The fun integration theory provides a theoretical framework for understanding the totality of determinants that make sport fun. Understanding the relative prioritisation of those determinants for youth sport participants is one way of creating environments that encourage continued participation and mitigate dropout. Like many sports around the world, in Sweden, dropout in youth ice hockey typically occurs during early to mid-adolescence. This study is part of ongoing efforts to explore determinants of fun, and players' prioritisation of those determinants, in Swedish ice hockey. Junior ice hockey players (n = 343) aged 10-19 years were asked to rate the importance of 83 fun determinants previously identified among Swedish youth athletes; these determinants were organized into 11 fun factors in parallel with previous research, and importance of the fun factors and determinants explored by subgroup comparisons. Results indicated few differences, and overwhelming similarity of players' fun priorities when compared by sex, age, and perceived competence, with the fun factors Trying Hard, Positive Team Dynamics, and Positive Coaching of highest priority across all subgroups, and the fun determinant 'trying your best' rated highest. These findings support the fun integration theory's previous findings of a fun ethos, that is, a distinct and similar prioritisation of the fun factors and determinants regardless of player characteristics. Overall, results demonstrate generalisability of the fun integration theory and further contributing to this important and growing body of knowledge. © The Author(s) 2026

This study aimed to explore how teachers at certified sports-oriented upper secondary schools (CSUSS) in Sweden experienced how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted their everyday practice and well-being. Individual in-depth interviews were conducted with 13 teachers (mean age: 44 years) from three CSUSS in southern Sweden. The interviews were analysed using abductive qualitativecontent analysis. The analysis resulted in one overreaching theme, ‘Making sense of changes in everyday practice and dealing with a changing world’, illuminating how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted teachers. The teachers described the first lockdown as an initial shock that brought about changes in their workload and daily routines. The second lockdown was generally easier to handle, but they spent more time on planning and preparations, and had a greater focus on conveying theoretical knowledge and physicaltraining. Throughout the pandemic, they experienced a lack of social interactions; nonetheless, supportive colleagues and schools provided some relief. The teachers also experienced uncertainty regarding constantly changing restrictions; they learned, however, the importance of being flexible and creative in coping with these changes. Thus, the COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted their everyday practice and well-being. © 2024 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on daily life. Research has shown that high school student-athletes were especially vulnerable to the pandemic and its associated restrictions. Teachers at sports high schools were likewise affected by the pandemic. Studies of student-athletes’ and teachers’ experiences of the pandemic are found separately but not in combinations. Based on the reconceptualized uncertainty in illness theory (RUIT), this paper explored how student-athletes and teachers at certified sports-oriented high schools in Sweden experienced uncertainty concerning the pandemic and how it impacted their everyday life experiences, personal development, and well-being. A re-analysis based on an abductive qualitative content analysis of student-athletes, and teachers in two published studies was investigated. The analysis resulted in four categories: ‘Social life in uncertain times,’ ‘Uncertainty affects health and well-being,’ ‘Rapid changes, uncertainty, and adaptation,’ and ‘Learning for an uncertain future’. Throughout the student-athletes and teachers’ stories, the pandemic had a negative impact on their well-being, but they also stressed that they had learned several things for the future, as discussed using the RUIT as a lens. The combined experiences of these interrelated groups provide unique knowledge about their everyday life experience, personal development, and well-being and suggest that future research would benefit from studying different support structures for dealing with future global adversities. © 2025 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

Research shows that high-level military and sport leaders share a high-stress and high-stakes leader role due to similar experiences of demanding conditions mainly manifested in psychological burden. This raises research questions about leaders' psychological strategies to maintain their mental health and performance under demanding conditions. Thus, the current study investigated how experienced demanding conditions were related to self-rated leader performance level and mental health indicators among high-level military and sport leaders and whether the application of psychological skills by these leaders moderated these relationships. A composite questionnaire was used to collect data longitudinally, once a week for four consecutive weeks. Fifty-two Swedish high-ranking military officers and executives in elite team sport organizations completed the questionnaire. Multilevel analysis revealed no effect of demanding conditions on leader performance, but they harmed leader vitality and were associated with higher stress symptoms. Moreover, psychological skills did not moderate the relationship between demanding conditions and leader performance. However, motivational and instructional self-talk negatively moderated the relationship between demanding conditions and vitality. In contrast, emotional regulation, comprised of mindfulness and cognitive reappraisal, positively moderated vitality. Emphasizing the nuanced application of psychological skills is crucial while avoiding one-sided beliefs about their positive effects. Interventions are suggested to focus on vitality and related psychological skills to ensure leaders feel good while performing under demanding conditions. More cross-contextual leadership research, suggestively applied research, is needed to better understand the links between high-level military and sport leaders' psychological skills, leader performance, and mental health under demanding conditions. © 2024 The Author(s). Published with license by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

