A Conceptual Framework for Analysing Sports Policy Factors Leading to International Sporting Success

Living with imperfect comparisons: The challenges and limitations of comparative paralympic sport policy research

“…Green and Oakley (2001) highlighted the link to the GDR/Soviet Union systems arguing that "many antecedents of the former Eastern Bloc"s "managed approach" to elite sport are increasingly apparent" (p. 247) in international elite sports systems. De Bosscher et al (2006) also support this viewpoint by stating "the former eastern bloc countries have undoubtedly played an important role in current developments of elite sport" (p. 194). The GDR/Soviet Union system was considered "the vanguard of developing sporting excellence" (Green & Oakley, 2001, p. 247) due to its consistent approach to producing high performance success that demonstrated high performance sport was not a matter of ad hoc chance or dependent upon uncontrollable environmental factors.…”

“…The continuous pursuit of international sporting success is an increasingly taken-forgranted behavior within many developed countries (Digel, 2002;De Bosscher et al, 2006, 2008Green & Houlihan, 2005;Houlihan & Green, 2008;Kikulis, Slack, & Hinings, 1992;Slack & Hinings, 1994). Academics have labelled this phenomenon the "global sporting arms race" (De Bosscher et al, 2006), which has resulted in nation states investing substantial sums of funding for success at the Olympic and increasingly the Paralympic Games (Beacom & Brittain, 2016;De Bosscher et al, 2006, 2008Green & Houlihan, 2005;Green & Oakley, 2001;Grix & Carmichael, 2012).…”

“…It is against this broader backdrop that the comparative sport policy literature has emerged with practitioners and academics (e.g., Bergsgard et al, 2007;De Bosscher et al, 2006, 2008Digel, 2002Digel, , 2005Green & Houlihan, 2005;Houlihan & Green, 2008) seeking solutions to the increasingly complex problems of delivery and management of high performance sport. In particular, comparative sport scholars and practitioners alike have sought answers to the following questions:…”

“…Academics have labelled this phenomenon the "global sporting arms race" (De Bosscher et al, 2006), which has resulted in nation states investing substantial sums of funding for success at the Olympic and increasingly the Paralympic Games (Beacom & Brittain, 2016;De Bosscher et al, 2006, 2008Green & Houlihan, 2005;Green & Oakley, 2001;Grix & Carmichael, 2012). As a consequence, high performance sport systems have become more competitive, complex, and uncertain (De Bosscher et al, 2006;Digel, 2002). It would also appear that due to the increased competition between many countries, albeit with varying degrees and levels of commitment, attempts have been made to imitate the success of the previous GDR/Soviet Union sport systems as well as other nations in order to design the most efficient and effective sport system (Digel, 2002;Green & Houlihan, 2005).…”

“…Despite this inclination toward comparison, only a few scholars in the area of sport policy and the related area of strategic management of high performance sport have undertaken this type of work (e.g., De Bosscher et al, 2006Digel, 2002;Green & Houlihan, 2005;Houlihan & Green, 2008). Those that have, meanwhile, have reduced and simplified their observations of (typically high-performance) sport systems in an attempt to explain variation and cause and effect without overlooking or ignoring the characteristics that make each sport system distinctive.…”