Final answer:
The question involves performing a statistical hypothesis test to determine whether the proportion of women participants in the 2008 pre-Olympic exhibitions significantly exceeded the 42% participation rate from 2004.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question relates to assessing whether there is evidence of an increase in female participation in Olympic sports. In 2004, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) reported a 42% female participation rate. By using a statistical analysis of the provided sample from pre-Olympic exhibitions in 2008, where 202 out of 454 athletes were women, we can conduct a hypothesis test to evaluate if the proportion has increased from the reported 42% in 2004. At a 5 percent level of significance, we would be looking to see if the proportion in the sample (202/454) significantly exceeds 0.42, using a one-sample z-test for proportions.