Participation in team sports during adolescence may be associated with improved physical, psychological, and social health. Nevertheless, an increasing number of adolescents are leaving team sports (e.g., hockey, soccer). Previous research suggests that dissatisfaction or negative experiences can increase the risk for dropout, yet qualitative studies into adolescents’ perspectives and the underlying mechanisms of dropout remain limited. Therefore, this study aimed to explore adolescents’ experiences of participating and dropping out of team sports using constructivist grounded theory. 14 adolescents (5 males and 9 females) between 13 and 18 years old participated in interviews. A substantial grounded theory was created through coding and constant comparison. The results show that dropping out of team sports is a process of “Losing fun” involving two main mechanisms: perceiving changed demands and re-evaluating. When adolescents’ navigation of demands makes them perceive changed demands, it initiates a process of re-evaluating their sport. This involves questioning the meaningfulness of their sport and struggling with negative emotions. Finally, when team sports are evaluated as mainly associated with negative emotions and not meaningful, the adolescents regard it as not fun and drop out. The findings highlight considering adolescents’ perspectives on what makes sport meaningful and fun to promote sustained participation. These study results can be used to inform how team sport clubs foster meaningful and fun environments that support continued engagement. © 2025 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

Background: There is growing awareness that back pain in adolescent soccer (European football) players is not always related to local tissue damage. Approaches taking into consideration lifestyle factors are needed. This study aimed to investigate the association between psychological distress, skipped meals, and insufficient sleep, and the occurrence of back pain among adolescent female soccer players. Hypothesis: Psychological distress, skipped meals, and insufficient sleep are associated with the occurrence of back pain. Study Design: Cohort study. Level of Evidence: Level 3. Methods: Swedish adolescent female soccer players aged 12 to 17 years, without back pain at baseline, were included. The exposures psychological distress, skipped meals, and insufficient sleep were assessed at baseline. The players were followed for 1 year with a weekly web-based survey, where back pain intensity was measured on a numeric rating scale (NRS) ranging from 0 to 10. The outcome back pain was defined as reporting low back pain and/or upper back/neck pain intensity of ≥4 on the NRS. Multivariable Cox proportional hazard regression analyses were performed to estimate the hazard rate ratio (HRR) with 95% CI for the association between each exposure and the outcome back pain, adjusted for age at baseline and parents’ education. Results: In total, 351 players were included, and 141 players reported back pain at some point during the 1-year follow-up. The adjusted HRR for back pain was 1.79 (95% CI, 1.11-2.91) for insufficient sleep, 1.45 (95% CI, 0.97-2.17) for psychological distress, and 0.98 (95% CI, 0.61-1.59) for skipped meals. Conclusion: Insufficient sleep and psychological distress are associated with the occurrence of back pain among female adolescent soccer players. Clinical Relevance: Our results contribute to the understanding of what may influence the occurrence of back pain in adolescence, offering potential strategies for the prevention of back pain in adolescent female soccer players. © 2025 The Author(s).

Globally, educational systems were thoroughly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Upper-secondary students were faced with school closures and distance education. For student-athletes, the COVID-19 pandemic, besides academic stress, also contributed to sports-related stress. In this paper, we explore upper-secondary school student athletes’ experiences of schoolwork and sport during two phases of the pandemic. A qualitative research design was used, and 53 student-athletes participated in focus group interviews. Three themes appeared: Struggling to cope with the new life situation, Reevaluating and longing for social life, and Speeding up the transition to adulthood. The themes were elucidated from temporal perspectives. The students experienced challenges in handling school, sports, and social life, but they also experienced opportunities for personal development. Student-athletes are a common responsibility between schools and sports, and, based on the results, schools and sports in collaboration need to increase readiness for action when major societal challenges, such as pandemics, occur. © 2023 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

Psychological factors influencing sports injury risk have received growing attention due to their potential for both prevention and rehabilitation. This mini review summarizes research related to psychological factors influencing sports injuries and strategies for their prevention. Injuries can have serious negative consequences for athletes' health and careers, as well as performance and financial implications for stakeholders. The research highlights psychological risk factors such as stress, anxiety, strong athletic identity, and pressure from coaches and teammates. The magnitude of stress responses is particularly linked to the risk of acute injuries, as outlined in Williams and Andersen's model and its evolution into the biopsychosocial framework. Recent studies have emphasized the complexity of overuse injuries, proposing multifactorial models accounting for intrapersonal, interpersonal, and sociocultural influences. Risk factors such as impaired neurocognitive functioning, academic stress, and strained coach-athlete relationships have been linked to both acute and overuse injuries. Combining psychological, physiological, and biomechanical assessments is increasingly recommended to better understand injury risk. Practical recommendations include fostering strong athlete-staff relationships, providing confidential psychological support, and integrating health education and autonomy-building into daily practice. Future research should investigate how combined psychological, physiological, and environmental factors affect injury risk. This mini review contributes to the evolving literature by highlighting how integrated psychological frameworks and intervention strategies can support evidence-based injury prevention and return-to-sport practices.© 2025 Johnson and Ivarsson.