Knowledge Nuggets

Positive experiences in sport provide a foundation for participation, regardless of whether athletes are participating in community sport programs or competing at the Parapan American Games. The Quality Parasport Participation Framework identifies six “building blocks” of positive sport participation: autonomy, belonging, challenge, engagement, mastery and meaning. Learn more in the SIRC blog.

In a series of videos developed by the Canadian Paralympic Committee in partnership with Pfizer, Para sport athletes share the value of sport in their lives, and talk about the mental component of training and competition. Featured athletes include Tess Routliffe (Para swimming) Keely Shaw (Para cycling), Rob Shaw (wheelchair tennis), and Nathan Riech (Para...

New research reported in the Journal of Sport Science examined the impact of a subtle grammatical difference in self-talk. When using second-person self-talk (e.g. you can tolerate the pain, you can keep going), participants completed a 10km cycling time trial significantly quicker, worked harder, yet did not perceive a difference in effort, compared to when...

Coaches can support positive youth development by intentionally supporting #lifeskills transfer amongst youth athletes. Key strategies include the integration of structured opportunities for athletes to reflect on the transfer process; creating opportunities for athletes to apply life skills in other contexts (e.g. volunteering in the community); and engaging others in supporting the transfer process, such...

The “BodyCap” is an ingestible computer used to monitor athletes’ core temperatures. After tracking the athlete’s temperature during warm-up, pre-race cooling and competition, data can be downloaded via BlueTooth for analysis. The technology is being used to help athletes prepare for the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games, where extreme heat conditions are expected. Check out...

Cheering on athletes at the Pan American Games are support providers that have helped the athlete achieve at the highest levels of sport. These VIPs provide emotional, esteem, information and tangible support to reduce stressors and enable the athlete to focus on training and competition. Whether they are a coach, member of the athlete’s integrated...

Life skills transfer in sport involves the application of skills learned on the playing field, such as teamwork, communication or honesty, to situations at home, school or work. This process is essential to helping youth athletes thrive within and beyond sport. Learn more in the newest SIRC blog.

Trying a new sport often means learning a new language of technical and tactical terms. Running is no different. If you’re new to running and wondering about “interval workouts,” “tempo runs” and “fartlek runs,” this article from Runners World will ensure you’re in the know.

While accessible sport activities, venues, and services are necessary for people of all abilities to participate in sport, accessibility does not guarantee positive sport experiences. A positive experience is about more than access: it’s about meaningful activities that provide participants with feelings of belonging, choice, challenge and success. For this reason, researchers from the Canadian...

Perfectionism is related to numerous motivational, performance, and mental health-related outcomes in sport – both positive and negative. New research examined the influence of parents and coaches on the development of perfectionism among athletes aged 16-19 and discovered that while both coach pressure and parental pressure were positively correlated with perfectionism, only coach pressure predicted...