The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of team sports and resistance training on physical function, psychological health, quality of life, and motivation in older untrained adults. Twenty-five untrained men and forty-seven untrained women aged 80 (range: 67-93) years were recruited. Fifty-one were assigned to a training group (TRG) of which twenty-five performed team training (TG) and twenty-six resistance training (RG). The remaining twenty-one were allocated to a control group (CG). TRG trained for 1 hour twice a week for 12 weeks. Compared with CG, TRG improved the number of arm curls within 30 seconds (P<.05) and 30-seconds chair stand (P<.05) during the intervention. In TRG, participation in training led to higher (P<.05) scores in the subscales psychological well-being, general quality of life, and health-related quality of life, as well as decreased anxiety and depression levels. No differences between changes in TG and RG were found over the intervention period, neither in physical function tests nor psychological questionnaires. Both TG and RG were highly motivated for training, but TG expressed a higher degree of enjoyment and intrinsic motivation mainly due to social interaction during the activity, whereas RG was more motivated by extrinsic factors like health and fitness benefits. In conclusion, both team training and resistance training improved physical function, psychological well-being, and quality of life. However, team sport training motivated the participants more by intrinsic factors than resistance training.

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The first part of this contribution deals with theoretical considerations of the meaning of role-models and idols in general and for young people in particular. Then the results of existing studies are discussed. As research shows, the huge majority of idols, especially of sport heroes, are men, and it is boys who admire sport stars. In the second part of the article a pilot study is presented in which we asked female and male pupils about their role-models. A high percentage of boys named sporting heroes or ‘action stars’ whom they admired because of their strength, aggression and their ability to get things done. In contrast, for the girls interviewed, sport stars did not have the function of role-models. They admired the stars and starlets of the movie and music scene. At the end, the potential effects of these orientations are discussed, and the question is asked what kind of answers pedagogy can offer.

The purpose of this study was to explore the daily physical activities of Danish children with a focus on describing and explaining gender differences. Accelerometer measurements of physical activity in different contexts, as well as questionnaire data, were collected from more than 500 children at pre-school and later at third grade. The study showed that boys were generally more physically active than girls (18% at age 6—7, and 16% at age 9—10, both p < 0.001) and found differences in the types of activities undertaken by the two genders. These findings are in accordance with numerous other studies in Denmark as well as internationally. However, this study adds to this knowledge by showing that the gender difference in total amounts of activity was mainly due to large gender differences in the amounts of self-organized physical activity such as after-school day care (difference at age 6—7 = 45%, difference at age 9—10 = 58%, both p < 0.001) and school breaks (difference at age 6—7 = 32%, difference at age 9—10 = 36%, both p < 0.001). This could be partly explained by boys being more interested in playing football in contexts for children’s self-organized activities.

Gender inequity in sport organisation boards, particularly in decision-making positions, remains a significant issue. Considerable research exists on the topic yet attempts to integrate non-academic perspectives on this literature are relatively limited. We present a systematic narrative review, constructed in conjunction with the work of a ‘reflective panel’ which included sport, business and academic professionals from Europe and North America. The panel helped to inform the search strategy and reflected upon the narrative produced. In total, 154 peer-reviewed articles, book chapters and grey literature publications were included. The resultant narrative is presented according to several scales of abstraction; macro-scale studies of global/national trends; meso-scale studies of processes (re)producing gender inequity; and microscopic studies of lived experiences of gender inequity. There is consensus in the literature that, globally, women continue to be under-represented in leadership positions. Patriarchal selection practices and organisational cultures reinforce this inequity, despite evidence that men in leadership roles recognise the problem. While gender equity policies exist, actions to pursue gender equity are more limited. Patriarchal language, gendered stereotypes and person-profiling still persist, resulting in specific emotional and practical challenges for women in sports leadership positions. The reflective panel recognised an over-representation of studies from a liberal ‘Western’ tradition that conceptualises gender inequity in a specific socio-cultural and political way. Studies also often overlook the effects of the intersectionality. Finally, we suggest areas for further research, including a need to understand the electoral procedures of sports organisations beyond ‘formal’ channels, to better understand women’s lived experiences of inequity and to investigate the experiences of women who either step down or are not appointed to leadership positions.