Research roundup

Swimmers drink more than just pool water, and other interesting finds

DAVID KARP THE MARTLET (UNIVERSITY OF VICTORIA)

Drinking and diving

Sixty-five per cent of college divers and swimmers are high-risk drinkers, according to a June study in the Journal of Applied Sports Psychology. Researchers studied 340 competitive college athletes in six sports, finding swimmers and divers are the heaviest drinkers. Aquatic athletes down more than seven alcoholic drinks per week on average, and have 4.72 “heavy drinking episodes” each month. Runners are the designated drivers in the world of college athletics — they average 2.8 drinks per week. The researchers suggested that “more than athletes from other sports, it is common for men’s and women’s swim teams to socialize and ‘party’ together” — leading to a lot of drinking.

Don’t play rugby in the summer

Rugby players get injured more often during the summer than during the winter, says a new study released in the Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine in July. But winter’s not particularly safe either; serious injuries are just as likely to occur in summer as in winter. The study followed the Rugby Football League over six seasons, and recorded 8.95 injuries per game. Researchers were unsure why more injuries occurred in summer, but suggested it could be because of weather, the condition of the playing field or changes to the way the game is played.

Fantasy sports are very manly

Two researchers at the University of Wisconsin discovered that fantasy sport leagues reinforce masculine values. Fantasy sport leagues are online competitions where people pick teams of professional athletes, gaining points when the athletes score goals and hit home runs in real life. The August study in the Journal of Sport and Social Issues found that masculine values are embedded in fantasy leagues. “Fantasy sport leagues act as an ‘Old Boy’s Club’ that allows men to communally meet, bond and redefine what it is to be masculine,” said the report. It argued women might be deterred from joining fantasy sports leagues because the typical male competitor believes in his own superiority “and the vying for masculine dominance . . . may be so off-putting to many women.”

Hold your horseshoes

A new study found that superstitious basketball players miss more foul shots when they break their habit. Researchers in England followed 22 recreational basketball players, with habits ranging from wearing socks inside out to kissing tape on their finger before taking free throws. The free throw percentage of superstitious players decreased by 15 per cent when they abandoned their routine. “Removal of [superstitious behaviour] is likely to increase feelings of stress and anxiety with a concomitant feeling of loss and control,” said the study, published in the June edition of the Journal of Applied Sports Psychology.

I wish you would step back from that ledge my friend

A study of 134 BASE jumpers published in the September Journal of Sport Behavior reveals experienced BASE jumpers deal with pain differently than those new to the sport. BASE is an acronym for the objects participants jump from — buildings, antennas, spans (i.e. bridges), and earth (i.e. cliffs). BASE jumping is considered to be one of the most dangerous sports in existence, and while athletes do have a parachute, most jump at heights of around 500 feet, giving them little room to deploy it. Experienced BASE jumpers were found to have a low pain threshold and are more likely to abandon a jump than inexperienced jumpers. “This may be the result of the realization of the extreme danger of the sport among experienced jumpers and naiveté on behalf of the inexperienced jumpers,” said the report.