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chapter

14 Recreational Sport Management

Introduction • Foundation of recreational sport management • Broad scope of programming recreational sport activities and events • Future trends affecting recreational sport management • Career opportunities

Delivery of Sport and Leisure Services Sport is a large part of American culture: • Interests and participation from all sectors of society are reaching unprecedented levels.

• Sport has grown into a multibillion dollar industry. • In the United States, sports almost serve as a religion. • Sports have become entertainment and spectator oriented. • Sports are participant oriented, serving diverse populations through a variety of programs and activities.

Identity: Looking at Sport Management From a Recreational Perspective • Sport management is the umbrella term for administration and management of a large number and variety of sports, fitness and wellness, and recreation programs. • • Traditionally seen as a “business enterprise,” especially professional sports marketing, sales, public relations, promotions, sporting goods, media relations, and fundraising. • Recently, sport management has begun to emphasize leadership and management of people and resources in a variety of participatory or recreational settings.

Leisure Sports Management Model

Adapted, by permission, from R.F. Mull, K.G. Bayless and L.M. Jamieson, 2005, Recreational sport management, 4th ed. (Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics), 15.

Recreational Sport Spectrum

Adapted, by permission, from R.F. Mull, K.G. Bayless and L.M. Jamieson, 2005, Recreational sport management, 4th ed. (Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics), 15.

Defining Recreational Sport Recreational sport is involvement in sport during one’s leisure time either as an active participant or as a spectator at one of the levels on the leisure sport hierarchy. • Sport for all. Designed to give everyone an active role regardless of interest, age, race, gender, or athletic ability. • Participant driven. Programmers place significant interest and efforts on participant wants and needs.

Five Programming Areas of Recreational Sport Management • • • • •

Instructional sports Informal sports Intramural sports Extramural sports Club sports

Components Defined • Instructional sports. Teaching a recreational sport activity emphasizing skills, rules, and strategies in a noncredit or academic environment. Examples: strength and conditioning training, jogging, walking, cycling, swimming, golf, bowling, tennis, and racquetball • Informal sports. Self-directed participation with an individualized approach on fun and fitness.

Examples: backyard volleyball or softball at the family picnic, pick-up basketball at the local park, an early-morning swim, lunchtime run, and solitary workout (continued)

Components Defined (continued) • Intramural sports. Leagues, tournaments, and contests conducted within a particular setting.

Examples: individual sports, dual sports, team sports, meet sports, and special events • Extramural sports. Structured activities between winners of various intramural sport programs. Examples: Little League Baseball World Series or a collegiate intramural flag football championship team from one university playing against another collegiate champion for “national championship” recognition (continued)

Components Defined (continued) • Club sports. Activities organized because of a common interest in a sport. These range from very competitive clubs that travel and play in high-level competitions to the recreational, social, and instructional clubs that conduct activities such as basicskill instruction and “in-house” tournament play. Example: youth club soccer, which is popular in the public sector

Participants and Locations • Participants. Recreational sport management is intended for the enjoyment of all age groups: children, youth, adolescents, adults, and senior citizens. • Location. Participation occurs at indoor and outdoor sport facilities. – Indoor: bowling centers; handball, racquetball, and squash courts; gymnasiums for volleyball, basketball, badminton, and floor hockey; billiard rooms; roller- and ice-skating rinks; aquatic centers; strength and conditioning weight rooms; exercise rooms; and so on – Outdoor: softball and baseball fields; golf courses; trap and skeet ranges; soccer and flag football fields; tennis courts; outdoor aquatic centers; white-water rivers; caves; lakes; mountains; and so on

Variety of Sport Settings • • • • • • • • • • •

Armed Forces MWR: military bases around the world Boys and Girls Clubs and Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts Churches Cities and communities: municipal parks and recreation departments Commercial facilities: racquet clubs, bowling, skating rinks Correctional institutions: city, county, state, and federal Schools: elementary, secondary, and higher education On-site industrial and corporate recreational sport facilities Private clubs: country clubs, fitness, and health clubs YMCA and YWCA Vacation resorts: hotels, motels, and cruise ships

Participation Trends Ranked by preference Series 1 recreational sport • Exercise walking • Camping • Swimming • Exercising with equipment • Fishing (net) • Bowling • Bicycle riding • Fishing (fresh water) • Billiards • Hiking

