An Analysis of Sports Policies Leading to Elite Sport Competitiveness: A Case Study of Iran as a Developing Country

Hasan Gholami Ghajari; Hamidreza Goharrostami

doi:10.54141/psbd.1838182

An Analysis of Sports Policies Leading to Elite Sport Competitiveness: A Case Study of Iran as a Developing Country

Abstract

The international competition for success in the Olympic Games and World Championships often causes some countries to fall short of winning medals, highlighting the importance of competitiveness in elite sports. Accordingly, this study aimed to analyze sports policies that affect elite sports competitiveness in the Islamic Republic of Iran. The study had two phases. In the first phase, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 15 experts, including sports management professors, administrators, coaches, athletes, and media professionals, until theoretical saturation was reached, identifying policies related to elite sport competitiveness. In the second phase, 12 sports management professors completed a pairwise comparison questionnaire based on the identified policies. Data were analyzed using the Total Interpretive Structural Modelling method to establish the hierarchical influence structure of these policies. Five elite Iranian sports were studied: wrestling, weightlifting, taekwondo, kabaddi, and futsal. Eight policies were identified and positioned as follows: level 6-financing methods; level 5-participation rate; level 4-coaching development, professional athlete support, and training facility adequacy; level 3-talent identification; level 2-competition experience; and level 1-elite sport competitiveness. Additionally, MICMAC analysis placed financing methods and participation rate in the "driver" quadrant; coaching development, athlete support, and training facilities in the "linkage" quadrant; and talent identification, competition experience, and elite sport competitiveness in the "dependent" quadrant of the driving power-dependence matrix. The model shows that sufficient financing and broader participation enable coaching development, professional support, and adequate training facilities, which strengthen talent identification and competition experience, ultimately leading to elite-sport competitiveness in Iran.

Keywords

Supporting Institution

This article is derived from a doctoral dissertation of University of Guilan and received no financial support from any funding agency, public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

Project Number

N/A (This study was not supported by any funded project)

Ethical Statement

This study involved expert interviews conducted for research purposes. Prior to participation, all experts were informed of the study's aim, the voluntary nature of participation, and their right to withdraw at any stage. Informed consent was obtained from all participants. No personal, sensitive, or identifiable data were collected, and all responses were anonymized to ensure confidentiality. According to the affiliated university's regulations, non-interventional expert interviews that do not involve vulnerable populations or sensitive personal data do not require formal approval from an Institutional Review Board or Ethics Committee. Therefore, an ethics approval waiver applies to this study.

Thanks

The authors would like to express their sincere gratitude to all the athletes, coaches, managers, and media practitioners who generously participated in the semi-structured interviews and contributed to this research. Moreover, from all do acknowledge the people routinely involved in the review and acceptance of manuscripts, such as peer reviewers, editors, associate editors, and consulting editors of the journal.

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Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

Sports Science and Exercise (Other)

Journal Section

Research Article

Authors

Hasan Gholami Ghajari
0009-0001-3963-0363
Iran

Hamidreza Goharrostami ^*
0000-0002-6518-466X
Iran

Early Pub Date

August 12, 2026

Publication Date

August 25, 2026

Submission Date

December 8, 2025

Acceptance Date

May 21, 2026

Published in Issue

Year 2026 Volume: 17 Number: 2

DOI

https://doi.org/10.54141/psbd.1838182

IZ

https://izlik.org/JA98ET82RW

Cite

RIS / Bibtex

APA

Gholami Ghajari, H., & Goharrostami, H. (2026). An Analysis of Sports Policies Leading to Elite Sport Competitiveness: A Case Study of Iran as a Developing Country. Pamukkale Journal of Sport Sciences, 17(2), 713-741. https://doi.org/10.54141/psbd.1838182

AMA

1.Gholami Ghajari H, Goharrostami H. An Analysis of Sports Policies Leading to Elite Sport Competitiveness: A Case Study of Iran as a Developing Country. Pamukkale J Sport Sci. 2026;17(2):713-741. doi:10.54141/psbd.1838182

Chicago

Gholami Ghajari, Hasan, and Hamidreza Goharrostami. 2026. “An Analysis of Sports Policies Leading to Elite Sport Competitiveness: A Case Study of Iran As a Developing Country”. Pamukkale Journal of Sport Sciences 17 (2): 713-41. https://doi.org/10.54141/psbd.1838182.

EndNote

Gholami Ghajari H, Goharrostami H (August 1, 2026) An Analysis of Sports Policies Leading to Elite Sport Competitiveness: A Case Study of Iran as a Developing Country. Pamukkale Journal of Sport Sciences 17 2 713–741.

IEEE

[1]H. Gholami Ghajari and H. Goharrostami, “An Analysis of Sports Policies Leading to Elite Sport Competitiveness: A Case Study of Iran as a Developing Country”, Pamukkale J Sport Sci, vol. 17, no. 2, pp. 713–741, Aug. 2026, doi: 10.54141/psbd.1838182.

ISNAD

Gholami Ghajari, Hasan - Goharrostami, Hamidreza. “An Analysis of Sports Policies Leading to Elite Sport Competitiveness: A Case Study of Iran As a Developing Country”. Pamukkale Journal of Sport Sciences 17/2 (August 1, 2026): 713-741. https://doi.org/10.54141/psbd.1838182.

JAMA

1.Gholami Ghajari H, Goharrostami H. An Analysis of Sports Policies Leading to Elite Sport Competitiveness: A Case Study of Iran as a Developing Country. Pamukkale J Sport Sci. 2026;17:713–741.

MLA

Gholami Ghajari, Hasan, and Hamidreza Goharrostami. “An Analysis of Sports Policies Leading to Elite Sport Competitiveness: A Case Study of Iran As a Developing Country”. Pamukkale Journal of Sport Sciences, vol. 17, no. 2, Aug. 2026, pp. 713-41, doi:10.54141/psbd.1838182.

Vancouver

1.Hasan Gholami Ghajari, Hamidreza Goharrostami. An Analysis of Sports Policies Leading to Elite Sport Competitiveness: A Case Study of Iran as a Developing Country. Pamukkale J Sport Sci. 2026 Aug. 1;17(2):713-41. doi:10.54141/psbd.1838182