Journal profile · SPORT SCIENCES
Journal of Sport and Health Science
ISSN 2095-2546 · eISSN 2213-2961 · Elsevier BV · PEOPLES R CHINA
Journal of Sport and Health Science: CAS Zone 1 · Medicine (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal); impact factor 13.04; diamond open access (no APC); no APC; median 121 days to acceptance (90 articles, last 24 months); 98 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE, SSCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Journal of Sport and Health Science is published by Elsevier BV and is in Zone 1 of Medicine in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Physical Activity and Health, Obesity, Physical Activity, Diet and Sports injuries and prevention, together about 30.5% of its articles. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of Shanghai University of Sport; peer review under the responsibility of Shanghai University of SportThe Journal of Sport and Health Science (JSHS) is a peer-reviewed, international, multidisciplinary scientific journal dedicated to the advancement of sport, exercise, physical activity, and health sciences. JSHS publishes original and impactful research, topical reviews, editorials, opinion, and commentary papers relating physical and mental health, injury and disease prevention, traditional Chinese exercise, and human performance. Through a distinguished, carefully selected international editorial board, JSHS has adopted the highest academic standards, impeccable integrity, and an efficient publication platform.Fields of particular interest to JSHS include (but are not limited to)• Sport and exercise medicine• Injury prevention and clinical rehabilitation• Sport and exercise physiology• Public health promotion• Physical activity epidemiology• Biomechanics and motor behavior• Sport and exercise biochemistry and nutrition• Sport and exercise psychology• Exercise and brain health• Physical education• Traditional Chinese sports, exercise, and healthPlease contact us if you have questions about subscriptions:Editorial OfficeE-mail: jshs@sus.edu.cnTel: +86-21-65506293, 65506299Fax: +86-21-65506293Address: 650 Qingyuanhuan Road, Shanghai 200438, China
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): SPORT SCIENCES
Editor-in-chief Peijie ChenPublisher website
Editorial board by country: 11 in mainland China (about 21%); most named United States 21, Mainland China 11, Canada 3, Australia 3, Germany 2 (52 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Physical Activity and HealthMedicine12.9%
- Obesity, Physical Activity, DietMedicine9.4%
- Sports injuries and preventionMedicine8.2%
- Sports Performance and TrainingMedicine8%
- Cardiovascular and exercise physiologyMedicine7.2%
- Exercise and Physiological ResponsesMedicine5.6%
- Children's Physical and Motor DevelopmentPsychology5.2%
- Lower Extremity Biomechanics and PathologiesEngineering5%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Medicine Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Hospitality, Leisure, Sport & Tourism | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Sport Sciences | Zone 1 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Medicine Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Hospitality, Leisure, Sport & Tourism | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Sport Sciences | Zone 1 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Medicine Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Sport Sciences | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Hospitality, Leisure, Sport & Tourism | Zone 2 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
Database indexing
SCIESSCIScopusDOAJLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
PubMedPublisher website
Other: Crossref
As the journal's website lists them, not checked against each database; for Web of Science editions the records above apply.
Editions, and major and minor categories, are shown separately and never merged into one zone; check which edition your institution uses before you submit or report.
Metrics
Impact metrics and publication volume
Impact
- Impact factor
- 13.04LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 13.1Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 21.4LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 21.4Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 3.72LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 4.07LetPub ·
- h-index
- 22LetPub ·
- h-index
- 107OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 813OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 10.51OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 2.3%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 100%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 70LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 1,245 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 63 | 63 | 33 |
| 2025 | 98 | 98 | 662 |
| 2024 | 120 | 120 | 2,259 |
| 2023 | 76 | 76 | 1,731 |
| 2022 | 68 | 68 | 2,426 |
| 2021 | 86 | 86 | 4,618 |
Sources count differently and were observed at different times, so each source's own value is kept; "publisher" marks figures from the journal's website.
Review & acceptance
Review time and acceptance
Review time from article dates manuscript dates registered with PubMed · to
121 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 55 days – 165 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 62 days (90 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 184 days
- Sample
- 90 articles with submission and acceptance dates (233 in the window); the latest was accepted on
Only articles that were accepted and published are counted, not the time spent on rejected manuscripts, so this usually runs longer than a publisher's "time to first decision".
Other sources
- Average review time (community reports)
- about 22 weeksLetPub ·
- Submission to publication (journal-reported)
- about 22 weeksDOAJ ·
- Peer review
- Single anonymous peer reviewDOAJ
Community reports come from authors' own submissions (confidence 0.5) and are not a promise from the journal; for publisher figures, the journal's own definitions apply.
Fees & open access
APC and open-access policy
Diamond open access (no APC)DOAJ
Every article is open access and authors pay no article processing charge.
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DOAJ | No APC | No | CC BY, CC BY-NC-ND | |
| OpenAlex | USD 0 | — | — | |
| LetPub | No APC | Yes | — |
The journal's website is authoritative for fees; sources were observed at different times and each keeps its own value, without averaging.
