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Success in developing regions: world records evolution through a geopolitical prism.
Marion Guillaume1, Nour El Helou, Hala Nassif
1IRMES, INSEP, Paris, France. irmes@insep.fr
Plos One
|October 29, 2009
Summary
Global sports performance is linked to history and development. New indicators reveal how geopolitical and economic factors influence World Record (WR) evolution, showing shifts in athletic dominance and increased globalization in sports.
Area of Science:
- Sports Science
- Geopolitics
- Economic History
Background:
- Previous analyses of World Records (WR) primarily focused on human physiological limits and athlete commitment.
- The influence of political factors on sports was mainly studied through Olympic medal counts.
- A gap existed in understanding the broader historical, geographical, and economic impacts on sports performance evolution.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the impact of historical, geographical, and economic factors on the evolution of World Records (WR).
- To propose and utilize new indicators to quantify regional WR progression and sports globalization.
- To analyze the link between a nation's development context and its sport performance trends.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of 2876 World Records (WR) from 63 nations across four summer disciplines.
- Development and application of three new indicators: weighted annual barycenter, Home WR ratio, and Annual Cumulative Proportions (ACP).
- Examination of the evolution of the top 10 performers alongside WR data.
Main Results:
- The weighted annual barycenter shows a south-eastward shift, indicating the rise of East Africa and China in WR achievements.
- The Home WR ratio significantly decreased from 79.9% pre-WWII to 23.3% in 2008, demonstrating increased sports globalization.
- Annual Cumulative Proportions (ACP) revealed distinct regional progression rates, with notable slowdowns in Europe linked to historical events and acceleration in North America and Eastern Europe during specific periods. China's WR progression accelerated significantly post-1979.
Conclusions:
- National sport performance is precisely and quantifiably linked to historical, geopolitical, and developmental contexts.
- The study provides novel metrics for understanding the dynamics of global sports achievement and its influencing factors.
- The findings highlight a significant shift in athletic dominance and the increasing globalization of sports.
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