Ranked by preference Series 2 recreational sport • Working out at club • Boating (motor or power) • Target shooting • In-line skating • Mountain biking (on road) • Scooter riding • Darts (soft tip) • Darts (metal tip) • Skateboarding • Mountain biking

(U.S. Census Bureau, Statistical Abstract of the United States for 2003)

Benefits • Provision of important sociocultural learning environments • Enjoyment of the activity • Social interaction • Health and physical improvements • Economic growth • Environmental protection • Social contribution

Important to develop participant interests, knowledge, and skills to enable participation in activities that can last a lifetime!

Individual Benefits • Improves health, fitness, and self-esteem. • Provides opportunity to “burn up” excess energy and emotion not being released in other areas of life. • Creates a positive social environment. • Develops emotional control and positive expression of aggression. • Fosters cooperation. • Develops integrity.

Community Benefits • Enhances community identity and promotes community integration. • Allows learning and sharing of community values. • Deters antisocial behavior, including vandalism, gang violence, and crime. • Develops well-planned and -managed sport facilities that can lead to economic benefits.

Trends in Recreational Sport Management • Funding and budgeting: income generation for sport programs and facilities • Legal aspects: laws as they apply to recreational sport programs • Sport facilities: facility construction growth as participants demand larger and more specialized facilities

(continued)

Trends in Recreational Sport Management (continued) • Technology: selection of appropriate technology to augment operations • Personnel: need for marketing and computer specialists, joining the traditional recreational sports programming staff • Programming areas: – Females represent more than 60% of participants. – Health club memberships have almost doubled. – Extreme sports participation has skyrocketed.

Career Opportunities • Increased opportunities range from face-toface leadership to top administrative positions. • 4 levels of personnel provide recreational sport management: – – – –

Administrative staff Program administrative staff Program staff Auxiliary staff (Mull, Bayless, & Jamieson, 2005)

Staff Responsibilities • Administrative staff. Provides overall direction of program and its resources: staffing, budgeting, facilities, and equipment. – Job titles: administrator, director, and executive director – Master’s degree and minimum of 10 years experience • Program administrative staff. Assists the administrator in performing his or her duties. – Job titles: associate director, program director, fitness director, public relations director, operations director, facility manager, and sports coordinator or director – Bachelor’s or master’s degree in recreation and minimum of 5 years of programming (continued)

Staff Responsibilities (continued) • Program staff. Entry-level position; is responsible for recruiting, hiring, training, and scheduling support staff. – Job titles: assistant director, marketing assistant, coordinator, building manager, personal trainer, pool operator, leader, and activity specialist – Bachelor’s degree • Auxiliary staff. Part-time position; is paid an hourly wage or is a volunteer and works face to face with participants. – Job titles: official, exercise leader, equipment room attendant, aquatics instructor, fitness consultant, lifeguard, maintenance, and youth sport coach – Usually do not have a degree, but may hold some type of specialized sport credential (CPR, water safety instructor)

Job Outlook Employment opportunities include: • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Amateur Athletics Union (AAU) Armed forces recreation Association of Church Sport and Recreation Ministers (CSRM) Boys and Girls Clubs Collegiate and campus settings Commercial sports Correctional recreation Employee recreational sports Fitness clubs Municipal parks and recreation State games festivals YMCAs and YWCAs Youth sports programs

Professional Organizations • Sponsor a wide range of continuing education courses, institutes, workshops, regional and national conferences, and other in-service training. • Serve as an important link in helping the recreational sport manager stay abreast of the rapidly changing recreational sport management field and its implications for program delivery.

Summary and Future Prediction • The recreative aspect of sport in American culture today is a well-established and wellrecognized contributor to human enjoyment and vitality. • The growth of recreational sport management programs will come from the following: – Continually changing times – Continual awareness of opportunities – Increasing interest in sport participation and fitness by all age groups

Discussion: Subject: Competition in Rec Sports

Should competition be emphasized or deemphasized in recreational sports? – Why or why not? Elaborate on your answer….

Discussion: Subject: One Sentence

 How would you summarize recreational sports programming in one sentence to a parent who happened to stop you at the door on your way out?