Submissions:

Online Submissions

STAR only accepts manuscripts submitted through its web platform. Authors must register as users on the platform in order to submit their manuscripts and track the status of their articles. To submit a manuscript, it is necessary to login to an existing account or Register to create a new account.

Submission Preparation Checklist

As part of the submission process, authors are required to verify that their submission complies with all the elements listed below. Submissions that do not comply with these guidelines will be returned to the authors.

• Submission Preparation Checklist
As part of the submission process, authors are required to verify that their submission complies with all the elements listed below. Submissions that do not comply with these guidelines will be returned to the authors.

• The author information form has been fully completed and signed by the corresponding author and must be submitted together with the cover letter and the article.

• The corresponding author has provided the metadata for each author required when registering the submission in the OJS platform: name and surname, email address, institutional affiliation, ORCID.

• The submission has not been previously published nor submitted for consideration by any other journal (or an explanation has been provided in the comments to the editor).

• The file containing the article text has been prepared based on the provided template, in Microsoft Word format; tables are editable and figures are in high-quality image format.

General Publication Guidelines for Authors

1. Originality:
Authors must ensure that manuscripts are original works. Particular attention is given to plagiarism and self-plagiarism. Articles with plagiarism equal to or greater than 30% will be rejected. During the evaluation process, plagiarism detection software will be used. Authors who violate this rule will be sanctioned with a five-year suspension from submitting articles to the journal STAR. In addition, those who use artificial intelligence must specify the tools used and the sections in which they were applied, under penalty of withdrawal of the article.

2. Confirmation of previous publication:
Authors must certify that the manuscript has not been previously published and is not being considered for publication in any other journal.

3. Peer review process:
Authors must actively participate in the peer review process and adequately respond to the observations and suggestions made by reviewers. They are also required to correct errors and issue retractions if necessary.

4. Author contributions:
All authors mentioned in the article must have significantly contributed to the research. Authors must declare that all data presented are real and authentic.

5. Conflicts of interest:
Authors must inform editors of any conflicts of interest.

6. Sources consulted:
All sources used in the preparation of the manuscript must be properly identified.

7. Errors after publication:
Authors must notify the editors of any error discovered after the publication of the article.

Manuscript Submission

1. Submission platform:
STAR only accepts manuscripts submitted through its web platform. Paper submissions or submissions by email are not accepted. Authors must register as users on the platform to submit manuscripts and track the status of their article.

2. Author information form:
Together with the manuscript, an author information form signed by the main author must be submitted, including:

• Confirmation that all authors have read and approved the text.
• Contact details of the corresponding author (name, address, telephone number, email) and confirmation that the main author will be responsible for communication regarding the manuscript.
• Confirmation that artificial intelligence has not been used in the development of the article, and the plagiarism percentage (must not exceed 30%).

Specific Publication Guidelines

1. Scope of publication:
STAR publishes rigorous scientific works that contribute to the advancement of knowledge in the field of sports training. The accepted sections are:

• Basic or applied research.
• Quantitative systematic reviews or meta-analyses (excluding simple bibliometric analyses).

2. Proportion of theoretical and empirical articles:
Theoretical articles must not exceed 40% of the total published, with at least 60% being original research articles with research results.

3. Authors’ responsibility:
Authors must assume responsibility for the accuracy of citations and the proper use of sources consulted. A certification signed by the main author confirming originality and compliance with publication standards will be required.

4. Manuscript format:
Manuscripts must be typed on DIN-A4 format, with Times New Roman font size 11, single spacing, 2 cm margins, and page numbering centered at the bottom of the page. The length should be approximately 7,500 words (indicative), although it may be longer with prior authorization.

Manuscript Content

• Title: In the original language, in English and, if necessary, in Spanish.

• Abstract: Between 150 and 250 words in the original language, English and Spanish (if applicable).

• Keywords: From 5 to 8 keywords in the original language and English.

• Full text: Must include the sections introduction, methodology, results, discussion, conclusions, and acknowledgments.

