Background: Ice hockey is a fast-paced sport with a high possibility of acquiring dental damage and concussions which can be prevented by mouthguards (MG). Despite this, many athletes choose not to use MG due to drawbacks such as discomfort and restricted airways. Restricted airways provided by MG might be reduced by external nasal dilator strips (ENDS). ENDS could contribute to increased aerobic capacity, blood oxygen saturation and self-reported compliance of ENDS by elevating airflow through the nose. Therefore, ENDS could contribute to enhanced performance and recovery rate while reducing the discomfort of MG that could lead to an increased usage of MG among healthy young adult ice hockey players. Aim: The aim was to study aerobic capacity, and oxygen saturation using mouthguard with and without external nasal dilator strips during submaximal bicycle tests. A second aim was to study the compliance of external nasal dilator strips when using mouthguard in healthy young adult ice hockey players. Method: In this experimental study using a cross-over design 15 young adult ice hockey players were contacted to attend on two separate test occasions, with and without ENDS. Aerobic capacity was measured with a Ekblom-Bak submaximal bicycle test (VO2max) and a pulse oximeter was used to examine oxygen saturation (%SpO2). Post-testing, the participants stated self-reported compliance using ENDS based on the numeric rating scale (0-10, positive-negative attitude of usage). Data are presented as mean and standard deviation. Differences between groups were analyzed with the Wilcoxon- signed rank test based on median (Q1-Q3). Result: Nine participants, aged 18-19 completed both test occasions. This study found that ENDS provided no significant difference in estimated VO2max mean (±SD), with ENDS 63.3 (±5.5) and without ENDS 64.2 (±5.0), nor %SpO2 during standard load. A significant increase showed in %SpO2 for higher individual load by 3%, with ENDS 97.1 (±1.3) and without ENDS 94.1 (±4.5). The participants experienced the test as more strenuous with ENDS than without ENDS applied, without significant difference. Despite this, the participants had a positive attitude towards the usage of ENDS. Conclusion This study regarding healthy young adult ice hockey players showed that ENDS provided no significant difference in aerobic capacity. Oxygen saturation however resulted in a positive significant difference at the higher individual load. The majority of the participants in this study propose a positive compliance with ENDS. The results are interpreted with caution due to the small sample.

Ice hockey is a sport whose athletes are at high risk for traumatic head injuries due to the violence of potential impacts with other athletes, ice, or glass during games. In order to develop the best protective strategies for the players, it is necessary to have a deep understanding of accident mechanisms during ice hockey games. Accident reconstructions using the finite element (FE) method are a way to perform a systematic analysis of impact cases, but require input data on the circumstances of the accidents. Thus, this project focused on finding a way to extract the position and velocity of the players involved from readily available videos of ice hockey accidents using motion tracking methods. This project included two parts: pose estimation and velocity estimation. The pose estimation aimed to align a human body model (HBM) with the players' poses and the key steps included estimating 2D joints from impact images, estimating the players' 3D poses, skeleton inferencing, and aligning the results with the baseline HBM via pelvic registration. The velocity estimation defined the initial conditions for simulating the collision and key steps included identifying the players' 2D joints across impact video frames, tracking of the players using a simplified pelvis projection on the rink plane, and estimating the players’ velocity using homography to identify their position on the ice hockey rink. Then, both parts were applied to accident cases from a video database of collisions that occurred during a hockey league season. The cases in which the pipeline was fully applied ultimately resulted in LS-DYNA positioning files for the Total Human Model for Safety (THUMS) model, and problematic cases were used to get an overview of the limits of the chosen methodology. Said limitations were mostly linked to the quality of the source videos, which is highly dependent on the source of the videos and possibly not controllable. Due to this, selection criteria are required, such as checking the blurriness and quality of the videos and the viewing angles to ensure as few occlusions as possible. Overall, this project resulted in a working semi-automatic pipeline for pose and velocity estimation in contact sports collisions, as well as a first set of personalized input information that should allow the reconstruction of ice hockey accidents using FE simulations. / Ishockey är en sport vars utövare löper stor risk att drabbas av traumatiska huvudskador på grund av de våldsamma potentiella kollisionerna med andra utövare, is eller glas under matcherna. För att kunna utveckla de bästa skyddsstrategierna för spelarna är det nödvändigt att ha en djup förståelse för olycksmekanismerna under ishockeymatcher. Olycksrekonstruktioner med hjälp av finita elementmetoden är ett sätt att utföra en systematisk analys av kollisionsfall, men kräver indata om omständigheterna kring olyckorna. Detta projekt fokuserade därför på att hitta ett sätt att extrahera de inblandade spelarnas position och hastighet från lättillgängliga videor av ishockeyolyckor med hjälp av rörelsespårningsmetoder. Projektet bestod av två delar: poseuppskattning och hastighetsuppskattning. Poseuppskattningen syftade till att anpassa en humanmodell till spelarnas poser och de viktigaste stegen omfattade uppskattning av 2D-leder från kollisionsbilder, uppskattning av spelarnas 3D-poser, skelettinferens och anpassning av resultaten till baslinjen HBM via bäckenregistrering. Hastighets-uppskattningen definierade de initiala villkoren för simulering av kollisionen och viktiga steg inkluderade identifiering av spelarnas 2D-led i videobilder av kollisionen, spårning av spelarna med hjälp av en förenklad bäckenprojektion på rinkplanet och uppskattning av spelarnas hastighet med hjälp av homografi för att identifiera deras position på ishockeyrinken. Därefter tillämpades båda delarna på olycksfall från en videodatabas med kollisioner som inträffade under en säsong i en hockeyliga. De fall där pipelinen tillämpades fullt ut resulterade slutligen i LS-DYNA-positioneringsfiler, och problematiska fall användes för att få en överblick över gränserna för den valda metoden. Begränsningarna var främst kopplade till kvaliteten på källvideorna, som är starkt beroende av källan till videorna och eventuellt inte kan kontrolleras. På grund av detta krävs urvalskriterier, t.ex. kontroll av videornas oskärpa och kvalitet samt betraktningsvinklar för att säkerställa så få ocklusioner som möjligt. Sammantaget resulterade detta projekt i en fungerande halvautomatisk pipeline för pose- och hastighetsuppskattning vid kollisioner i kontaktsporter, samt en första uppsättning personlig indatainformation som bör möjliggöra rekonstruktion av ishockeyolyckor med hjälp av simulering med finita element.

