Knowledge Nuggets

Retiring from a sport can be tough for many athletes. Occupational therapists (OTs) can help athletes transition to new occupations and routines following retirement. Research shows that throughout the transition process, OTs can perform a task analysis of anticipated roles, evaluate skills and make recommendations for environmental or task adaptations to increase functioning and participation.

Emotions can communicate a lot of information about a person’s thoughts and intentions without verbally saying anything. In a sport setting these emotions can rub off on others whether that be teammates or viewers. This blog details why it is important to manage emotions during sport and strategies surrounding emotional control.

At the Canada Summer Games 2022 in Niagara, an event for up-and-coming athletes, the power of sport to transform lives was on full display with stories that showcased the pure joy, excitement and fun sport can offer. Teenage wrestler Eekeeluak Avalak became Nunavut’s first ever gold medalist in the Games and an emotional video clip...

The aftermath of COVID has left many of us feeling lonely or isolated. Research indicates that attending live sporting events could help with these feelings. A recent study shows that there are positive associations of subjective well-being and decreased loneliness as a result of attending sporting events. 

In modern times many of us lead busy lives and it can be difficult to encourage youth to find time to participate in sport. Recent research shows that family sport culture has a consistent influence on young people’s sport participation.

Weight cutting or rapid weight loss is a widespread practice in sports that have weight requirements, such as combat sports and rowing. A recent study done on Judokas finds that significant muscle damage was induced by rapid weight loss.  

In Canada, youth sport is often coupled with incidences of poor parent or guardian behaviour. News reports of parent or guardian arrests and verbal as well as physical altercations around their children’s youth sporting events are, unfortunately, common (Bell, 2020; Crosier, 2022; Kaufmann et coll., 2019). Further, for many young athletes, dealing with pressuring, loud,...

The increasing cost of youth sport participation has long been a concern for parents and policymakers alike. How issues of affordability show up varies depending upon intersectional realities of income, geography, ability, accessibility of appropriate spaces and more. This blog draws on recent insights from the Change the Game open data portal. We reflect on...

Athlete leaders who strive towards building a shared sense of “we” and “us” appear to improve not only the whole team’s performance but also individual athletes’ well-being. Researchers have demonstrated that empowering athlete leaders is a great way to reveal a team’s full potential.

Wildfire smoke contributes to poor air quality, which can negatively impact the health of outdoor sports participants. In the event of a wildfire, it is important to limit outdoor physical activity. Some best practices include rescheduling activities to a later date or, where possible, moving activities indoors.