Associate Professor S.V. Khudik¹
Dr.Hab., Professor V.S. Bliznevskaya¹
Associate Professor A.A. Khudik¹
Dr.Hab., Professor A.Y. Bliznevsky^1
1Siberian Federal University, Krasnoyarsk

Keywords: Physical Education and Sports, cross country skiing, orienteering sport, Federal State Higher Education Standards, progress rating test set.

Background. The modern academic Physical Education and Sports curriculum needs to be reason-ably versatile and optional to encourage sustainable interest in students and sound motivations for physical progress secured by the academic sports. Optional formats of the academic physical educa-tion and sports service are generally associated with positive emotional backgrounds to help the students satisfy the personal physical progress interests and health agendas for success in the future professional positions in national industries [1, 4, 5]. The academic physical education and sports service expansion efforts, however, are always limited by the available sports infrastructure, equip-ment and material/ technical resource, and this is the reason why some the modern optional physical education and sports curricula are still short of many popular sports disciplines.
Academic cross-country skiing sports are beneficial in this context in many aspects. Winter sports in general are known by improve immunity on a positive emotional background secured by the so-called landscape therapy that is known to improve health standards as the healthy outdoor practices strengthen the nervous system, improve sleep, mitigate depression and stress and enhance the overall psychological comfort [6]. Orienteering sport practices, apart of the landscape therapy, give pre-requisites for the personality progress in many aspects since the sport discipline is highly demanding to the individual resources, natural gifts and progress models [2, 3].
Objective of the study was to theoreticall substantiate and test benefits of a cross-country skiing and orienteering sport integrating special model to supplement the standard academic physical edu-cation and sports discipline.
Methods and structure of the study. The first stage of the study was designed to make provisions and create necessary material and technical resource for the cross-country skiing and orienteering sport integrating special model. Later on we designed an updated physical education and sports cur-riculum based on the Federal State Higher Education Standards 3++. At this stage of the study we formed a set of sport-specific skill tests. At the final stage of the study, the progress rating test set was used to test progress in the orienteering sport, plus the valid age-specific GTO Complex test standards were analyzed and used to rate progress in cross-country skiing (within the academic physical education and sports service) on a 5-point scale.
Results and discussion. Due to the natural geographic location related specifics, cross-country ski-ing curriculum is traditional for universities in the Siberian and Ural regions, and many of them rent or own ski bases, often in the forest zones, for the optional and standard physical education and sport service. Seasonal cross-country skiing trainings normally last for 3-4 winter months with de-duction of the examination periods and holidays. The remaining training period can be used for the cross-country skiing techniques mimicking and conditioning trainings and orienteering sport train-ings with a special priority to the orienteering technique excellence aspects at the same academic sports facility.
Most of the regional universities supply the trainees with the local maps for trainings, and the rest have easily solved this problem. As things now stand, more than 60 constituents of the Russian Federation have their regional orienteering sport federations that are always in position to support the university orienteering sport groups by necessary cartographic materials. The traditional cross-country skiing / orienteering sport service location within the same sports facility facilitates the year-round outdoor trainings at no sacrifice for the regular physical education and sports classes in compliance with the Federal State Higher Education Standards.
We developed the new cross-country skiing and orienteering sport integrating special model (see Table 1) to secure progress in every skiing style and basic terrain-specific orienteering techniques, with a gradual growth of the training workloads, to develop special physical qualities and fitness for the cross-country skiing and orienteering sport on the traditional concepts of the training system consistency, continuity and variability.

Table 1. Cross-country skiing and orienteering sport integrating special model to supplement the standard academic physical education and sports discipline: schedule and topics

