Assessment of sports training environments and safety conditions in university basketball facilities: Implications for athlete health and well being in Mongolia

Abstract

The Law of Mongolia on Physical Education and Sports and related legal frameworks establish essential guidelines for sports infrastructure. However, from a social and educational perspective, a sports facility is not merely a physical structure but a critical environment that influences student athletes' overall well being, training experiences, and institutional safety culture. This study evaluates the structural and environmental safety conditions of indoor university sports halls used for basketball training in Ulaanbaatar and discusses their broader social implications for sports education quality. Using empirical instruments including lux meters, digital thermometers, hygrometers, and laser measuring devices we assessed key parameters such as air quality, thermal comfort, lighting uniformity, fire safety preparedness, and emergency evacuation clearance across selected university halls. The findings indicate that several university facilities exhibit suboptimal lighting levels, inconsistent ventilation, and restricted safety clearance zones, which may compromise athletes' psychological comfort and heighten spatial anxiety. From a management perspective, deficiencies in designated emergency exits and smoke detection infrastructure highlight a pressing need to strengthen institutional safety cultures. We conclude that optimizing the physical sub environments of university sports halls is a social determinant of health equity, vital for ensuring students' constitutional rights to safe learning, sustained athletic participation, and optimal well being.