Examining the Relative Age Effect of Elite Paralympic Athletes

Yıl 2023, , 296 - 306, 25.10.2023

Bahadır Bayarslan , Ali Çevik

https://doi.org/10.33438/ijdshs.1281462

Öz

Although there are many studies on the Paralympic Games and athletes, which are an international organization, there are not enough studies in the literature on the "relative age effect" in Paralympic athletes. The research is the first study to examine the successful Paralympic athletes in terms of "relative age effect", especially in this respect. The aim of this research is to examine the effects of the relative age effect of the successful paralympic athletes. The model of the research was determined as "Basic Qualitative Research" and the data collection technique in the research was determined as "Document Analysis". The analysis of the data in the research was made according to the Miles and Huberman model. The universe of the research consisted of athletes who participated in the Paralympic Games between 1960 and 2022. The sample of the study consisted of 30 elite athletes, including the athletes who won the most gold medals in the Paralympic Games. The sampling method of the research is density sampling based on heuristic approach. As a result, it was understood that for the successful Paralympic athletes, the number of athletes born in the first six months of the election year is higher than those born in the last six months. Thus, it has been concluded that the elite Paralympic athletes with medals in the Paralympic Games are affected by the relative age effect.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Paralympic, Olympic, National, Athlete, Relative Age Effect