Le produit sport est envisagé comme l'un des rares produits qui procurent de la passion et de l'enthousiasme chez les individus. Les amateurs d'une équipe sportive vivent des réactions émotionnelles pour leurs équipes favorites, plus fortes dans l'industrie du sport comparativement à d'autres industries. Cette étude s'intéresse particulièrement à l'attachement émotionnel d'un individu à une équipe sportive. Il s'agit d'examiner les antécédents et conséquences de l'attachement émotionnel qu'un individu éprouve pour une équipe sportive. Le modèle conceptuel développé a comme variable centrale l'attachement émotionnel à une équipe sportive, la personnalité de la marque et l'expérience vécue avec cette dernière comme antécédents, la fidélité et le bouche-à-oreille électronique comme conséquences. Pour tester ce cadre conceptuel, un sondage en ligne a été mené auprès de 472 amateurs d'équipes professionnelles de la Ligue nationale de hockey (LNH). Les résultats de l'analyse des données montrent que la personnalité de l'équipe sportive et l'expérience vécue avec cette dernière influencent positivement l'attachement émotionnel, qui à son tour a une forte influence sur la fidélité et la génération d'un bouche-à-oreille électronique. Ce travail vient confirmer les résultats des recherches précédentes sur l'attachement émotionnel à une équipe sportive et compléter ces dernières dans un contexte particulier ; celui du sport. De plus, par le biais de ce travail nous proposons aux managers et décideurs en marketing des équipes sportives des suggestions les aidant à prendre les bonnes décisions stratégiques. Mots clés : Attachement émotionnel, personnalité de l'équipe sportive, expérience vécue, fidélité, bouche-à-oreille électronique.

