Department of Sport Science, Tourism & Leisure Social Capital & Sports Participation in Greece The Case Study of the Runners at the Authentic Marathon D. Chatziefstathiou, K. Kaplanidou, D. Papadimitriou Canterbury Christ Church University, UK University of Florida, USA University of Patras, Greece

Introduction  The term ‘social capital’ was first described as “those tangible assets that count for most in the daily lives of people: namely goodwill, fellowship, sympathy and social intercourse among the individuals and families who make up a social unit”. (Hanifan, 1916: 130)  In the field of social science, most of the studies in relation to social capital were derived from the work of Bourdieu, Coleman, and Putnam.

Social capital  Recently a growing interest in exploring the association between sport and social capital.  Sport has been considered as a useful tool to tackle issues of broader social development, e.g. social integration, the creation of national identity.  However, studies backed up with robust evidence in relation to this concept are still scarce.

Social capital & Political discourse  On 26 November of 2013 the Council adopted the first ever Council Recommendation in sport, notably on promoting health-enhancing physical activity across sectors (HEPA).  It also adopted Council conclusions on the ‘Contribution of sport to the EU economy, and in particular to addressing youth unemployment and social inclusion’

Social capital & sport?  Is sport unique in its ability to build social capital for participants?  Some studies have demonstrated the capability of sport in providing opportunities for social capital formation.  However, the uniqueness of sport itself for the creation of social capital is largely unexplored  This research aims to shed further light into this by examining the social capital of runners in a marathon event.

Methodology  A sample of n=1.811 online questionnaires distributed by the Hellenic Athletics Federation (SEGAS) were completed from runners who participated in the 32 nd Authentic Marathon (2014, Athens).  Thematic units: 1) Membership in clubs & networking with relatives and friends 2) trust & solidarity 3) collective action & cooperation 4) social cohesion & social life.

Results  For this presentation we only focused on findings in relation to the type of sports membership of the runners (e.g. registered in a private gym) in relation to two components of social capital that we measured in our questionnaire:  (i) collective action and cooperation: Questions 15.1, 15.2, 15.3, 15.4 and 15.5  (ii) social cohesion and social life: Questions 15.6, 15.7, 18.1

Qs 15_115_215_315_415_515_615_718_118_218_318_4 private gym public gym sports club/team and I pay fees club/team-- NO fees exercise group without any fees required I do not exercise other

Conclusions  Those who do not exercise appear to be less keen to engage with events of collective action and cooperation while those registered in a private gym also tend to participate less often to events of their local community.  The highest values in relation to collective action and cooperation are by those registered in a sports club and those who are members in a public gym, though overall volunteering ethos is not particularly high among all groups.

Conclusions  The sense of belonging to their community is higher to those who use the public gyms, especially when compared to those who use a private gym. The latter also feel more isolated than any other group.  Overall those who use the public gyms make more use of their local leisure facilities and also wish to get informed more about the local news.  All groups agreed that attending local sports events increase their sense of belonging, while local sports teams are mostly supported by those who are registered in sports clubs (with or without fees).

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