PhD A.V. Zubkova¹
Dr. Hab. A.G. Abalyan¹
PhD T.V. Dolmatova¹
Dr. Hab. T.G. Fomichenko¹
Dr. Hab., Professor M.P. Shestakov^1
1Federal Scientific Center for Physical Culture and Sports, Moscow

Keywords: theoretical and practical support service, sports elite, sports institutions, multisport centers.

Background. The theoretical and practical support service is in top priority in the modern sports elite training systems and institutions – as verified by the practical progress experiences of the leading sports nations. The key international competitors of Russia have lately demonstrated a growing interest in comparative analyses of the national progress in the theoretical and practical support service for the sports elite. We sampled France and Canada for the purposes of the study since both nations have been highly successful in the resent Olympics. Thus France was ranked in the top-10 on the Summer Olympics and 2014/ 2018 Winter Olympics unofficial scoreboards; and Canada was ranked in the top-3 on the three latest Winter Olympic unofficial scoreboards; and in the top-20 of the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

Objective of the study was to run a comparative analysis of the theoretical and practical support service to foreign sports elites.

Methods and structure of the study. We run for the purposes of the study an analysis of the data on the subject available from the relevant science-metrics databases and websites of the relevant French and Canadian governmental and non-governmental sports organizations.

Results and discussion.

Sports Centers and Institutions of Canada

The Athletic Institutions and Centers of Canada [7] have been established by the Sports Canada, Canada Olympic Committee (COC), Coaches Association of Canada (CAC), and the relevant provincial governments. The Canadian Olympic and Paralympic Sports Institutions (COPSI) network may be described as the system of multisport centers recognized by Sports Canada and Win the Pedestal foundation and sponsored by the relevant national and provincial partners. The network includes four sports institutions of Canada based in Calgary, Montreal, Ontario and British Columbia, and three Canadian multisport centers in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Atlantic Canada. In addition to the practical service at the sports institutions and centers, the key research teams advance their projects in the modern athletic training theory, sports progress facilitating technologies and the short- and long-term training system designs with contributions from the modern sports elite training and excellence methods,  models and technologies.

The above Canadian sports institutions and centers report to serve about 1,300 national elite athletes competing in 81 sports, with every sports institution / center naturally specialized in a few sport disciplines due to mostly local geographical and cultural specifics. Despite the service specialization, every of the seven sports institutions is highly active in virtually every sport as required by the flows of local resource and specific needs of the local sport elites. Moreover, many sports institutions and multisport centers within the COPSI network actively collaborate with both their national sports federations and provincial sports organizations, particularly in the junior prospects’ training service aspects. As demonstrated by some research data, athletes and coaches normally fix, report and apply not more than 30% of the training and competitive progress related data; and the sports institution experts take special efforts to mine and analyze the remaining 70% of the data using a wide range of modern research tools. Given in Table 1 hereunder is the financial flow analysis for the governmental assignments ($16 million per year) for the national sports institutions and multisport centers via the Sports Canada and Win the Pedestal foundation [1].

Table 1. Governmental financing of the sports institutions and multisport centers via the Sports Canada and Win the Pedestal foundation in 2016 through 2019, $

Sports centers and institutions of France

The French Sports Ministry controls the French Institute of Sport (INSEP) responsible for the sports elite training service and training of trainers, plus studies in the sports theory [9]. The two key divisions of the INSEP are the Sport, Expertise and Performance Lab (SEP) and the Institute of Biomedical and Epidemiological Research in Sport (IRMES) that provides special theoretical and practical support service including the biomedical support service to the national sport elite competing in the Olympic and Paralympic sports teams [10]. The INSEP actively advances research in the sport theory, with the research projects implemented in close cooperation with the French national sports federations, often at requests for research in specific sports domains from the relevant sports coaches [8]. In addition to the INSEP, such research projects are run by the French Riding Institute, National Institute of Sailing and Water Sports, National Institute of Alpine Sports and the National Sports Museum.

French Fencing Federation (FFE)

It is the National Technical Directorate (DTN) on the whole and its Sports Elite Service Department in particular that are responsible for the theoretical and practical support service to the national teams [63]. The sports elite training systems are tested and implemented by the National Teams Training Center at the INSEP, and its six affiliated sport reserve training centers [4]. There is also a scientific research department in the French Fencing Federation.

