Sport i Turystyka is committed to transparent, fair, and rigorous editorial and publishing practices. These policies follow the principles and recommendations of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), the Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing, and, where applicable to medical and health research, the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE).
1. Editorial process and peer review
All submitted manuscripts undergo an initial editorial assessment for compliance with the Journal's scope, submission requirements, and basic standards of scientific quality and presentation. Manuscripts that do not meet these requirements may be rejected without external peer review.
Manuscripts that pass the initial assessment undergo double-blind peer review. Authors' identities are not disclosed to reviewers in the submitted manuscript, and reviewers' identities are not disclosed to authors. Each manuscript is evaluated by at least two independent experts with appropriate subject expertise and no relevant conflicts of interest.
Reviewer recommendations are advisory. The final decision to accept, request revision, or reject a manuscript is made by the Editor-in-Chief or a designated editor based on the reviewers' reports, the authors' responses, and the editor's own assessment. Additional review may be sought where necessary.
Editorial decisions are based on the scholarly quality, relevance, integrity, and suitability of the manuscript and are independent of commercial, institutional, or other external interests.
Peer-review materials and correspondence are confidential. Conflicts of interest involving reviewers and editors are handled in accordance with the Journal's Ethics Policy.
2. Prior, duplicate, and overlapping publication
Manuscripts submitted to the Journal must not be simultaneously under consideration by another journal. The Journal does not accept manuscripts that substantially duplicate previously published work without appropriate disclosure, justification, and citation of the earlier publication.
Authors must inform the Journal at submission about any published, submitted, or publicly available material that substantially overlaps with the submitted manuscript and should provide the relevant material if requested.
Preprints and conference presentations
Posting a manuscript on a recognized preprint server does not preclude its consideration by the Journal. Authors must disclose the existence of a preprint at submission and provide its link or persistent identifier. Following publication, authors are encouraged to update the preprint record with a citation and link to the final published article.
Presentation of preliminary findings as a conference abstract, poster, or oral presentation does not normally constitute prior publication.
Manuscripts based on work previously published in full conference proceedings may be considered only if the submitted article represents a sufficiently distinct or substantially developed contribution and the previous publication is fully disclosed and cited.
Manuscripts reporting analyses based on data previously used in another publication must identify and cite the related publication and provide a sufficiently distinct research question, analysis, or contribution to justify separate publication.
Secondary or translated publication may be considered only in exceptional circumstances when the conditions for acceptable secondary publication are met and prior approval has been obtained from the editors of both publications.
3. Reporting standards and study registration
Study registration
Authors are encouraged to report their research in accordance with recognized reporting standards appropriate to the study design and field of research. Where relevant reporting guidelines are available, authors should consider their use to support transparent and complete reporting of methods, results, and interpretations. The Journal may request an appropriate reporting checklist where considered necessary.
Retrospective registration does not preclude consideration of a manuscript, but authors should transparently report the timing of registration and, where relevant, explain the reasons for delayed registration.
4. Data availability and reproducibility
Authors are encouraged to make research data, analytical code, protocols, and other materials supporting the findings of their study available where this is ethically, legally, and practically appropriate.
Where access to data or supporting materials is restricted because of participant confidentiality, informed consent, legal requirements, or legitimate third-party rights, these restrictions should be respected.
The Journal may request access to original data, analytical code, protocols, or other supporting materials where necessary to evaluate the reliability, reproducibility, or integrity of submitted or published work.
5. Complaints and appeals
Appeals against editorial decisions
Authors may appeal an editorial decision when they believe that a significant scientific, methodological, or procedural issue was misunderstood or not appropriately considered.
An appeal should clearly identify the decision being challenged and provide a concise, evidence-based explanation of the grounds for reconsideration.
Appeals are evaluated by the Editor-in-Chief. If the Editor-in-Chief was directly involved in the original decision, the appeal will be considered by another appropriately qualified editor who was not involved in that decision. Additional expert advice may be sought where necessary.
The outcome of the appeal will be communicated to the authors. Repeated appeals concerning the same decision will not normally be considered unless substantial new information is provided.
Complaints
Complaints concerning the editorial process, peer review, editorial conduct, publication ethics, or published content may be submitted to the Journal through the contact details provided on its website.
Complaints will be considered fairly and, where appropriate, in accordance with relevant COPE guidance. If a complaint concerns the Editor-in-Chief, the Publisher, or another person directly involved in the matter, it will be referred to an appropriately designated person or body that was not involved in the issue concerned.
6. Post-publication policies
The Journal is committed to maintaining the accuracy and integrity of the published scholarly record. Concerns identified after publication are evaluated according to their nature and severity and may result in a correction, Expression of Concern, retraction, or other appropriate editorial action.
Corrections
Errors that affect the accuracy, interpretation, or completeness of a published article but do not invalidate its main findings will normally be addressed through a formal correction.
Published corrections clearly describe the changes made and are linked to the original article. The original article is also linked to the correction where technically possible.
Expressions of Concern
An Expression of Concern may be published when serious concerns have been raised regarding a published article but the available evidence is inconclusive or an investigation is ongoing.
The notice will explain the reason for concern and will be linked to the original article. It will remain associated with the article until sufficient information is available to determine whether further editorial action is required.
Retractions, removal, and replacement
An article may be retracted when its findings can no longer be considered reliable because of major error or misconduct, or when retraction is otherwise necessary for ethical, legal, or publication-integrity reasons.
Retraction notices are publicly available, identify the affected article, state who is retracting the article and the reason for retraction, and are linked to the original publication. The original article normally remains accessible but is clearly marked as retracted.
Removal of published content is reserved for exceptional circumstances, such as legal requirements, serious privacy concerns, or situations in which continued availability could cause significant harm. Where content is removed or replaced, the Journal will publish an appropriate notice.
Post-publication discussion
Readers, authors, institutions, and other interested parties may submit substantive comments or concerns regarding published articles to the Editorial Office.
Concerns affecting the reliability, interpretation, or integrity of the published record will be evaluated and, where appropriate, addressed through an appropriate post-publication action.
Requests and decision-making
Requests for corrections, Expressions of Concern, or retractions may be submitted by authors, readers, institutions, editors, or other relevant parties.
The Editor-in-Chief, in consultation with appropriate editors and the Publisher where necessary, evaluates the available information and may seek clarification from authors, institutions, or other relevant bodies before reaching a decision.
Post-publication decisions are made without unnecessary delay, and authors are informed of the outcome where appropriate.
Indexing and metadata
Formal post-publication notices are linked to the affected article and communicated to relevant indexing and metadata services where applicable in order to maintain the accuracy of the scholarly record.
7. Open access, copyright, and licensing
The Journal provides immediate open access to its published content.
Authors transfer the economic rights in their articles to Jan Dlugosz University in Czestochowa in accordance with the publishing agreement. Authors retain their moral rights. Articles are published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) license.
Articles are published under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license, which permits sharing, adaptation, and redistribution for any purpose, including commercial use, provided that appropriate credit is given to the original authors and source.
Authors may archive and redistribute their work in accordance with the applicable Creative Commons license.
8. Publication fees
The Journal does not charge authors any fees.