درخت حوزه‌های تخصصی

The aim of this quantitative research was to examine and compare the retirement experiences of retired athletes from selected sports federations in Iran and Iraq. Using the snowball sampling method, 188 retired professional athletes (103 from Iran and 85 from Iraq) were selected from team sports and individual sports. The research data were collected using the Sport Career Termination Questionnaire. Data analysis was conducted using parametric and non-parametric statistical methods. The results indicated significant difference between the sport career length of the athletes of both groups; there was a significant difference between the sport career termination reasons of two groups; there was a significant difference between the retirement problems in two groups; there was a significant difference between the two groups in the amount of support received by the athletes during the retirement period, and significant difference existed between the level of retirement satisfaction in the two groups. It is recommended that sports authorities in Iran and Iraq pay more attention to retired athletes, strive to address the issues and challenges of their retirement course, and provide programs aimed at developing skills and job competencies for retired athletes. In particular, it is recommended that Iraqi sports authorities maximize the utilization of retired athletes within the country’s sports structure and implement effective programs for the prevention and treatment of sports injuries among athletes. Future researchers are encouraged to employ both longitudinal and qualitative research methods to gain a better and richer understanding of sports retirement.

Today, using new technologies is considered a vital factor in the sports tourism area. Tourist destinations try to use these technologies to create a competitive advantage to be a leader in this area. The use of these technologies brings lots of advantages. This research aims to identify the consequences of using new technologies in sports tourism. The research method is mixed with a sequential exploratory approach. In the first phase, the main indicators and components are identified using the online focus group research method, then in order to confirm them, a quantitative survey method was used. The data collection tools are semi-structured interviews collected from two focus groups including academic and executive participants related to the fields of sports management, sports tourism, and information technology. According to the research findings, 67 primary codes, 27 open codes, 13 axial codes, and 4 selective categories were extracted. In the quantitative phase of the research, all the values ​​related to the components and indicators were confirmed.  From the results of the present research, we can point out the benefits such as "smart health, smart sports tourism, green technologies, sustainable development (healthy and sustainable environment, dynamic and healthy economy, etc.), smart and sustainable sports tourism destinations" that were found to be the main advantages of using new technologies in sports tourism.