Jay Coakley is Professor Emeritus of Sociology at the University of Colorado in Colorado Springs, USA. Currently, he works as a writer and public speaker. He received a PhD in sociology at the University of Notre Dame and has since taught and researched play, games and sports, among other topics in sociology. Much of his work focuses on the ways that young people make sense of their physical activities and integrate them into their lives. Coakley’s most recent research analyses popular narratives about youth sports and personal development, parental commitment to the sports participation of their children and changing approaches to youth sports in different societies. Dr Coakley has received many teaching, service and professional awards, and is an internationally respected scholar, author and journal editor. He has written ten US editions of Sports in Society: Issues and Controversies, co-edited Inside Sports and The Handbook of Sports Studies , and authored many articles and book chapters, mostly focused on issues related to sports, society and culture. His work has been dedicated to making sports participation a source of enjoyment and positive development for young people, and making sports more accessible, democratic and humane for people of all ages.

Chris Hallinan has had several decades experience as an advocate of access and opportunity in sports and education as a teacher, author and coach. He was born in Newcastle, New South Wales, and was educated in Australia and the United States. He is a Research Fellow with the Monash Indigenous Centre and has also been employed at several schools and other universities in Australia and the United States. He played and coached basketball, cricket and rugby at the representative level for several years during which time he became increasingly interested in race relations and cultural diversity issues in sports. He is the author of many research articles in these areas of expertise and is the co-editor or co-author of several books, including: Sport and Cultural Diversity in a Globalising World , Fenced Off Soccer: The Containment of the World Game in Australia , Indigenous People, Race Relations and Australian Sport , and Race, Ethnicity and Sport in Australia .

Brent McDonald is a lecturer in sports sociology at Victoria University. Brent was drawn to sociology as a way of making sense of his experiences of playing rugby and working in Japan. His PhD at Victoria University focused on the role of sport within the Japanese education system and how these experiences shape the identities of young Japanese men. Prior to moving into academia, he had fifteen years’ experience working in high school sports programs as a professional coach. During this time his coaching practice became increasingly infl uenced by sociological principles and the practical application of theory to children’s sporting experiences.
Brent has published widely around the area of Japanese educational sports and current research interests include issues of identity and ethnicity; youth sports; gender studies; and social inclusion through sports.