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In the Ball Game: Staying Fit with Ball Sports
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In the Ball Game: Staying Fit with Ball Sports

A special issue of International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (ISSN 1660-4601). This special issue belongs to the section "Sport and Health".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 October 2023) | Viewed by 3937

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Branka R. Matković

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Exercise and Sports Medicine, Faculty of Kinesiology, University of Zagreb, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Interests: exercise physiology; children; basketball; soccer; sports medicine
Dr. Tomislav Rupčić

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Laboratory for Sports Games, Faculty of Kinesiology, University of Zagreb, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Interests: basketball; sport games; fatigue; kinematics; kinetics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The main determinants of human health according to the World Health Organization are socioeconomic factors, lifestyle, and the environment. Risk factors related to lifestyle include an unhealthy diet, physical inactivity, smoking, alcohol, and drug consumption.

Various scientific research has concluded that the elimination of physical inactivity (at least 150 minutes/week) can reduce individuals' risk of various diseases, such as heart stroke, hypertension, diabetes, cancer, or fractures due to osteoporosis. Even when risk factors exist (e.g., obesity or hypertension), physical activity can reduce possible complications.

We are witnessing an increasing prevalence of the sedentary lifestyle in both young and older generations, especially in well-developed countries. A low level of physical activity in children is of particular concern because their participation in activities is a predictor of their lifestyle later in life. Regardless of the known benefits of physical activity and activity recommendations from doctors and kinesiologists, we still spend more and more time watching television and playing video games.

However, as investigations also point to the health benefits of daily intermittent physical activities, the influence of implementing ball games into daily life on well-being could be substantial.

This Special Issue, entitled "In the Ball Game: Staying Fit with Ball Sports", aims to provide an overview of the latest scientific findings on the effect of various ball games on the fitness level of individuals, kids, adolescents, or adults playing these games recreationally or professionally. As every sport activity bears some risk, papers providing evidence of different risks arising from participation in ball games are of particular interest.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Prof. Dr. Branka R. Matković
Dr. Tomislav Rupčić
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2500 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • ball games
  • physical activity
  • fitness
  • leisure
  • sport injuries

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

8 pages, 1115 KiB  
Article
“New Balls Please”: Physical Load Imposed on Ball Boys during the Roland Garros 2022
by Cedric Brandli, Filip Svalina, Šime Veršić and Dario Novak
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20(5), 3793; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20053793 - 21 Feb 2023
Viewed by 1546
Abstract
The process of becoming a ball kid at the French Open consists of different stages of selection and training. Selection and training of the ball kids is organized by the French Federation of Tennis (FFT) and is intended to be an immersive and [...] Read more.
The process of becoming a ball kid at the French Open consists of different stages of selection and training. Selection and training of the ball kids is organized by the French Federation of Tennis (FFT) and is intended to be an immersive and educational experience. A sample was made up of ball kids participating at the 2022 French Open (Roland Garros). For this study, 26 ball kids were analyzed during several rotations of their activity on the court with different durations (N = 26; age = 15.00 ± 0.84; height = 169.03 ± 9.62; weight = 52.26 ± 7.35). Each ball kid participated in several analyzed rotations (data entry N = 94). Two groups are analyzed: ball kids at the net and in the back of the court. The result of the statistical analysis showed a statistically significant difference between the two groups in the variables: meters covered per minute on court (t = 6.85, p = 0.00), total number of decelerations per minute (t = 8.39, p = 0.00), walking and jogging meters per minute (t = 4.68, p = 0.00), and maximum velocity achieved (t = 3.02, p = 0.00). Participating as a ball kid during a professional tournament presents a unique experience for young athletes. Young people that are participating can improve their fitness, social skills, mental abilities, and well-being due to requests for the ball kids’ duties during match play and out of play activities. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue In the Ball Game: Staying Fit with Ball Sports)
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11 pages, 339 KiB  
Article
Air Quality Is Predictive of Mistakes in Professional Baseball and American Football
by Elizabeth C. Heintz, Derek P. Scott, Kolby R. Simms and Jeremy J. Foreman
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20(1), 542; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20010542 - 29 Dec 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1893
Abstract
Air quality is a growing environmental concern that has implications for human physical and mental health. While air pollution has been linked to cognitive disease progression and declines in overall health, the impacts of air quality on athletic performance have not been extensively [...] Read more.
Air quality is a growing environmental concern that has implications for human physical and mental health. While air pollution has been linked to cognitive disease progression and declines in overall health, the impacts of air quality on athletic performance have not been extensively investigated. Much of the previous research focused on endurance sports indicates that air quality negatively impacts athletic performance; however, the effects of air quality on non-endurance elite team performance remains largely unknown. The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of air quality on errors committed by Major League Baseball (MLB) teams, interceptions thrown by quarterbacks in the National Football League (NFL), and overall quarterback performance in the NFL. Linear regression analysis was used to determine the impact of the median air quality index (AQI) of counties with MLB and NFL teams on errors, interceptions, and overall quarterback performance of players on those MLB and NFL teams. AQI was a significant positive predictor of errors and interceptions, indicating increased errors and interceptions with decreased air quality. Similarly, quarterback performance was significantly reduced for quarterbacks from teams in counties with worse air quality. These findings suggest that air quality has a significant impact on performance in the MLB and NFL, indicating impairments in physical and cognitive performance in professional athletes when competing in areas with poorer air quality. Hence, it is likely that air quality impacts athletic performance in numerous sports that have not yet been investigated. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue In the Ball Game: Staying Fit with Ball Sports)
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