Relay - 14 October 2009
SPARC
The 2009 Sir Terry McLean National Sports Journalism Awards - 29 Sep 2009
SPARC is a proud sponsor of the Sir Terry McLean National Sports Journalism Awards. The awards recognise the best in New Zealand sports journalism covering print, photography, radio and television for work produced from November 2008 to October 2009. (SPARC website)
High Performance Sport
NZOC Supports Free-to-Air Coverage - 23 Sep 2009
The New Zealand Olympic Committee (NZOC) is delighted that comprehensive free-to-air coverage of the Commonwealth Games in New Zealand is assured if SKY Television takes on the New Zealand broadcast rights to Delhi 2010. (NZOC)
Delhi has made considerable progress: CGF President Fennell - 10 Oct 2009
Commonwealth Games Federation President Mike Fennell today said Delhi had made considerable progress and that it would have world class venues for the XIX Commonwealth Games here next year. (Delhi 2010)
Commonwealth Games Federation suspends Fiji - 13 Oct 2009
The Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) has suspended Fiji's membership, but it is hopeful the island nation will still be able to compete at next year's Games in New Delhi. (Sports City)
IOC re-elects President Jacques Rogge - 9 Oct 2009
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) re-elected IOC President Jacques Rogge in an 88-1 vote today at the close of the 121st Session. (The Olympic Movement)
IOC elects six new members - 9 Oct 2009
The 121st IOC Session today elected six new members from four different continents to the International Olympic Committee. In other decisions, Mario Pescante and Ser Miang Ng became IOC Vice-Presidents, and Craig Reedie and John Coates joined the IOC Executive Board. (The Olympic Movement)
IOC urged to open up Games media access - 5 Oct 2009
The Olympic Games and related media content must be revamped to meet the needs of millions of young customers whose viewing habits have radically shifted, communications expert Martin Sorrell said recently. (Sports City)
Golf and Rugby Join 2016 Olympic Programme - 9 Oct 2009
The sports of golf and rugby sevens have been voted today by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Session for inclusion in the programme of the 2016 Olympic Games – awarded recently to Rio de Janeiro. (The Olympic Movement)
London Olympic Park sustainability record can set the pace for UK construction industry - 16 Sep 2009
The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) has today welcomed the publication of the Government's Progress Report on the Strategy for Sustainable Construction, which highlights the London 2012 Olympic Park as a best practise project. (London 2012)
London 2012 cycling venue takes shape - 8 Oct 2009
Work has started to lift the first sections of the London 2012 Velodrome roof structure into place. In total, more than 2,500 sections of steelwork will be installed to construct the roof and upper tiers. (London 2012)
Sports Development
Terry Lomax appointed Performance Co-ordinator with Athletics NZ - 15 Sep 2009
Former New Zealand high jump champion and record holder Terry Lomax has been appointed Performance Co-ordinator with Athletics New Zealand. (Athletics NZ)
Taking Baseball in NZ to New Heights - 19 Sep 2009
Baseball NZ has recently appointed Ryan Flynn, a former collegiate and semi-professional baseball player as well as World Cup and Olympic qualifier coach, as the program's new Development Officer to build an organization that will be competitive internationally at all age levels. (Baseball NZ)
Bowls NZ Talent Development Squads - 17 Sep 2009
The Bowls NZ Talent Development Squads are up and running again for the 2009/10 season. After a very successful inaugural season last year only minor adjustments have been made for this season. (Bowls NZ)
Paralympic Awards Winners 2009 - 21 Sep 2009
The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) is pleased to announce the winners of the Paralympic Awards 2009, honouring those who contribute directly to the Paralympic Games and the Paralympic Movement. (International Paralympic Committee)
Turkey to Host 4th IBSA World Championships and Games in 2011 - 8 Oct 2009
IBSA has announced that Turkey is to host its World Championships and Games in 2011. The event - the showcase for blind sports worldwide - will be hosted by GESFED, the Turkish Blind Sports Federation, and held in the Mediterranean city of Antalya. (International Blind Sports Federation)
EIS Launch Athlete Career Development Programme - 9 Oct 2009
The English Institute of Sport (EIS), under the Performance Lifestyle Programme, has launched the Athlete Career Development Programme, which aims to provide World Class Programme Athletes with an introduction to organisations receptive to the exceptional skills athletes can bring to the work place. (English Institute of Sport)
Kiwi Tech Company Takes Golf to the World's Gyms - 5 Oct 2009
An Auckland company that has developed a golf practice and fitness facility is now taking the concept to the world, via China. The Golf Gym features pods which give players computer versions of 40 actual courses from around the world and, after each virtual practice, analyse their individual performance. (Australasian Leisure Management)
