Preventing recreational sports injuries: practicalities and governance

Robust injury surveillance is the key to understanding and preventing recreational sport injuries

Sport and recreational activities are profoundly important for easing the economic and personal burdens of chronic disease and mental illness. International organisations, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States and the World Health Organization, have mapped both their positive contributions to mental and physical wellbeing and the costs of inactivity.1,2 Sport and recreational activities are also an integral part of society, not least in Australia, where professional sport and outdoor activities contribute significantly to the national identity.