Samenvatting

While most research on elite sport success focuses on sport policy factors or the explanatory powers of macro-level factors like wealth and population, sporting success of countries is also determined by the competitive environment of a sport. This paper identified trends in competitive balance in athletics at world championships and Olympic Games between 2000 and 2015. Using Spearman rank correlations between multiple indicators of competitive balance and the passage of time, a systematic decrease of competitive balance was found for athletics in general, men’s and women’s competition. At discipline specific level, divergent trends in competitive balance were identified. Based on top-8 point market shares, women’s sprint/hurdles, long distance running and race walking became systematically more unbalanced, while the medal competition in men’s long distance running became significantly more balanced. This study informs policy makers on shifting opportunities for success caused by dynamic changes in the competition and the systematic reduction of competitive balance in specific disciplines.
Originele taal-2English
Pagina's (van-tot)23-43
Aantal pagina's21
TijdschriftManaging Sport and Leisure
Volume21
Nummer van het tijdschrift1
DOI's
StatusPublished - 2016

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