Cette étude examine l’expérience des hockeyeuses de l’Université McGill de 1894 à 1941 en considérant à la fois les conditions de pratique de ce sport par les jeunes femmes et les discours genrés concernant la présence des femmes à l’université et dans les sports, plus particulièrement en ce qui a trait au hockey. La première partie se penche sur les réactions des étudiants face à l’insertion des femmes à l’Université McGill, que ce soit dans la classe ou sur la glace. Une attention particulière a été accordée aux rapports genrés dans l’univers sportif tout en tenant compte du contexte des débuts de l’accès féminin aux études supérieures. En ce sens, la présence des étudiantes au hockey et à l’université, des sphères associées à la construction de la masculinité, orchestre plusieurs réflexions : engendre-t-elle des angoisses chez leurs camarades ? Celles-ci s’avèrent-elles similaires aux discours dominants de la société québécoise ? Comment le sexe et le genre modulent-ils l’expérience des étudiantes en classe et sur la glace au début du XXe siècle ? La deuxième partie du mémoire détaille l’évolution du hockey féminin à McGill depuis ses débuts jusqu’à la Seconde Guerre mondiale. Elle met en lumière les défis rencontrés par les joueuses en raison de leur genre. Ainsi, ce mémoire aspire à examiner les discours véhiculés par les universitaires mcgilliens envers leurs collègues féminines en tant que hockeyeuses et étudiantes. Il cherche également à donner une voix aux étudiantes dans leur quête d’égalité auprès de la communauté étudiante et à éclaircir les origines du hockey féminin au Québec. / This study examines the experience of female hockey players at McGill University from 1894 to 1941, considering both the conditions of practicing this sport by young women and the gendered discourses concerning the presence of women at the university and in sports, particularly in relation to hockey. The first part examines the reactions of students to the inclusion of women at McGill University, both in the classroom and on the ice. Special attention has been paid to gender relations in the sports world while considering the context of the early days of women's access to higher education. In this sense, the presence of female students in hockey and at the university, spheres associated with the construction of masculinity, raises several questions: Does it cause anxiety among their male peers? Are these similar to the dominant discourses of Quebec society? How do sex and gender influence the experiences of female students in class and on the ice at the beginning of the XXth century? The second part of the thesis details the evolution of women's hockey at McGill from its beginnings until World War II. It highlights the challenges faced by female players due to their gender. Thus, this thesis aims to examine the discourse conveyed by McGill students towards their female colleagues as hockey players and students. It also seeks to give a voice to female students in their quest for equality within the student community and to clarify the origins of women's hockey in Quebec.

Dans de nombreuses disciplines sportives, la manipulation à deux mains d'un instrument conditionne le résultat final. Le baseball et le golf sont des sports impliquant une action bimanuelle asymétrique. La performance dans ces sports repose en partie sur la puissance de frappe. Il est possible que la préférence latérale, ainsi que la position des mains lors d'une action bimanuelle puissent influencer la puissance de frappe au golf et au baseball. La présente recherche examine d'abord la répartition des gauchers et droitiers manuels selon leur préférence latérale au baseball, au golf et au hockey. Les résultats indiquent que la préférence manuelle est prédictrice de la préférence latérale et qu'il existe une dépendance entre le côté adopté pour s'élancer au baseball et au golf, au golf et au hockey, au baseball et au hockey. Une étude expérimentale examine la performance de 227 hommes en fonction de leur préférence latérale et manuelle dans deux conditions (côté préféré et côté non-préféré). Les résultats indiquent qu'il n'y a aucun effet d'interaction de la préférence manuelle et de la préférence latérale sur la vitesse des élans au golf et au baseball et ce dans les deux conditions.

Title: The impact of a three-month training on motor functions in preschool hockey players Objectives: The goal of this diploma thesis is to summarize the knowledge about motor functions in preschool children. Also to find suitable test methods which should help to evaluate the motor level of children this age who are attending the preparation course in the hockey club Sparta Praha and also evaluate the influence of a three month hockey training on postural maturity and development of motor skills on the regular surface and on the ice. Methods: The pre-experiment was conducted in hockey preparation course HC Sparta Praha in preschool children during their training. It was carried out using 5 tests evaluating postural maturity, which were evaluated by two physiotherapists and 4 tests evaluating the level of motor skills on the regular surface and on the ice, which was measured on time. Tests were performed twice, with a three-month interval. Results: After three months of training, there was no substantial improvement in postural maturity assessment tests, although the consensus of the two physiotherapists in the assessment of the postural tests maturity was relatively high, for both measurements. The top rated test was tandem walk over the line. In this test, there was also the most improvement...

This thesis deals with medial presentation of two most watched sporting events in the Czech Republic the football Synot league and hockey Tipsport league, on channel ČT Sport. The first chapter introduces the history and play system the top two competitions. The second chapter lists the most important corruption scandals since 1993 in the Czech football and hockey, and discuss also the issue of hooliganism. The third chapter presents the history of the channel ČT Sport, all programs dealing with hockey and football competitions, the most important journalistic tools and TV professions involved in these programs. The fourth chapter presents the first part of the analysis of the two selected TV programs. The fifth chapter presents the analysis of communication and semiotic aspects of the programs Bully and Studio. The sixth chapter contains the author's own survey, which focuses on the perception of programs Bully and Studio from the perspective of the grand public. The aim of this thesis is to determine which of the competitions is presented in a better way, both from a professional point of view and in terms of the perception of spectators.

