Reflections on Realities
Featured Promoting Cosmopolitan Nationalism through the Olympic Movement: A Critical Study of the Olympic Values Education Programme View Digital Media
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Ian Tay
The Olympic Games is a platform where athletes from all over the world come together to compete together in the name of sports and friendship. However, beneath the hype and international broadcast of the various global events of the games itself, there is an Olympic movement, made up of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the International Sports Federations (IFs) and the National Olympic Committees (NOCs), underlying the games. However, despite having the IOC and the IFs organising the games and bringing athletes over from all over the world, it is still the NOCs which are preparing and sending their athletes to the games, and then judged based on their position on the medal tally. This is similar to the neoliberal world order of global markets where although there are international organisations and multinational companies, state actors are still in charged on developing the human capital required for the international markets and economies are still compared with one another through GDP, HDI, or other indicators of living standards. This paper therefore analyses how the IOC is promoting such a world order through an analysis of the Olympic Values Education Programme (OVEP) and argue that the OVEP can be used to prepare the youths of the world for success in the current neoliberal world order. This will enable the understanding of the concept of Cosmopolitan Nationalism to be extended in the field of Education and Sports and also add relevance to programmes such as OVEP to national development narratives.
Featured The Cultural Discourse of Fan Engagement on X: A Netnography on Liverpool FC Fans in Malaysia View Digital Media
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Farah Izzati Farok
The growth of X (formerly Twitter) has changed the way on how football fans behave, creating a notable power shift in the fan-club dynamics. Fans are no longer passive bystanders and receivers of content, but instead wield considerable influence as active creators, curators, and distributors of social media content, as well as their choice of content selectivity. This study identifies of what is known as “Fan-Group Generated Content” (FGGC), a form of user-driven content created by fan accounts as a transformational change of the initial norms of how the culture between fans and clubs would function. Distinct from User-Generated Content (UGC), FGGC creates an unidentified and unique position of where fan accounts operate, as they are a mixture of influencers, content creators, and opinion leaders. Focusing on transnational Liverpool FC fans in Malaysia, this study explores how local cultural nuances shape the creation and engagement of fan content. Utilizing a netnographic approach by collecting online data from X, this study then employs a social network analysis to uncover conversational patterns, relationship dynamics, and influential figures around whom fan engagement revolves. Additionally, a visual discourse analysis reveals how FGGC is constructed, interpreted, and communicated, highlighting recurring themes that foster fan engagement. The findings underscore how X has become a foundational platform for building a dynamic online community, establishing a multi-dimensional relationship between fans and clubs that transcends traditional two-way communication.
Gentile Meets Growth Mindset - a New Classification Framework for Motivation Progression : Applying Gentile’s Taxonomy Beyond Motor Skills to Mark and Track Growth from External to Internal Motivators View Digital Media
Innovation Showcase Tabetha Johnson
This presentation introduces a novel adaptation of Gentile’s taxonomy of motor skills into a motivational framework designed to track an athlete’s progression from external validation to intrinsic motivation. Gentile’s original 16-category matrix classified motor tasks based on environmental context and action requirements. Building on this structure, the Motivation Progression Taxonomy is proposed. This two-dimensional model uses goal context (external to internal drivers) and emotional intelligence maturity to classify motivational states. This model is particularly relevant for athletes reentering competitive sport after injury or a change event, where purpose, sustainability, and internal alignment become essential to sustainable resilience. The taxonomy integrates self-determination theory and cognitive restructuring to guide coaching, athlete development, and psychological resilience. By bridging movement science with motivation psychology, the framework offers a tool for sports professionals seeking to foster internal drive and holistic performance in athletes of all ages.
