The dangers of high-impact sport aren’t contentious. Medical professionals agree that sport-induced brain trauma leads to degenerative brain disease – so why are we still allowing children to play?
Lower participation and poorer performance in cross-country running by students at low-SES schools is troubling, because physical activity and fitness are closely tied to health and well-being.
The benefits of sport for young people include not only health and enjoyment, but also an appreciation of many of the civic values and ethics that make our democracy work.
School sport should prioritise development of the person, not the athlete. A new TV deal has some worried there hasn’t been enough debate as to how this will impact the culture of school sport.
For athletes, COVID-19 means more than cancelled competitions. Having their athletic goals put on hold and their training routines disrupted can take a toll on athletes’ mental health.
Amid plans to create special sports divisions for high-poverty schools, coaches at such schools explain how they produce championship-winning teams despite having fewer resources.
Sport is only one way of being active and it’s usually done at particular times and on particular days. Teens should get physical activity throughout the day, every day.
Specialist teachers and hours of compulsory physical education a week are keeping Nordic school children moving. When it comes to physical activity, Australia could do better.
The White House proposed these cuts for three years in a row. That clashes with longstanding bipartisan leadership regarding rights for all people with disabilities.
The first step in reviving a lost sporting culture is to involve young Australians in working out why sport has lost its appeal and how to reverse the decline in youth participation.