ABSTRACT
Historically, sport has been mainly practised by gifted or passionate people. Propagation of the health and aesthetic benefits of being physically active, together with an increase (or better management) of leisure time, has resulted in a diffusion of sports practice in the contemporary world. Currently, there are more members in health and fitness clubs than ever and sport facilities became a not unusual element in many new planning developments. Paradoxically, participation in sports still remains relatively low overall in both the centre and the periphery1 and there is substantial margin for improvement. In England, for example, approximately 50 per cent of men and about 55 per cent of women do not do any sports,2 and these “no participation” figures are particularly high among certain population sub-groups, such as South Asian middle-aged women (80-95 per cent do not do any sports), men and women from lower socioeconomic groups (70-80 per cent), and individual with disabilities (90 per cent).