Joining forces with Facebook to drive up sports participation - 29 Sep 2009
Sport England and Facebook have announced a new partnership that will transform the way sports bodies engage with participants as they deliver a lasting Olympic legacy of one million people playing more sport. (Sport England)
UK, USA and Canada announce launch of Global DRO - 8 Oct 2009
UK Sport, in partnership with the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) and the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport (CCES) have this week announced the launch of the Global Drug Reference Online (Global DRO). (UK Sport)
WADA 2010 Prohibited List Now Published - 30 Sep 2009
Following its approval by WADA's Executive Committee on September 19, the 2010 List of Prohibited Substances and Methods is now available. This List will go into effect on January 1, 2010. (WADA)
Sports Science, Medicine and Coaching
Top international coaches lead women's football course - 6 Oct 2009
Two of the world's top women's football coaches were in New Zealand recently to impart their knowledge with 30 elite coaches selected from around the Oceania region. (NZ Football)
NZ Water Polo is pleased to announce the appointments of NZ Head Coaches - 8 Oct 2009
New Zealand Water Polo is pleased to announce the appointments of Mr. Eelco Uri and Mr. Kurt Goldsworthy as Head Coaches of the senior women and men/programmes teams respectively. (NZ Water Polo)
NZ Curling Association High Performance Development Plan released - 9 Oct 2009
The NZCA Executive has adopted a programme drafted by Sharon Delver, National Coach, for the ongoing development of curling athletes. (NZ Curling Association)
Building an Effective Coach–Athlete Relationship: Perspectives from Great Female Coaches and Athletes - Oct 2009
Canadas' 2008 Summer Olympic Games review process particularly emphasised the importance of an athletes strong working relationship with their coaches. This article looks a little deeper at this relationship, at how an effective coach–athlete relationship is created and at how it is maintained. (Canadian Journal of Women in Coaching)
Coaching young athletes to produce future stars - 8 Oct 2009
Doing the 'right' training at the 'right' time with a young child can maximise their future potential as an adult athlete. (Peak Performance)
"Help—I'm Nervous" - Sep/Oct 2009
Learn to change your perspective of anxiety and develop optimal anxiety levels so as to help your sporting performance. (NSCA's Performance Training Journal)
How to develop an athletes reaction time - 13 Oct 2009
The objective of this article is to train athletes to improve reaction times. These training drills are suitable for a variety of field and racquet sport players. They can also be used by sprint and other power athletes, as a means of improving their general reaction and coordination. (Peak Performance)
Supervised strength training is more effective - 12 Oct 2009
Half of all Swedish elite volleyball players suffer at least one injury per season. One important reason may be that most players perform injury-preventing strength training unsupervised. This is shown in a new thesis from the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden. (Alpha Galileo, Europe)
Evidence for Core Training: What Works for Who? - Sep/Oct 2009
The purpose of this article is twofold; 1) review and critique the evidence for core training, and 2) raise thought-provoking questions for future research on core training. (NSCA's Performance Training Journal)
Sports injuries during the Summer Olympic Games 2008 - 25 Sep 2009
A comprehensive injury surveillance of 92 national teams and a total of 10,997 athletes during the Beijing Olympics revealed a high number of injuries that prevented the athlete from participating in competition or training. (Oslo Sports Trauma Research Center, Norway)
Training may cut risk factors for knee injury - 24 Sep 2009
Female athletes are at greater risk of a potentially serious knee ligament injury than their male counterparts - but a fairly simple training regimen might help reduce those odds, a small study suggests. (Reuters Health)
Study Finds ACL Reconstruction On The Rise - 1 Oct 2009
Patients who have their anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstructed are more likely to have subsequent knee surgery if they are women or are treated by a surgeon who does a low volume of ACL reconstructions, according to a study in the October 2009 TK issue of The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery. (Newswise)
Graft healing in anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction - 23 Sep 2009
For enhancing tendon graft-to-bone healing, we introduce a strategy that includes the use of periosteum, hydrogel supplemented with periosteal progenitor cells and bone morphogenetic protein-2, and a periosteal progenitor cell sheet. (Sports Medicine, Arthroscopy, Rehabilitation, Therapy and Technology)
