Sport managers design development systems with the intent of retaining and advancing athletes through that system (Green, 2005). Important to this basic goal is the participant’s transition from one sport context to another. Transition research has focused primarily on elite athlete’s adaptation to career transitions as they advance at the highest levels or retire from sport (Wylleman & Lavallee, 2004). This orientation places a priority on the external transitions between sport structures before the internal, cognitive development of the athlete. This study examined the transitions of sport participants from an interpretive framework with the goal of understanding the individual’s experience of transition without it necessarily being linked to a typical external change. The sport stories of 48 students at a mid-sized, private university were collected and analyzed utilizing an interpretive paradigm. The disruption stage of these stories represents a time of crisis and transition. Denzin (2001) provided a typology for moments of crisis through four types of epiphanies: major, cumulative, illuminative, and relived. Using this typology of epiphanies can help sport managers to understand these transition events within the life of the participant. Analysis resulted in all disruptions being coded into one of the four original epiphany types. However, a large number of stories were categorized as major epiphanies. Further inductive coding yielded three sub-types of major epiphanies: major bodily, major life change, and major success. The stories within each type or subtype contained similarities in the speed of transition and the breadth of impact of the transition event. For example, stories of major bodily epiphany shared the immediate, life altering impact of significant injury while stories of cumulative shared the slow realization that the sport context had changed without the participant’s realization. Sport managers will be able to use the results of this study to understand and accommodate the pace and breadth of transition experienced by participants in their sport development systems thus maximizing the retention and advancement to the elite ranks.

The National Intramural-Recreational Sports Association (NIRSA) Championship Series (Series) has developed into the primary organization for governing extramural/sport club collegiate recreational tournaments. As NIRSA professionals describe it, the Series has also evolved into a platform for professional development. To date, however, no study has attempted to link professional growth and advancement to volunteerism at Series events. As such, the purpose of this study was to examine skills and competencies that could be correlated with volunteering at Series events. Using Astin's Input-Environment-Outcome (I-E-O) model the research team explored the environmental impact of the volunteer experience by collecting data in two phases (prevolunteer experience and 3–4 months after the volunteer experience). Results indicated that campus recreation professionals do perceive themselves to be using effective leadership and communication behaviors and that there are no significant differences in professional development based on the NIRSA region of the tournament. Some gendered differences were uncovered, but it appears that a significant number of volunteers returned to work with higher levels of job-related competencies and important networking connections. Possible implications are discussed, including a Series training program based on NIRSA's core competencies, and areas for future research.

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This case follows four American college students from a small, Liberal Arts institution during a semester-long, faculty-led study abroad trip to London, England. The case presents the experiences of these students as they integrate into London society. Mainly viewed through the lens of sport, the students encounter many differences to their preconceived notion of how sports work, providing an obvious platform for discussion and comparison of how sport is organized in different parts of the world. Specifically, the case offers students the opportunity to learn about new sports they may not have encountered before, evaluate the U.S. system of sport management, and suggest ways to improve sports both at home and abroad. The international aspect of this case also provides an added cultural element by focusing on specific events in the United Kingdom sporting calendar that can be used to teach students about another country’s sporting identity.

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