The impact of COVID-19 restrictions on Australians' frequency and duration of participation in different types of sport and physical activity

Rochelle Eime; Jack Harvey; Melanie Charity; Aurelie Pankowiak; Hans Westerbeek

doi:10.1186/s13102-022-00435-z

The impact of COVID-19 restrictions on Australians' frequency and duration of participation in different types of sport and physical activity

BMC Sports Sci Med Rehabil. 2022 Mar 21;14(1):42. doi: 10.1186/s13102-022-00435-z.

Authors

Rochelle Eime¹, Jack Harvey², Melanie Charity², Aurelie Pankowiak³, Hans Westerbeek³

Affiliations

¹ School of Science, Psychology and Sport, Federation University, Ballarat, Australia. r.eime@federation.edu.au.
² School of Science, Psychology and Sport, Federation University, Ballarat, Australia.
³ Institute for Health and Sport, Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia.

Abstract

Background: Sports management and public health physical activity stakeholders need to understand changing patterns of participation to inform the development of sport and physical activity opportunities and strategies. This study investigated changes in the frequency and duration of participation in sport and physical activity in Australia from pre-COVID-19 to during-COVID-19, broken down by the specific type of activity and by gender, age and region.

Methods: During the first pandemic restrictions and lockdowns in Australia in May-June 2020, 6140 survey respondents provided information about the types, frequency and duration of the sport and physical activity they participated in prior to and during COVID-19 restrictions. Differences between mean values were analyzed.

Results: The greatest decline in participation during COVID-19 was in team sports, and the decline was greater for men than for women.

Conclusion: How will sport respond to getting these men back in the game, and women back from home-based yoga and Pilates?

Keywords: COVID-19; Duration; Frequency; Participation; Sport.