,TENNIS, JUDO, HANDBALL, ATHLETICS, FISHING, KARATE,OLYMPIC SHOOTING, CYCLING, VOLLEYBALL AND SWIMMING.There are a total of 3,520,192 licenses. In mass sports there are PROFESSIONAL LEAGUES where clubs gather toorganize their own competitions, in Spain, the Professional League of Football, themost important competition of clubs in our country. In other sports, these competitions depend directly on the nationalFederations: FEB (Spanish Federation of Basketball) or the RFEA (the SpanishFederation of Athletics) or the RFTET (the Spanish Federation of Tennis) 5.1.3. AT AN AUTONOMOUS LEVEL  THE REGIONAL EDUCATION MINISTRY  TERRITORIAL FEDERATIONSThe different autonomous regions have authority in the promotion of sport andphysical activity. 1.1.1. AT A PROVINCIAL LEVEL  COUNCILS (SPORTS SECTIONS)  TERRITORIAL OFFICES 1.1.2. AT A LOCAL LEVEL  SPORTS BOARDS  SPORTS CLUBS  POPULAR SPORTAnd finally, the town halls promote the popular sport as a means of favoring healthof citizens. 7

[PHYSICAL EDUCATION] 4th Year6. THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE AFFILLIATED AND THE POPULAR SPORT. The structure of sport needs the regulation by governments for followers or people who practice it, professionals or amateurs… Most of the people who practice sport are not only passive spectators of the great sport events. Normally, the person who does sport likes watching it. At the same time the typical supporter of a club can do sport although occasionally and this is something that happens more frequently nowadays. Each person chooses depending on his own necessities, motivations and interests. Summing up, to get the promotion of sport would be the main aim of oursociety, the respect for our body, the importance of effort and enjoy a spectacle make that sport is present in our society something difficult to understand 100 years ago. The sooner we start to do sport, the greater the tendency to do it in an autonomous way during our life. Therefore, practice sport, enjoy watching it and make of the physical activity your lifestyle. 8

Sport and Physical Activity in the 21st century

by IES Clara Campoamor on Jan 22, 2012

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Sport and Physical Activity in the 21st century — Document Transcript