Over a year has passed since the beginning of Covid-19 pandemic and the introduction of measures to limit the spread of the pandemic in Latvia. These have resulted in changes in all spheres of young people's lives, including the way they study and exercise. This study examines the role of Generation Z physical activity as a means of maintaining the well-being of the emerging workforce and the choice of teaching methods by different age groups and genders as well as the finances spent on it. The research methods include critical content analysis of scientific literature on Generation Z, modern teaching methods and the role of physical activity in young people's lives as well as descriptive statistical data analysis of primary data obtained from a questionnaire. The authors found positive correlation between age, gender, the occurrence of depressing mood or anxiety and engagement in physical activity and also identified that Generation Z spends less financial resources for their physical activities and well-being insurance (e.g., the empirical study shows that 84% of respondents spend under 20 hours per month on physical activity, with Chi-Square test p = 0.001); additionally, the study shows that the use of such teaching methods as group work, seminars and webinars for promoting physical activities are efficient under the Covid-19 pandemic situation, except for responders aged 16 – 19, who do not enjoy seminars and conferences (p=0.002) and webinars (p=0.001), albeit other age groups do not mind these teaching methods as well as group work, as shown by Chi-Squared Test (p>0.05).

The aim of this article is to give an overview on possibilities for students – top athletes to combine their career in respective sports field with studies in different Latvian higher education establishments. Authors of the article analyse scientific literature and the opinions expressed in the individual interviews of the heads of higher education institutions of Latvia as well as officials of State departments responsible for Sports regarding support opportunities that are important for the promotion of dual careers for students – top athletes. Authors of the article study and analyze the possibilities for top athletes to obtain higher education and opportunities to improve the training process. The article gives a theoretical insight and analyzes the results of surveys led by sports managers in Latvia's higher education institutions. After processing the responses, recommendations for the management of the dual career process in higher education institutions have been developed, which could help to achieve a successful implementation of dual career for athletes in Latvia.

The study explores factors that motivate high-performance athletes to manage their dual career while studying in secondary school. The dual career experience of Latvian youth is obtained. The paper analyses the results from young high-performance athletes’ questionnaire, focusing on the support young athletes receive and would need to receive in their education and sports training process. A survey, based on an individual approach, was carried out in training camps and schools; 125 high-performance athletes of the secondary school age completed the questionnaire (19 questionnaires were filled in electronically). The gained data were processed with the statistics methods using SPSS Statistics and Excel programmes. The young people in the age range from 15-19 years study in secondary school, vocational school or in Year 1 of a higher education institution; this is a young athletes’ transitional period from youth leagues to junior or adult sports leagues. In the education process, 77 young athletes were supported by their parents (M-3)(according to the average value of the 4-point Likert Scale), and 70 respondents indicated teachers’ support (M-3); while in sports the support was received from trainers (M-3,70) and friends (M-3,42). The study analysed the contributing factors that motivated young athletes to gain education and achieve sports mastery. Young athletes up to 19 years sought more for their friends’ approval. Student-athletes chose to study in schools that offered opportunities to combine studies with high-performance sports. However, young student-athletes lacked motivation for studies.

The beginning of Covid 19 and the establishment of restrictions to curb the development of the pandemic on the territory of Latvia have led to the changing of the lives of the youth, including their physical exercise and study habits and practices. This article investigates the role of physical activities training for young males and females and their choice of teaching platforms by different genders. The study methodology encompasses critical examination of previous research conducted on Generation Z, gender differences and the significance of physical exercise and sports in for the youth combined with statistical evaluation and assessment of primary survey data. Compare with previous articles this article is constituted by its identification of the way in which gender differences influenced changes in physical activity and in which attitudes towards healthy lifestyles and physical activity changed before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. The authors of the study observed substantial differences between the answers of males and females about their health before and during the pandemic, with Independent Samples t-Test (p=0,03) and (p=0,025), which is likewise confirmed by the answers about the presence of depressive moods, which are more pronounced in females (p=0,004). In assessing the difference between males and females in the area of physical activities, differences were observed both before and during the pandemic (p=0,001) and (p=0,005), with females doing less physical activities than males both before and during the pandemic. To direct their physical activities, females are more likely to engage an instructor or attend training sessions via special platforms than males (p=0,001). In examining the most popular applications and platforms for teaching physical activities, no substantial difference was observed in their use between the two genders.

This article aims to give an overview of students – top athlete experience, how to combine studies at university with a sports career.  For the data, the acquisition was used as an individual, written survey with mixed-type questions by form. Applicants of the survey were students who are in the national team or master players. The data from the survey was processed by AQUAD Seven, was used descriptive and inferring statistics analysis of factors using the data statistical processing programs SPSS and Excel. Talented athletes have to make an important choice about their future after graduating high school: to start studies at university, focus on sports careers or combine these two goals. Combining studies to the high-achievement sport is the goal of dual career, it is a serious step for every young talent. In this article, we summarise top athlete opinions, who are studying in Latvian universities, about dual-career. Their recommendations for improving the situation, expanding opportunities and engaging mentors in certain study programs they are studying in. Conclusions are drawn, that there is possible development in a dual career, based on the results of this and previous author`s researches. Different universities and programs have different possibilities and experiences in creating the study process for the top athletes, which should be taken into consideration when making a united dual-career model for universities.