Women may fare worse after a concussion - 29 Sep 2009
Don't discount a bump to the noggin that knocks you out during a soccer game: Researchers report poorer than average thinking skills and reaction times in young soccer players, and particularly female players, who had just one concussion. (Reuters Health)
Active Communities
Facts about the sub-sectors of the NZ community sector - Sep 2009
The community sector includes 11 distinctly different sub-sectors (including the Culture, Sports and Recreation sub-sector) that are diverse in terms of size, number of organisations, income sources, contribution to GDP and reliance on volunteers. (Office for the Community and Voluntary Sector, NZ)
Sport Hawke's Bay's model for ensuring strong engagement with Maori - 7 Oct 2009
Maori development aspirations and growth are alive and well with collaborations within Sport Hawkes Bay. The Maori context is embedded into Sport Hawke's Bay's programmes and activities. Its strategy is continually influenced by the goal of delivering to the needs of their Maori communities. (SPARC website)
English Club membership by sport - 24 Sep 2009
Active People Survey 3 results (from the latest 12 month period, July 2008 to July 2009) for club membership by individual sport. EXCEL (Sport England)
Women's soccer – get fit while having fun! - 2 Oct 2009
New research shows that women benefit more from playing recreational soccer than from running when it comes to overall fitness. And that's not all - women playing soccer experience a higher degree of motivation when it comes to sticking to their sport. (Alpha Galileo, Europe)
Sweat in the City: How 200 young women discovered the positive power of exercise - Oct 2009
The WSFF recently launched its evaluation of the "Sweat in the City" programme. The new research shows that exercise can play a powerful part in helping young women tackle negative body image and low confidence. (Women's Sport and Fitness Foundation, UK)
Exercise Improves Body Image For Fit And Unfit Alike, UF Study Finds - 9 Oct 2009
The simple act of exercise and not fitness itself can convince you that you look better, a new University of Florida study finds. (Medical News Today)
Let's Get Moving: A new physical activity care pathway for the NHS: Commissioning Guidance - Sep 2009
The Commissioning Guidance sets out an evidence-based behaviour charter model for "Let's Get Moving" encouraging local commissioning of physical activity interventions in primary care. (Department of Health, UK)
The Impact of Physical Inactivity on Canadian Health Care - Sep 2009
This article highlights a study that estimates the impact of physical inactivity on the Canadian health care system. The study estimates how often health care services are being used in association with physical inactivity. (The Alberta Centre for Active Living, Canada)
New Moms: Exercise Enhances Health During Breastfeading - 28 Sep 2009
New mothers who are breastfeeding their babies may need more aerobic and resistance exercise in order to combat temporary bone loss caused by calcium depletion, says a recently published study from the American College of Sports Medicine. (American College of Sports Medicine)
Intensity and timing of physical activity in relation to postmenopausal breast cancer risk: the prospective NIH-AARP Diet and Health Study - 1 Oct 2009
118,899 postmenopausal women in the prospective NIH-AARP Diet and Health Study, were examined in relation to light and moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity during four periods of life to postmenopausal breast cancer risk. (BMC Cancer)
Exercise boosts well-being after breast cancer - 8 Oct 2009
Being told you have breast cancer is tough emotionally, but regular exercise can help you keep your spirits up, a new study shows. (Medline Plus)
Physical Activity In Adolescence Associated With Decreased Risk Of Brain Cancer In Adulthood - 7 Oct 2009
While little is known about the causes of glioma, researchers at the National Cancer Institute have found that this rare but often deadly form of brain cancer may be linked to early life physical activity and height. (Medical News Today)
Disentangling the Risks Associated With Weight Status, Diet, and Physical Activity - Oct 2009
This research demonstrates the potential flaw in using weight status as a surrogate for physical activity-related chronic disease risk. It seems to be poor science to simply use BMI to infer CVD risk, unless physical activity or CRF have been measured accurately and accounted for. (Preventing Chronic Disease, CDC, US)
Moderate exercise may lower prostate cancer risk - 29 Sep 2009
Ready for another reason to exercise? Men who exercise at even moderate levels may have a lower risk of prostate cancer than sedentary men, a new study suggests. (Reuters Health)
Infrastructure
Cycling and walking to work in New Zealand, 1991-2006: regional and individual differences, and pointers to effective interventions - 20 Sep 2009
This paper investigated regional and individual differences in cycling and walking to work in New Zealand over the 15-year period (1991-2006). (International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity)
