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Counterfactual scenarios as a tool for fencing coaches

U. Carmi

Counterfactual scenarios involve simulating an alternative reality and planning imaginary steps. Historians use counterfactual scenarios as a tool for understanding and identifying the causal contexts of events. In this paper I argue that the questions fencing coaches ask themselves are quite similar to those which historians ask when using counterfactual scenarios as a research tool. Both historians and coaches base their working assumptions on events that took place in the past and that influenced later events or actions. Counterfactual scenarios can serve as an effective tool for understanding the behavior of athletes and even for predicting what steps opponents will take. Using this tool, I attempt to reveal the basic assumptions of personal fencing coaches and to demonstrate the extent to which counterfactual scenarios are important in the training process. Personal training in fencing serves as a case study for training in combat sports and in ball sports. In these branches, counterfactual scenarios are essential because athletes compete against opponents rather than against a stopwatch or a measuring tape.  The paper introduces three versions of the humanistic approach to historical study: identification, communication, and rational explanation. The benefits inherent in formulating counterfactual scenarios are not limited to raising awareness regarding training and managing competitions. Indeed, practical benefits can be derived from this theoretical tool, especially with respect to tactics. The paper ends with a number of critical comments.

Descriptors: Counterfactual scenarios, fencing coach, identification version, communication version, rational explanation version.

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The effectiveness of imagery and an instructional aid on the acquisition of putting in golf

M. Lavie, R. Lidor, G. Ziv

Motor imagery is a technique used for mental preparation and performance enhancement among athletes in a variety of sports. Imagery can be used from two perspectives: external imagery – where one sees him/herself performing an act from a third-person perspective, and internal-kinesthetic imagery – where one feels and experiences an act from a first-person perspective. As opposed to the popular methods of motor imagery discussed in the literature, in the current study participants were asked to imagine an object in space that could serve as a visual aid, rather than to imagine themselves performing a specific action. A visual aid is an instructional tool that helps in the perception of the environment in everyday life. In sport, coaches tend to use visual aids to improve an athlete's performance, especially for novice athletes who are attempting to acquire a new motor skill. The purpose of our study was to examine whether the use of imagery and the use of a visual aid improve the accuracy of a golf-putting task in novices. Forty-eight physical education students with no prior experience in the game of golf participated in this study. The participants were randomly assigned into three groups: imagery, visual aid, and control. The study was composed of two sessions in which participants putted 90 times from distances of 2 m (Session 1 and 2) and 3 m (Session 2). No differences were found in performance accuracy between the groups. However, an interaction was found between the imagery ability of the participants and the variability of performance. The putts of the participants with higher imagery ability were more consistent than the putts of the participants with lower imagery ability. The findings of the current study suggest that high imagery ability may have a positive effect on performance. Nevertheless, it appears that the presence of a visual aid or the imagery of a visual aid did not contribute to the participants' ability compared to that of the control group. It is possible that the participants in the intervention groups may have had a higher cognitive load before performing the putts, due to the necessity of implementing the technical guidelines in addition to performing the interventions.

Descriptors: Golf, imagery, instructional aid, motor learning, accuracy

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Her karate point of view: Body image among female adolescent athletes practicing karate

S. Gindi, A. Aviv, M. Hisherik

This qualitative study examines the meaning of Kyokushin karate activity in adolescent girls, with an emphasis on body image and gender relations. To this end, ten athletes ages 12-18 were interviewed about their experiences as athletes in karate, and their resulting body image. Data collection was done by semi-structured in-depth interviews with the athletes. The interviewees addressed a variety of subjects related to body image, such as nutrition, conflicts regarding muscle development, and the impact of competition. The findings indicate that karate training contributes to many facets of the girls’ lives – physicaly, emotionally, and cognitively. The findings indicate a conflict between the commitment to karate and the immediate bodily experience on the one hand, and the appeal of the Western beauty ideal and internalized patriarchal norms on the other hand. In shaping their identities, women athletes face not only the beauty ideal but also the patriarchal demands of women's gender roles and biological inferiority. Nonetheless, the coach’s positive involvement was of great importance in navigating these complex conflicts. The societal perception that karate is a male sport affects the athletes’ experience and the way the environment reacts to them. These patterns also enter the dojo (the hall where karate is practiced), ranging from the numerical dominance of men to the way pairs are chosen to practice combat.

Descriptors:  Content analysis, qualitative research, gender, athletes.

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Student Sports in Israel – The Case of the International ASA Championship in Eilat

O. Levental, T. Yuval, I. Linder

This article presents an exploratory study that examined the perceptions of Israeli sports students regarding their athletic activity during their studies in higher education. This field, which has not yet been studied in Israel, is essentially different from sport in higher education in North America and professional and amateur-level sports in Israel, and therefore constitutes a unique case study. The purpose of the study was to examine students' perceptions of their participation in the championship, their motivations, their experiences, and more. For this purpose, the study used a qualitative approach that included 30 in-depth narrative interviews with students from one college in the north of Israel, regarding their participation in the International Academic Sport Association (ASA) Championship in Eilat in 2018. The research findings revealed three main themes: (a) the relationship between the preparatory process and the students' attitude towards competition; (B) perceptual differences by gender, sport, and seniority in competition; (C) The attitude towards Eilat as an ex-territory and the nature of the championship.

Descriptors: Sport, higher education, ASA, geography of sport.

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