In practical terms, the cross-country skiing and orienteering sport integrating model includes two elements: basics training and categorical practical training, with the first one geared to master the basics of the elected sport with a special priority to the technique correction aspects; and the second intended to excel and automate the motor skills for competitive progress. Trainees are expected to master and excel the terrain-specific orienteering and cross-country skiing styles and techniques (classic and skating).
Progress of the students in practical academic trainings is rated by the general physical fitness and sport-specific skills rating tests as provided by the valid Federal State Higher Education Standards 3++ in the so called Progress Rating Test set. The valid physical education and sports curriculum assigns 54 hours for the test exercises. In addition, the universities often apply tests of the key/ vital physical qualities including speed, endurance, strength and flexibility tests, i.e. rating the largely inborn morphology- and functionality-dependent individual qualities critical for physical progress – that may and should be developed.
University faculties are entitled to freely select the above tests, although the practical academic ex-periences have prioritized the following tests: speed rating 100m sprint test; endurance rating 2000/3000m race test; dynamic leg strength rating standing long jump test; shoulder girdle strength rating pull-ups and push-ups test for the males and females, respectively; flexibility rating front bent (on a 20–25cm high gymnastic bench) test; plus a range of other physical fitness tests.
As for the sports-specific skills tests, they generally imply sports competitions – in cross-country skiing and orienteering sport in our case, with a special role played by the GTO Complex tests that are widely applied as a basis for the cross-country skiing skills test procedures. Thus our cross-country skiing and orienteering sport integrating special model equals the 5-, 4- and 3-point aca-demic scores to the age-specific (18-25 year group) GTO Gold, Silver and Bronze Badges, respec-tively. The cross-country skiing skills tests in our model are largely equivalent to the GTO Complext tests customized to the cross-country skiing styles. The freestyle cross-country skiing competitions may be run in the low- and moderately-difficul terrains reasonably safe from heavy winds. This means that the students are free to opt for classical or skating style and change the skiing style on the distance. In practical terms, the cross-country skiing tests may be designed as separate-start or mass-start events. For tests of the orienteering-sport-specific special fitness in the cross-country orienteering sport events, the model offers an average distance speed rating 1km straight race test, since this sport discipline implies runs between the check points located at varying distances.
Progres of the Siberian Federal University students majoring in orienteering sport has been rated on a 5-point scale by the above average speed rating 1km straight race test for three academic years. We used for the speed test a standard electronic test system commonly applied in the orienteering sport events. To obtain benchmarks for the tests, we analyzed the split-time competitive records of the beginner, advanced training and sport excellence groups.
As a result, we obtained the average speed benchmarks for distances in the moderately-difficult ter-rains in good weather conditions. The new model allows the actual test rates being adjusted for the few weather conditions using a few adjustment ratios on discretion of the trainer prior to the test competitive events. Distances should be planned so that the students could apply and demonstrate every practical orienteering, map reading and distance management skill on the run. The orienteering sport tests will be designed in this case only with separate starts with at least 1-minute intervals. The study found that an optimal straight orienteering sport skills test distances should equal 3.5-3.8 km and 3.0-3.2 km for males and females, respectively, with the checkpoints located as allowed by the terrain, area and weather conditions, although the actual practice gives grounds to recommend 6-8 checkponts. The orienteering sport skills trainings will be designed to gradually increase the distance run speed and imroove the error-free race routing and management skills. Given in Table 2 hereunder are the academic cross-country skiing / orienteering sport skill progress test standards har-monized with the valid Progress Rating Test set as provided by Federal State Higher Education Standards.

Table 2. Cross-country skiing / orienteering sport skill progress tests standards (for cross-country events) harmonized with the valid Progress Rating Test set as provided by Federal State Higher Education Standards for the academic physical education and sports discipline

The cross-country skiing / orienteering sport skill tests shall be run on at least a yearly basis to fairly profile the students’ physical fitness and physical development for the university education period. Every progress test shall be preceded by a warm-up phase and followed by an active relaxation practices, and that is the reason why a whole training session should typically be assigned for the tests.
Conclusion. The academic physical education and sports service supplemented by the optional cross-country skiing and orienteering sports expands the range of the optional physical progress and health services catering for the interests of those who prefer the year-round outdoor activities. The cross-country skiing and orienteering sport integrating special model supplementary to the academic physical education and sports discipline will help develop the sport-specific skills in the students, with the most gifted and successful offered competitive progress and mass sport leading opportunities. The valid Progress-Rating-Test-harmonized cross-country skiing / orienteering sport skills rating tests make it possible to rate the sports-specific physical fitness and progress in move-ment coordination and other critical technical and tactical aspects. The test data and analyses may be used to highlight the advantages and drawbacks of the academic physical education and sports methods and tools and motivate students for further physical progress and healthy lifestyles, condi-tional on the physical education and sports progress tests service being reasonably optional to avoid compulsory compliance of the test standards at any health cost.

References

1. Bliznevskaya V.S., Bliznevskiy A.Yu., Yudakov V.N. Orienteering in summer and winter. Study guide. Krasnoyarsk: IPTs KGTU publ., 2001. 94 p.
2. liznevskaya V.S. Health improving and developing role of orienteering in student environment. Vestnik Tomskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. 2006. no. 292. pp. 178-183.
3. Trefilov V.A., Dubrovskiy A.V. Formation of Physical Preparedness of Graduates of Highest School to Professional Work. Teoriya i praktika fiz. kultury. 2002. no.  7. pp 49-50.

Corresponding author: bliznevsky58@mail.ru

Abstract
Objective of the study was to provide the scientific justification of the comprehensive specialization program, including cross-country skiing and orienteering sport for the implementation of the academic Physical Education and Sports curriculum.
Methods and structure of research. At the first stage, the conditions for classes and the necessary material and technical base were determined. To develop the Physical Education and Sports curriculum, the necessary skiing and orienteering skills were identified. For rating tool set, control tests were developed for assess orienteering skills, along with an analysis of the GTO complex materials to use these standards in assessing sports technical skills in skiing in university students as part of the academic discipline.
Results of the study. A curriculum has been developed based on techniques for mastering ski tech-niques and technical skills for cross-discipline orienteering, for improving skills in these sports. The control test for necessary rating tools were defined and tested meant to assess sports technical orienteering skills (cross disciplines).
Conclusion. The combination in the implementation of the academic Physical Education and Sports curriculum in two sports classes - cross-country skiing and orienteering sport - makes it possible to expand the range of interests of those students who want to practice year-round outdoor activities.