'Weekday Walkabout' kicks off week of active transport - 12 Oct 2009
On the 19th October the Waitaki District Council's road safety programme will kick off its new initiative, the 'Street Smart' Alternative Transport Week, with an event designed to get everyone out of their cars - the 'Weekday Walkabout'. (Waitaki District Council,NZ)
Funding confirmed for cycleway study - 8 Oct 2009
The Ministry of Tourism has released funding for a feasibility study on the coast-to-coast cycleway concept which is to start immediately. (Far North District Council, NZ)
ARTA supports cycling Aucklanders with Nextbike initiative - 7 Oct 2009
The Auckland Regional Transport Authority (ARTA) announced today that it is officially sponsoring the Nextbike scheme as part of its provision of greater transport choice for Aucklanders. (Auckland Regional Transport Authority, NZ)
New Biking Skills Areas for Kids - 6 Oct 2009
Young Wellington biking enthusiasts will be able to 'push off the berms' and 'pump the rollers' at three of the city's newest purpose-built biking skills areas. (Wellington City Council, NZ)
Motorists drive closer to cyclists on cycle lanes - 17 Sep 2009
New research supported by CTC - the UK's national cyclists' organisation shows that motorists give cyclists less room when they are riding in a cycle lane. (European Cyclists' Federation)
University Appoints Architects for Stadium Project - 12 Oct 2009
The University of Otago, NZ has appointed architects for the first phase of its building programme to form part of the Forsyth Barr Stadium at University Plaza. (Australasian Leisure Management)
Healthier Neighborhoods Help Keep Diabetes at Bay - 12 Oct 2009
People who live in neighborhoods that promote physical activity and offer access to healthy foods may be less likely to develop type 2 diabetes, researchers say. (HealthDay News)
Where We Want To Be: Home Location Preferences And Their Implications For Smart Growth - 18 Sep 2009
This report investigates consumer housing location preferences and their relationship to smart growth. Market research indicates that most households want improved accessibility, land use mix, and diverse transport options and will often choose small-lot and attached homes with these features. (Victoria Transport Policy Institute, US)
Young People
Junior Tiger Campaign Launched - Oct 2009
New Zealand Golf has launched The Junior Tiger campaign which is all about getting more kids playing more golf. (NZ Golf)
Second Concussion Can Be Serious For Young Athletes - 23 Sep 2009
Sustaining a second concussion shortly after a first one can lead to serious problems for young athletes, making it extremely important for players to be correctly diagnosed after being hit in the head. (Medical News Today)
Sport in the Neighbourhood - Oct 2009
"Sport in the Neighbourhood" is a free community-run program in Bateau Bay, Australia. Volunteer leaders coordinate and supervise sports and games for young people at the local park each week. Its success has led to the development of a guide on how to establish such a program. (NSW Sport and Recreation, Australia)
Places to play, but 'stranger danger' fears keep inner-city kids home - 5 Oct 2009
A two-year, in-depth study of an Edmonton inner-city neighbourhood looking at perceived physical activity opportunities and barriers for inner-city youth revealed three themes that influenced youngsters' opportunities for physical activity: neighbourhood characteristics, family involvement and adult-supervised programs. (University of Alberta, Canada)
New guidance on embedding the Play Strategy - 5 Oct 2009
New guidance published by Play England, "Embedding The Play Strategy", will assist local decision makers to put children’s play at the heart of their local communities. (Play England)
Development of scales to assess children's perceptions of friend and parental influences on physical activity - 12 Oct 2009
Many children do not meet physical activity guidelines. Parents and friends are likely to influence children's physical activity but there is a shortage of measures that are able to capture these influences. A new questionnaire with the following three scales was developed: 1) Parental influence on physical activity; 2) Motives for activity with friends scale; and 3) Physical activity and sedentary group normative values. (International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity)
Useful Weblinks
Safety in Sports: European Network for Sports Injury Prevention
HEPA (Health-Enhancing Physical Activity) Europe has launched the website "Safety in Sports" to facilitate the exchange of good practices in the prevention of sport related injuries in Europe.
About Relay
Note the intention of Relay is to include a broad range of
opinions. Not all of these are supported or endorsed by SPARC or
reflective of SPARC policy. Every effort is made to ensure the accuracy
of the information presented here, but we are not responsible for the
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Updated | 29 Oct 2009.
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