By Kim Schu, doctoral student and research assistant at Johannes Gutenberg-University, Mainz.
Kim spent five weeks on a research trip in Canada from August 25 to September 25, 2024.
After visiting Toronto, where he attended a professional soccer match of Toronto FC at BMO Field, Kim spent the majority of his time at the School of Kinesiology at Western University in London, Ontario. There, he was invited and supervised by Dr. Laura Misener. Dr. Misener is involved in the EU “Event-Rights” project, and her research focuses on promoting safe sport practices through good governance, strategic policy-making, and an emphasis on human rights and social justice.
Kim’s visit to Dr. Misener and Western University was driven by his own research focus, which is on “The Process of Olympization: Organizational Change in National Sports Federations Due to the Inclusion of Breaking in the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.” He had previously conducted seven interviews with the German Dance Sport Federation at various levels to explore the question: “How is the inclusion of Breaking in the 2024 Olympic Games affecting the national federation, and what steps is the federation taking to meet the new requirements?” Kim’s goal is to develop a questionnaire based on these results, which he plans to distribute to national dance sport federations worldwide to identify their strategies and to model a process framework by comparing similarities and differences across organizations.
Another reason for Kim’s visit to Western University was the possibility to study at the International Centre for Olympic Studies (ICOS), as well as his friendship with fellow PhD student, Guangpeng Zhou.
Each day, Kim and Guangpeng Zhou researched together at ICOS, a research, resource, and service facility founded in 1989 at Western University. ICOS aims to promote, generate, and disseminate scholarships on a wide range of social and cultural topics related to the Olympic and Paralympic Games, and the Olympic Movement. This is accomplished through several initiatives, including the publication of the scholarly journal Olympika.
In addition to weekly meetings and discussions with Dr. Misener and her team, Kim attended a lecture by Bob Barney on the history of the Canadian Olympic team, as well as a lecture by Georgia Teare on “Leveraging Major Sport Events”. On the weekend, he had the chance to visit an MLB baseball game in Detroit/ USA, as well exploring the city of London by bike.
During his time in London, Kim made significant progress in his research. The lectures and discussions with leading experts provided valuable insights that greatly strengthened his work.
During his time at Western University, Kim not only began developing a comprehensive questionnaire based on his earlier findings but also identified all national dance sport federations worldwide and created a contact list, enabling him to distribute the questionnaire globally. Additionally, he completed the theoretical section of his paper, significantly advancing his work
The fruitful discussions with Dr. Laura Misener and her team inspired new ideas, theoretical models, and fresh perspectives on his research topic. Kim also had access to extensive literature at the International Centre for Olympic Studies (ICOS), further enriching his theoretical foundation. These resources and collaborations provided critical insights that will guide him through the next phases of his research.
Kim would like to extend his gratitude to the RISE “EventRights” project of the European
Union, as well as to Prof. Dr. Holger Preuß. He also wishes to express his deep appreciation to Dr. Laura Misener, her team, and the entire School of Kinesiology at Western University for their exceptional support. These were incredibly enriching weeks that he will always
remember.