Bibliogr. s. 1163-1164. Supplement issue 2 - numer specjalny związany z Annual International Scientific Conference: ,"Quality in Sport", 15-16 April 2021, organized by Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń POLAND

Background: Despite the positive interdependence between mass and elite sports performance assumed in many official policy statements, even wealthy countries are faced with a dilemma of priorities in their sport policy, balancing needs for a high participation in sports for all (to reduce health and social risks) with a desire for a success in the Olympic Games (to improve national pride and international recognition of a country brand). Purpose: The main aim of this research was to investigate the heterogeneity of the EU countries in terms of their mass sports participation and elite sports achievements. Its secondary aim was to explore the potential correlates of this heterogeneity. Material and methods: A hierarchical and a K-means clustering methods were used to determine groupings of the EU countries according to their sports participation and Olympic results in four time periods: 2004/6, 2008/10, 2012/14, 2016/18. Additionally, profiling of the clusters with a set of potential correlates was conducted. Results: Four main clusters were identified: low sporting performance countries, mass sports-focused countries, elite sports-focused countries, high sporting performance countries, completed with a fifth, unsteady cluster of outstanding elite sports performance countries. The mass sports participation is higher in clusters with relatively superior living standards and income, better sporting opportunities, higher public sport expenditure, and higher household spending on sports. In contrast, higher elite sports success requires not only good sporting opportunities, but is also dependent on the public financial support. There is more variance in elite sports than in mass sports achievements, both across countries and over time. Conclusions: There are important differences in sporting profiles of the EU countries. The countries having achieved very high rates of sports participation seem to face a trade-off between a hazardous Olympic success and an even higher, but stable, mass participation in sports.