The purpose of our research was twofold: to investigate the motivations for participating in a mass cycling event for amateurs and the motivational differences between men and women in cycling. This empirical study involving 385 cyclists was conducted during the fifth edition of the Skoda Bike Challenge held in Poznań in 2018. The event forms part of the UCI Gran Fondo World Series of events organized around the world, which are sanctioned by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI). A diagnostic survey method with a standardized interviewing technique was used to interview cyclists. The interview questionnaire was divided according to the MPAM-R scale (Motives for Physical Activity Measure–Revised). This scale assesses people’s motives for participating in physical activities. The following motivations were examined: appearance, fitness, social, competence/challenge, and enjoyment. Descriptive statistics were used. A chi-square test was used to determine characteristics between responses. Cramer’s φ for statistically significant scores was indicated. The research results show some differences between male and female motives for competitive amateur cycling. Statistically significant differences were found between the following motives: interest/enjoyment, competence/challenge, and fitness. This is important information from the point of view of promoting cycling and for organizers of cycling events in regions wishing to promote sports tourism as a form of sustainable development. An understanding of mass cycling motivations is needed, as such knowledge can be used to encourage cycling, which has a potentially positive effect on future cyclists’ physical and mental health. Learning about cycling motivations also allows us to determine which physical and mental health functions are fulfilled by mass sporting events and how to prepare for them. The motives for participating in mass cycling events for amateurs in Europe constitute an interesting field of research. The first part of the paper presents the literature review related to cycling in the context of motivations, sporting events, tourism, event management, and sustainable development, and the second part presents the results of our empirical study.

Running has been very popular for years, especially in organized mass runs. Various running events take place all over the world, at different distances and locations, including charity running events. However, there has not been any research on the social impact of these events on participants to date. This article/paper is an attempt to remedy this situation. The authors conducted their research by the diagnostic survey method using standardized interview technique during the 6th Santa Claus Run organized in Poznan on the day of Santa Claus. A sample of 136 runners: 49 male respondents and 87 female respondents participated in the event voluntarily and completed a questionnaire. Therefore, the main goal of the study was to recognize the relationship between the lifestyles of men and women in the context of participation in a charity running event, in order to evaluate the differences between them. The specific goal was to discern the motives to take part in such kind of an event, as well as to find out what influence the participation in a charity run has on the respondents, both those leading an active and passive lifestyle. The most important result and the only one statistically significant difference in the conducted study was the indication that women have more empathy and participate more often than men in charity runs.

This article presents triathlon as a modern form of sports consumption. The theoretical part underlines the importance of triathlon events for the development of tourism and the promotion of health and physical activity, whereas the empirical part presents the results of research carried out at the Środa Wielkopolska Triathlon 2018 event. The socio-demographic profile of the participants of the event (N=109) and their motives for participation were determined. The information contained may be of value for those involved in the development of sport and tourism in smaller towns in Poland.

W artykule zaprezentowano triathlon jako nowoczesną formę konsumpcji sportowej. W części teoretycznej opisano znaczenie imprez triathlonowych dla rozwoju turystyki oraz promocji zdrowia i aktywności fizycznej. W części empirycznej przedstawiono wyniki badań przeprowadzonych podczas imprezy Triathlon Środa Wielkopolska 2018. Ustalono profil społeczno-demograficzny uczestnika imprezy (N = 109) oraz jego motywację do wzięcia w niej udziału. Informacje zawarte w artykule mogą mieć duże znaczenie dla osób zaangażowanych w rozwój sportu i turystyki w małych miejscowościach w Polsce.

The aim of this paper was to analyze the relationship between attitudes toward physical activity and participation in water sports events and to recognize the main motives for involvement in these kinds of events. A written paper–pencil diagnostic survey was conducted among 394 participants in two traditional and two modern sports events on water held in Poland to ascertain whether innovative (modern) events are needed in society, and whether they cause an increase in interest in physical activity (more than traditional events). The research results showed that modern sports events on water did not have any more power to attract physically inactive people than traditional water events, did not produce a greater desire to lead an active lifestyle, and did not encourage people to more regularly practice water sports. Moreover, modern events, compared to traditional events, were only a one-time experience and the people who completed survey often wanted to return to traditional sports events which provided participants with greater positive emotions than a modern event. In the case of socio-demographical variables, there was no statistically significant relationship between gender and choice of modern or traditional event, but older people were more likely to choose a traditional event than younger people; modern water events were an attractive option primarily for young people under 30 years of age, furthermore, modern events more often attracted people who had completed higher education. However, it turned out that a modern event on water often attracted more people who had had no experience in this sport discipline rather than people who chose traditional water events. In a sense, modern events are therefore effective in promoting water sports in Polish society. We also distinguished five main groups of participants: healthy lifestyle managers, lovers of sports emotions, water sports malcontents, water sports enthusiasts, and neutrals to water sports. Additionally, we looked into gender-related motives for participation in modern and traditional water events: social and health-related motives proved to be more important for women and men who participated in modern water events. The research results presented in the article expand on the current state of knowledge about mass participation in sport, the impact of sporting events on the promotion of physical activity, and show the motivation behind participation in modern and traditional water sporting events.