Investigation of the Factors Influencing the Development of Sports Tourism (A Case Study: Tourists Participating in Sport Events in Zanjan Province)

The study is to identify factors underpinning the spread of sport tourism in Zanjan city¡ considering tourists participating in sport events. Research methodology is descriptive-analytical deduction and has been done in causal survey method. Statistical society consisted of 832 athletes and coaches of Zanjan city in years 1391 and 1392 that 263 of them were chosen as research sample using random sampling method. Also documentary method was used to codify the theoretical framework and the data was gathered by a researcher made questionnaire. Validity of the questionnaire was approved by face validity and content validity (CVR> 0.75) and factor analysis (KMO>0.75) and reliability was checked by Cronbach test (alpha = 0.843). Data were analyzed by AMOS¡ version 22¡ applying descriptive and inferential statistics.
Findings indicated that sport infrastructures¡ authorities'' concern¡ tourism infrastructures and sport events are respectively the most effective factors on the spread of sport tourism. Also¡ there was a significant difference in tourism infrastructures and sport events¡ as the coaches more than athletes pay attention to these two factors.