Submission
Article types and submission policies (journal website)
What to prepare3 items from the author guidelines
- Keywords
- ≥ 3
- Reference style
- AMA
- Suggested reviewers
- Required
Article types accepted12, with length limits
- commentaryContributions falling into the following categories will be considered for publication: Research highlight, Commentary, Opinion, Review, Original article, Lette…main text ≤ 1,000 words · figures and tables ≤ 1 · references ≤ 20
- full paperContributions falling into the following categories will be considered for publication: Research highlight, Commentary, Opinion, Review, Original article, Lette…Length not stated
- letterContributions falling into the following categories will be considered for publication: Research highlight, Commentary, Opinion, Review, Original article, Lette…Length not stated
- letter to the editorLetters to the Editor present preliminary reports of unusual urgency, significance and interest, whose subjects may be republished in expanded form. They should…main text ≤ 900 words · figures and tables ≤ 1 · references ≤ 10
- meta-analysisContributions falling into the following categories will be considered for publication: Research highlight, Commentary, Opinion, Review, Original article, Lette…Length not stated
- opinionContributions falling into the following categories will be considered for publication: Research highlight, Commentary, Opinion, Review, Original article, Lette…main text ≤ 2,500 words · references ≤ 25
- original articleContributions falling into the following categories will be considered for publication: Research highlight, Commentary, Opinion, Review, Original article, Lette…main text ≤ 5,000 words · figures and tables ≤ 6
- research highlightResearch Highlights are by invitation only and present short updates on new progress in the field of sport and health. They should be no more than 900 words.Length not stated
- reviewContributions falling into the following categories will be considered for publication: Research highlight, Commentary, Opinion, Review, Original article, Lette…main text ≤ 6,000 words
- review articleContributions falling into the following categories will be considered for publication: Research highlight, Commentary, Opinion, Review, Original article, Lette…Length not stated
- surveyContributions falling into the following categories will be considered for publication: Research highlight, Commentary, Opinion, Review, Original article, Lette…Length not stated
- systematic reviewContributions falling into the following categories will be considered for publication: Research highlight, Commentary, Opinion, Review, Original article, Lette…Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Authorship, Conflicts of interest, Open access, Peer review, Preprints
- AI use Declaration of generative AI in scientific writing
Authors must declare the use of generative AI tools in the manuscript preparation process upon submission of the paper.Generative AI and AI-assisted technologies (“AI tools”) have been rapidly adopted in research and scholarly publishing, offering significant benefits while requiring clear standards for responsible and transparent use.Authors preparing a manuscript for this journal may use AI tool…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Authorship Changes to authorship
Original work only; not under consideration elsewhere; approval by all authors. Model summary
Authors are expected to consider carefully the list and order of authors before submitting their manuscript and provide the definitive list of authors at the time of the original submission. Any addition, deletion or rearrangement of author names in the authorship list should be made only before the manuscript has been accepted and only if approved by the journal Editor. To request such a change, …
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Conflicts of interest Declaration of interest
All authors must disclose any financial and personal relationships with other people or organizations that could inappropriately influence (bias) their work. Examples of potential competing interests include employment, consultancies, stock ownership, honoraria, paid expert testimony, patent applications/registrations, and grants or other funding. Authors must disclose any interests in two places:…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open access
Please visit our Open Access page for more information about open access publishing in this journal.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Peer review
Single blind peer review with at least two independent expert reviewers; Editor makes final decision. Model summary
This journal operates a single blind review process. All contributions are typically sent to a minimum of two independent expert reviewers to assess the scientific quality of the paper. The Editor is responsible for the final decision regarding acceptance or rejection of articles. The Editor's decision is final. More information on types of peer review.RefereesPlease submit the names and instituti…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Preprints Preprint references
Where a preprint has subsequently become available as a peer-reviewed publication, the formal publication should be used as the reference. If there are preprints that are central to your work or that cover crucial developments in the topic, but are not yet formally published, these may be referenced. Preprints should be clearly marked as such, for example by including the word preprint, or the nam…
Source ↗Publisher website ·
Excerpts are quoted from the journal's website; "model summary" lines are written by Workers AI and checked against the text. The journal's website is authoritative.
Profile
Publication details and official links
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Country or region
- PEOPLES R CHINA
- Language
- English
- ISSN
- 2095-2546
- Electronic ISSN
- 2213-2961
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗DOAJ
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Author guidelines ↗DOAJ
- Aims & Scope ↗DOAJ
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
- APC information ↗DOAJ
- Open access statement ↗DOAJ
- License & copyright ↗DOAJ
- Peer review process ↗DOAJ
- Editorial board ↗DOAJ
- Plagiarism policy ↗DOAJ
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Journal of Sport and Health Science
What CAS zone is Journal of Sport and Health Science in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Journal of Sport and Health Science is in Zone 1 of Medicine, and in Zone 1 of the minor category Hospitality, Leisure, Sport & Tourism / Sport Sciences; it is a Top journal. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 1 of Medicine. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Journal of Sport and Health Science?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 13.04; CiteScore 21.4, h-index 107.
How long does peer review take at Journal of Sport and Health Science?
Based on the dates recorded on 90 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 121 days (interquartile range 55–165 days); authors report an average review time of about 22 weeks. Article statistics cover accepted papers only, publisher figures follow the journal's own definitions, and community reports come from authors' own submissions; none is a promise from the journal.
What are the manuscript requirements of Journal of Sport and Health Science?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Keywords: ≥ 3; Reference style: AMA; Suggested reviewers: Required. A model extracted these from the author guidelines and each was checked against the text; check the latest version on the journal's website before submitting.
Where are the editorial board members of Journal of Sport and Health Science based?
Of the 52 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 11 (about 21%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (21), Mainland China (11) and Canada (3). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Journal of Sport and Health Science?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Journal of Sport and Health Science is indexed in SCIE, SSCI, Scopus and DOAJ. The journal's website also lists PubMed; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Journal of Sport and Health Science open access, and what is the APC?
Journal of Sport and Health Science is a diamond open-access journal (no APC). It charges no article processing charge.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, OpenAlex, Publisher website, DOAJ; every figure is tagged with its source and the date it was observed, and conflicting values are kept per source. LetPub source page: view ↗ (archived 2026-08-26). Last updated: .