Genom en maktanalys undersöks i den här uppsatsen hur ishockeyspelarnas idrottsliga kvalitet kontra deras socioekonomiska förutsättningar framställs i Fredrik Backmans roman Björnstad. Utifrån Michel Foucaults teori om det dynamiska styrkeförhållandet görs en analys av hur maktförhållandena utspelar sig mellan spelare med olika idrottslig kvalitet och socioekonomisk bakgrund. Analysen inleds med en genomgång av den våldtäkt som utspelar sig i berättelsen och fortsätter sedan med en diskussion om vilka olika medel som används i texten för att framställa spelarnas kvalitet och socioekonomiska bakgrunder. Genom att sedan analysera olika avsnitt i berättelsen diskuteras hur de dynamiska maktförhållandena utspelar sig mellan utvalda spelare och andra karaktärer kopplade till ishockeyklubben. I samband med maktförhållandena diskuteras även härskartekniker som utspelar sig mellan karaktärerna. / Through a power analysis, this paper examines how the athletic quality of the ice hockey players versus their socio-economic conditions is made in Fredrik Backman's novel Björnstad. Based on Michel Foucault's theory of dynamic strength, an analysis is made of how power relationships occur between players of different sports quality and socioeconomic background. The analysis begins with a analysis of the rape in the story and then proceeds with a discussion about the different means used in the text to produce the players' quality and socioeconomic backgrounds. By then analyzing different sections of the story, I discuss how the dynamic power relationships occur between selected players and other characters associated with the ice hockey club. In the context of power relations, master suppression techniques are discussed that the characters use.

This thesis concerns the development of Swedish ice hockey as a national phenomenon during the period 1920–1972. The dissertation explores how the sport of ice hockey in just over half a century was transformed from a rather insignificant North American cultural import to one of Sweden’s most treasured pursuits by and large, and harbouring a national team (known as “Tre Kronor”) that at the height of its popularity in 1970 gathered almost the whole nation (82 percent of the adult population) in front of TV-sets during national game broadcasts. The analytical approach of the study is grounded in the theoretical assumption that “to be Swedish” is something you “learn” on a daily basis, and that an investigation of how “the nation” is constructed as an imagined community must see to the interplay between national rhetoric on the one hand and national practice on the other. This means that the analysis moves on two different levels, where the first is comprised of the sporting practice in itself (teams, games, players etc.), while the other deals with the conception of ice hockey in relation to national identity. The empirical investigation shows that the introduction of ice hockey in Sweden was “launched from above” under the influence of unbridled nationalistic sentiment in Sweden at large at the turn of the 20th century. The study also shows that during the inter-war era the Swedish Ice Hockey Federation promoted the spread of ice hockey in Sweden by stressing the game’s benefits as a more practical sport than the similar and already established winter sport, bandy. It is also argued that in most cases it was not so much a genuine passion for the game itself, but instead prosaic factors (economical considerations, sporting success and maintenance of ice surface etc.) that made sporting clubs take up ice hockey. After World War II the public interest in ice hockey exploded in Sweden. In the cold war era, Tre Kronor came to function as a thermometer of how the so called Swedish model stood up in comparison to the superpowers of the world. The analysis also underlines the importance of the comprehensive organizational and moral rearmament of Swedish ice hockey at large conducted by the Swedish Ice Hockey Federation in the post-war era, since it helped its cultural incorporation in the Swedish welfare state and its connection to Swedish national identity

In December 22, 2010, the hockey clubs AIK and Djurgården played against each other in front of an audience of more than 11 000 people in Ericsson Globe Arena, Stockholm. Although it was one of the biggest games of the year, afterwards no one was talking about the actual game on the ice. The reason; several times during the game, hooligans from both sides started big quarrels and the hockey dome felt more like a war scene than a place for a hockey game. From a branding point of view, and along with similar incidents from the past, the night in December did not create a good situation for AIK and their image.   Therefore, in this essay I want to investigate how AIK communicated through the crisis. I also want to evaluate whether their communication was good or bad from the perspective of different crisis communication theories. The essay’s research questions are: How did media describe the crisis and AIK´s part in it? What effect did AIK´s previous history of similar problem have on the ongoing crisis? How did AIK communicate through the crisis? How was AIK´s image affected by the crisis? What did AIK do well/what could AIK have done better? To be able to answer these questions, several news articles from the sports paper “Hockeyexpressen” has been analyzed as well as a text from AIK itself. The answers from the analysis has then been weighed against Hearit´s and Benoit´s theories on apologia as well as Coombs theory on the impact from previous crisis. An important conclusion is that AIK protects its image during the crisis by using the strategy “shifting the blame”. AIK also redefines the picture of a true supporter by questioning the acts of some of their so called “fans”. AIK´s redefinition also serve to correct the news papers misleading use of different epithets on the same category of people. However, although their image stays more or less intact AIK fail to communicate the need of a broader responsibility from the society when it comes to the problems caused by sports related hooliganism.