Antonio La Torre

The phenomenon of doping is a public health issue that poses threats to sport and society. In recent decades, the emphasis on efforts to address the issue and reduce the incidence of doping by young people in sport has shifted from deterrence through testing and punishment to the promotion of clean sport behaviours through values-based education. The “I Run Clean project” sought to develop new and effective tools targeting grassroots athletes and those around them (coaches, medical support personnel, sport leaders, parents). These included sport-specific e-learning and in-person peer-to-peer workshops led by trained volunteer ambassadors. The aim of all “I Run Clean” measures is to go beyond the warnings and provision of factual information about early anti-doping campaigns to a more holistic educational approach that focuses participants on their personal and sport-related values in order to encourage good decision-making and resistance to doping-related behaviours. This study evaluates the efficacy of the peer-to-peer workshops and their impact on selected psycho-social variables. The collaboration of the volunteer ambassadors is shown to effectively transmit the desired reasoning, reduce doping risk factors and enhance protective factors.

Purpose : Few data are available on sleep characteristics of elite track-and-field athletes. Our study aimed to assess (1) differences in sleep between sexes and among different track-and-field disciplines, (2) the effect of individualized sleep-hygiene strategies on athletes’ sleep parameters, and (3) daytime nap characteristics in track-and-field athletes. Methods : Sleep characteristics of 16 elite Olympic-level track-and-field athletes (male: n = 8; female: n = 8) were assessed during the preseason period, at baseline (T0), and during the in-season period, after the adoption of individualized sleep-hygiene strategies (T1). Sleep parameters were objectively monitored by actigraphy for a minimum of 10 days, for each athlete, at both T0 and T1. A total of 702 nights were analyzed (T0 = 425; T1 = 277). Results : Female athletes displayed better sleep efficiency (88.69 [87.69–89.68] vs 91.72 [90.99–92.45]; P = .003, effect size [ES]: 0.44), lower sleep latency (18.99 [15.97–22.00] vs 6.99 [5.65–8.32]; P < .001, ES: 0.65), higher total sleep time (07:03 [06:56–07:11] vs 07:18 [07:10–07:26]; P = .030, ES: 0.26), earlier bedtime (00:24 [00:16–00:32] vs 00:13 [00:04–00:22]; P = .027, ES: 0.18), and lower nap frequency ( P < .001) than male athletes. Long-distance runners had earlier bedtime (00:10 [00:03–00:38] vs 00:36 [00:26–00:46]; P < .001, ES: 0.41) and wake-up time (07:41 [07:36–07:46] vs 08:18 [08:07–08:30]; P < .001, ES: 0.61), higher nap frequency, but lower sleep efficiency (88.79 [87.80–89.77] vs 91.67 [90.95–92.38]; P = .013, ES: 0.44), and longer sleep latency (18.89 [15.94–21.84] vs 6.69 [5.33–8.06]; P < .001, ES: 0.67) than athletes of short-term disciplines. Furthermore, sleep-hygiene strategies had a positive impact on athletes’ total sleep time (429.2 [423.5–434.8] vs 451.4 [444.2–458.6]; P < .001, ES: 0.37) and sleep latency (14.33 [12.34–16.32] vs 10.67 [8.66–12.68]; P = .017, ES: 0.19). Conclusions : Sleep quality and quantity were suboptimal at baseline in Olympic-level track-and-field athletes. Large differences were observed in sleep characteristics between sexes and among different track-and-field disciplines. Given the positive effect of individualized sleep-hygiene strategies on athlete’s sleep, coaches should implement sleep education sessions in the daily routine of top-level athletes.