Table 2. Governmental finance for the FFE’s sports elite training service as of 2017, Euro thousand [5]

French Judo Federation (FFJ) There are four national judo training centers in the country known as the "Pole France Releve" based in Bordeaux, Marseille, Orleans and Strasbourg [6].

French Ski Federation [2] The National Technical Director manages the National Technical Advisory Service (CTS) that employs around 80 technical experts contracted by the French Sports Ministry.

Therefore, the modern theoretical and practical support service for the sports elite in Canada and France is provided by a large pool of theoreticians, coaches and training experts at the stationary sports centers designed on a hierarchical basis to effectively serve the active sports elite, potential qualifiers for the national teams and promising junior prospects. We would mention the following national differences in the theoretical and practical support service.

In France, the sports prospects’ training service is largely sponsored by the relevant sports federations – in contrast to Canada where their training service is sponsored by the local governments. Unlike the existing Russian standards that require every sport discipline being served by a dedicated research team, Canada and France make a special emphasis on the key medals-promising sports based on the great local historical traditions and experiences plus the well-developed service systems of the relevant sports federations that ensure high inflows of the enthusiastic young human resource to these popular sports.

Conclusion. The study data and analyses have clearly demonstrated the growing role played by the modern theoretical and practical support service for the national sports elites having good chances for the World Championship, European Championship and Olympic titles.

The study was sponsored by the Governmental Research Project contracted by the Federal Scientific Center for Physical Culture and Sports

References

1. Canadian Sport Centre Manitoba. Partnerships. Available at: https://cscm.ca/partnerships/sport-canada/
2. Fédération Française de Ski.  Available at: http://www.ffs.fr/federation/ffs/presentation-ffs
3. FFE. PPF 2017-2024. Available at: https://www.escrime-ffe.fr/medias/fichiers/Haut%20niveau%20/Projet%20de%...
4. FFE. Structures de programme d’excellence sportive. Available at:  https://www.escrime-ffe.fr/fr/haut-niveau/structures-de-programme-d-excellence-sportive.html
5. FFE. PPF. 2017-2020. P. 20 Available at: https://www.escrime-ffe.fr/medias/fichiers/Haut%20niveau%20/Projet%20de%...
6. FFJUDO. Pole France. Inscription. Available at:  https://www.ffjudo.com/inscription-1
7. Government of Canada. COPSI. Available at:  https://www.canada.ca/fr/patrimoine-canadien/services/organismes-sportifs/olympique-paralympique-canada.html
8. Hospitality. Available at: https://www.insep.fr/en/hospitality
9. INSEP. About INSEP. Available at: https://www.insep.fr/en/about-insep
10.  INSEP. Accompagnement à la performance. Available at: https://www.insep.fr/en/node/5043

Corresponding author: fomitchenko@yandex.ru

Abstract

Objective of the study was to run a comparative analysis of the theoretical and practical support service to foreign sports elites.

Methods and structure of the study. We run for the purposes of the study an analysis of the data on the subject available from the relevant science-metrics databases and websites of the relevant French and Canadian governmental and non-governmental sports organizations.

Results of the study and conclusions. The study showed that the methodological support in Canada and France is organized by many specialists and scientists working with athletes in stationary sports training centers. The sports centers have a hierarchical structure that enables them to work not only with the main national teams but also with the promising athletes of the youth and reserve teams. Particular attention should be paid to the following difference in the organization of the methodological support.

In France, the sports prospects’ training service is largely sponsored by the relevant sports federations – in contrast to Canada where their training service is sponsored by the local governments. Unlike the existing Russian standards that require every sport discipline being served by a dedicated research team, Canada and France make a special emphasis on the key medals-promising sports based on the great local historical traditions and experiences plus the well-developed service systems of the relevant sports federations that ensure high inflows of the enthusiastic young human resource to these popular sports.

The study data and analyses have clearly demonstrated the growing role played by the modern theoretical and practical support service for the national sports elites having good chances for the World Championship, European Championship and Olympic titles.