Tables and Figures

• They must be inserted within the text in the corresponding place, numbered and titled according to APA standards (7th edition).
• Tables must include a title in italics; figures must be numbered and titled in bold.

Photographs

Photographs must be submitted in JPG or similar format, with a width of 8.25 or 17 cm and a maximum height of 20 cm. Individuals appearing in photographs must be unrecognizable.

Manuscript Structure

The structure of the manuscript will depend on the section to which it is submitted. The most common sections are described below.

Scientific Articles

Basic and/or applied research papers. The manuscript must include the following sections:

• Introduction: Brief, including the purpose of the work, overview of the topic, state of the art or literature review, knowledge gaps, objectives and justification.

• Materials and Methods: Description of the material used, its characteristics, selection criteria and techniques employed. The tools, procedures and limits of the methodology used must also be explained so that the reported experience can be replicated.

• Results: Description of the observations made without interpretation. Results may be presented in tables, figures, graphs, maps, etc., whenever justified.

• Discussion: Presentation of opinions regarding the results obtained, comparing them with similar studies, suggestions for future research and possible applications of the results.

• Conclusions

• Acknowledgments (optional)

• References

Theoretical Reviews

The text will be divided into the sections necessary for a clear understanding of the topic. As a reference, it may include:

• Introduction: Background and current status of the topic
• Methodology used
• Results
• Discussion
• Conclusions
• Practical applications
• Future research lines
• Acknowledgments
• References
• Tables/Graphs

APA Standards

All manuscripts must comply with APA citation and referencing standards (7th edition).

APA Standards: The 20 Most Frequent Errors in an Article

1. When citing two or more authors in parentheses, before the last author use "&", not "and" or ", and".
2. Do not use "y cols." but ", et al.", which is never written in italics.
3. Authors’ surnames cited in the text must always appear in uppercase, and only the first surname is cited (not the name or initials), unless the original author writes them separated by a hyphen. Author initials are only included in the final reference list, not in the text.
4. Within a citation in parentheses, each "et al." must always be preceded by a comma. In the text, outside parentheses, "et al." is not preceded by a comma. For works with one or two authors, include the author name(s) in each citation. For works with three or more authors, include only the first author’s name plus "et al." in every citation, including the first one.
5. In the reference list, provide the surname and initials of up to 20 authors. When there are 21 or more authors, include the first 19 authors, insert ellipses (but not an ampersand), and then add the final author.
6. In the text (not in tables or mathematical expressions), numbers from zero to nine are written in words, not numbers.
7. Abbreviations such as kg, km, h, etc., never end with a period.
8. The number zero before a decimal point should be written when the statistical result may exceed 1. Otherwise, it should not be written before a decimal fraction when the statistical result cannot exceed 1.
9. Use only commonly known abbreviations and avoid excessive use in the text.
10. When citing two works by the same author in parentheses, the years are separated by a comma, not by "and".
11. The table number must appear above the table in bold, without a period (e.g., Table 3). The table title must appear below the number in italics. The same format applies to figure titles.
12. In the final reference list, even if there are only two authors, before the last author always write ", &", not "and".
13. In the reference list, after the journal number and before the issue there must be no space. The journal and its volume number (in parentheses) are written in italics; the issue and page numbers are not.
14. Avoid excessive use of italics and Latin expressions. Italics should only be used the first time special words in another language appear.
15. Do not underline anywhere in the text.
16. When citing an electronic journal reference, at the end write "Retrieved from" only when the retrieval date is necessary.
17. Thousands must be separated by commas (e.g., 1,000).
18. p (significance) must always be written in lowercase and in italics.
19. Exact pages of a citation must be indicated separated by a hyphen.
20. Quotations of less than 40 words must appear within double quotation marks.

Final Considerations

Each section of an article should be written using a specific verb tense recommended by APA guidelines:

• Introduction: Past tense for previous studies or present perfect for studies still relevant.
• Methodology: Past tense to describe procedures.
• Results: Past tense to present findings.
• Discussion: Present tense to interpret results.
• Conclusions: Present tense to state the conclusions of the study.