Kaynakça

• Akınoğlu, B., Kocahan, T., Birben, T., Çoban, Ö., Soylu, Ç., & Yıldırım, N. Ü. (2016). Comparison of core stabilization data of Paralympic archers and wheelchair basketball players. Online Turkish Journal of Health Sciences, 1(3), 21-27.
• Alexander, D., Bloom, G. A., & Taylor, S. L. (2020). Female Paralympic athlete views of effective and ineffective coaching practices. Journal of Applied Sport Psychology, 32(1), 48-63.
• Atkinson, P. (1997). Narrative turn or blind alley? Qualitative Health Research, 7, 325-344.
• Banack, H. R., Sabiston, C. M., & Bloom, G. A. (2011). Coach autonomy support, basic need satisfaction, and intrinsic motivation of paralympic athletes. Research quarterly for exercise and sport, 82(4), 722-730.
• Barnsley, R. H., & Thompson, A. H. (1988). Birthdate and success in minor hockey: The key to the NHL. Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science/Revue canadienne des sciences du comportement, 20(2), 167.
• Bezuglov, E., Shvets, E., Lyubushkina, A., Lazarev, A., Valova, Y., Zholinsky, A., & Waskiewicz, Z. (2020). Relative age effect in Russian elite hockey. The journal of strength & conditioning research, 34(9), 2522-2527.
• Charmaz, K. (2006). Constructing grounded theory: A practical guide through qualitative Analysis. London: SAGE.
• Creswell, J. W. (2003). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches(2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
• De la Rubia, A., Lorenzo-Calvo, J., & Lorenzo, A. (2020). Does the relative age effect influence short-term performance and sport career in team sports? A qualitative systematic review. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, 1947.
• De Larochelambert, Q., Difernand, A., Antero, J., Sedeaud, A., Toussaint, J. F., Pierre Yves, L., & Coulmy, N. (2022). Relative age effect in French alpine skiing: Problem and solution. Journal of Sports Sciences, 40(10), 1137-1148.
• Denzin, N. K., & Lincoln, Y. S. (2008). Introduction: The discipline and practice of qualitative research. Fagher, K., Forsberg, A., Jacobsson, J., Timpka, T., Dahlström, Ö., & Lexell, J. (2016). Paralympic athletes’ perceptions of their experiences of sports-related injuries, risk factors and preventive possibilities. European journal of sport science, 16(8), 1240-1249.
• Flick, U. (Ed.). (2013). The SAGE handbook of qualitative data analysis. Sage.
• Gil, S. M., Bidaurrazaga-Letona, I., Martin-Garetxana, I., Lekue, J. A., & Larruskain, J. (2020). Does birth date influence career attainment in professional soccer?. Science and Medicine in Football, 4(2), 119-126.
• Glaser, B. G., & Strauss, A. L. (2006). The discovery of grounded theory: Strategies for qualitative research. USA: Aldine Transaction.
• Helsen, W. F., Starkes, J. L., & Van Winckel, J. (1998). The influence of relative age on success and dropout in male soccer players. American Journal of Human Biology: The Official Journal of the Human Biology Association, 10(6), 791-798.
• Ilgar, M. Z., ve Ilgar, S. C. (2013). Embedded theory (Based Theory) as a qualitative research design.
• International Olympic Committee Official website, (2023). Retrieved from www.olympic.com March 23, 2023.
• International Paralympic Committee Official website, (2023). Retrieved from www.paralympic.org March 23, 2023. Lorenzo-Calvo, J., de la Rubia, A., Mon-López, D., Hontoria-Galán, M., Marquina, M., & Veiga, S. (2021).
• Prevalence and impact of the relative age effect on competition performance in swimming: a systematic review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(20), 10561.
• Madden, R. F., Shearer, J., & Parnell, J. A. (2017). Evaluation of dietary intakes and supplement use in paralympic athletes. Nutrients, 9(11), 1266.
• Mays, N., & Pope, C. (2000). Assessing quality in qualitative research. Bmj, 320(7226), 50-52.
• Miles, M. B., & Huberman, A. M. (2016). JS (2014). Qualitative data analysis: A methods sourcebook.
• Morgan, D. L., & Morgan, R. K. (2008). Single-Case research methods fort he behavioral and health sciences, SAGE Publications.
• Musch, J., & Grondin, S. (2001). Unequal competition as an impediment to personal development: A review of the relative age effect in sport. Developmental Review, 21, 147–167.
• Özkan, A., Safaz, İ., Yaşar, E., & Yazıcıoğlu, K. (2013). An examination of physical fitness related with performance characteristics of amputee football players. International Journal of Science Culture and Sport, 1(3), 66-77.
• Patton, M. Q. (2002). Qualitative research and evaluation methods (3rd ed). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
• Patton, M. Q. (2014). Qualitative research & evaluation methods: Integrating theory and practice. Sage publications.
• Rubia, A. D. L., Bjørndal, C. T., Sánchez-Molina, J., Yagüe, J. M., Calvo, J. L., & Maroto-Izquierdo, S. (2020). The relationship between the relative age effect and performance among athletes in World Handball Championships. Plos one, 15(3), e0230133.
• Salinero, J. J., Pérez, B., Burillo, P., & Lesma, M. L. (2013). Relative age effect in european professional football. Analysis by position. Journal of Human Sport and Exercise, 8(4), 966-973. https://doi.org/10.4100/jhse.2013.84.07
• Sarıgöz, A. O., Kayıhan, G., Erkılıç, A. O., & Özkan, A. (2017). A Brief History of Amputee Football in Turkey. International Journal of Cultural and Social Studies (Uksad), 3(Special Issue 2), 53-60.
• Simmons, C., & Paull, G. C. (2001). Season-of-birth bias in association football. Journal of Sports Sciences, 19(9), 677-686. https://doi.org/10.1080/02640410152475801
• Strauss, A. L., & Corbin, J. (2015). Basics of qualitative research: Techniques and procedures for developing grounded theory (4th ed). Sage Publications.
• Streubert, H. J., & Carpenter, D. R. (2011). Qualitative research in nursing. (5th ed.). Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams ve Wilkins.
• Swartz, L., Hunt, X., Bantjes, J., Hainline, B., & Reardon, C. L. (2019). Mental health symptoms and disorders in Paralympic athletes: a narrative review. British journal of sports medicine, 53(12), 737-740.
• Till, K., Cobley, S., Wattie, N., O'hara, J., Cooke, C., & Chapman, C. (2010). The prevalence, influential factors and mechanisms of relative age effects in UK Rugby League. Scandinavian journal of medicine & science in sports, 20(2), 320-329.
• Topendsports website (2023). Retrieved from www.topensports.com, March 23, 2023.
• Tow, S., Gober, J., & Nelson, M. R. (2020). Adaptive sports, arts, recreation, and community engagement. Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Clinics, 31(1), 143-158.
• West, W. (2001). Beyond grounded theory: The use of a heuristic approach to qualitative research. Counselling and psychotherapy research, 1(2), 126-131.
• Yardımcı, F. B., & Kulunkoglu, B. (2022). Investigation of Anxiety, Depression and Stress Levels of Athletes Preparing for Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. Gazi Journal of Physical Education and Sport Sciences, 27(1), 89-100.
• Yıldız, H., Biçer, M., Akcan, F., & Mendeş, B. (2016). Effects of Preparation Period Studies on Physical and Physiological Parameters in Amputee Football Players. Journal of Sports and Performance Research, 7(1), 45-52.
• Yıldırım, A., ve Şimşek, H. (2013). Qualitative research methods in the social sciences. (5th Edition). Seçkin Publications.
• Youngson, L., Foster, C. and Lambert, J. (2023). The physical and mental health benefits of lifestyle sports for disabled people: a scoping review. Int J Disabil Sports Health Sci;6(1):60-81. https://doi. org/ 10.33 438/ ijdshs.1197978.
• Zháněl, J., Válek, T., Bozděch, M., & Agricola, A. (2022). The relative age effect in top 100 elite female tennis players in 2007–2016. Plos one, 17(11), e0276668.