Volunteers of special events have been cited as being unlike volunteers at other events. Moreover, little is known regarding why people volunteer at small-scale sports events in small cities. Building on the four volunteer factors developed by Farrell et al. (1998. Volunteer motivation, satisfaction, and management at an elite sporting competition. Journal of Sport Management, 12(4), 288–300. doi:10.1123/jsm.12.4.288), the concepts of communitas and liminality as well as age and gender differences, this study sought to examine the motivations of sport volunteers in the context of a small-scale special sports event.
