ABSTRACT
Much of the discussion concerning the extent in which sport tourism can be treated as a distinct sub-field of academic focus, stem, largely, from its potential to create experiences unique from other sport and tourism encounters. Yet, due to the complexity and diversity of sport tourism episodes, together with the many personal, social and cultural factors that may influence them, the likelihood of detailing the resulting innumerable experiential outcomes would be as unrealistic and it is unhelpful. Therefore, through analysing the key conceptual and defining characteristics of sport tourism, this chapter aims to identify those components that are more likely to influence the culminating experiences it produces. It proposes that authenticity, motivation, activity and place (A MAP) are those factors that collectively, to a greater or lesser extent, shape the sport tourist experience. Each component is applied to the three broad sport tourism categories relating to active, event and visitor-attraction contexts that help illustrate the rich variety of the experiential outcomes. Whilst it is acknowledged that the suggested components act as umbrella terms for a host of other influencing factors, it is hoped that they will act as a starting point to encourage further investigation and research. The past 30 years has spawned countless important studies that explore the consequences of sport tourism in economic, social and environmental terms, but in doing so have diverted attention from those who directly participate – namely, the sport tourists themselves.
