Early Sport Specialization

Popular culture pushes the idea that to succeed at sports, children need to know at a very early age what sport they want to commit themselves to for the rest of their lives in order to get that future scholarship or to reach the professional ranks.

While there are a few athletes that have benefited from early specialization, there are more studies coming out that show that it doesn't necessarily give your child an edge and can often be bad for their physical and mental health.

Many pediatricians agree that children should be participating in a variety of activities in order to develop a wider range of skills and to help them become a well-rounded athlete.  Playing a variety of different sports throughout the year is a form of cross-training that is extremely beneficial to a young body's physical development.

Common issues with early specialization:

Overuse Injuries - Using the body the same way over and over again can lead to stress fractures, tendonitis and growth plate injuries that occur when the body uses repetitive motion and is not allowed to rest. 

Burnout - occurs when athletes push their bodies too hard with little or no recovery period.

Early retirement from training and competition - Sometimes young athletes can get so discouraged by injuries, burnout and competition that they lose all interest because they no longer find the sport enjoyable. 

The recommended age for sport specialization is around 12 or 13 years of age and until then children should be encouraged to participate in a variety of sports and overall, have some fun.

References from the SIRC Collection

1. Callender S. The Early Specialization of Youth in Sports. Athletic Training & Sports Health Care: The Journal For The Practicing Clinician. November 2010;2(6):255-257. 
2. Capranica L, Millard-Stafford M. Youth Sport Specialization: How to Manage Competition and Training?. International Journal Of Sports Physiology & Performance. December 2011;6(4):572-579. 3. DiFiori J. Evaluation of Overuse Injuries in Children and Adolescents. Current Sports Medicine Reports (American College Of Sports Medicine). November 2010;9(6):372-378 
4. Jones L, Petlichkoff L. Early Sport Specialization Versus Quality Physical Education. Chronicle Of Kinesiology & Physical Education In Higher Education. May 2008;19(2):5-7. 
5. Malina R. Early Sport Specialization: Roots, Effectiveness, Risks. Current Sports Medicine Reports (American College Of Sports Medicine. November 2010;9(6):364-371. 
6. Wiersma L. Risks and benefits of youth sport specialization: perspectives and recommendations. / Benefices et risques de la specialisation sportive des jeunes: perspectives et recommandations. Pediatric Exercise Science. February 2000;12(1):13-22.

Early or late specialization?

When you compare today's athletes to those from the past, you will notice that athletes of today tend to train pretty much all year round. Sports have become big business with a lot at stake and for this reason, the days of taking the summer off from playing hockey or any other professional sport and coming to training camp unfit are unheard of nowadays. This is the reality not only at the professional level but also at the developmental stage. Kids are specializing early in sports in order to improve their skills and ability in a particular sport. They are training all year round to become the next Olympian or get that athletic scholarship. But is early specialization the best thing?

Early specialization does have its benefits as it allows children to understand pattern recognition and strategic thinking at an earlier stage. There are also athletes such as Tiger Woods and Andre Agassi who specialized at young ages and who would become phenomenal athletes. The Theory of Deliberate Practice by Ericsson and his colleagues supports early specialization, concluding that the earlier one can begin on focused training, the greater the chance at becoming exceptional in their chosen domain.

Conversely though, early specialization limits the ability of a child to explore other sports and discover whether they have other talents. Early specialization can also increase the risk of overuse injuries at a young age and burnout. The fact is that just because your child specializes early it does not guarantee the child will be a great athlete. Though Wayne Gretzky was a great hockey player even at a young age, it should be noted that he was also good at baseball and running.

Most sport governing bodies have also moved to the long-term athlete development model encouraging girls to begin specializing at age 11 and boys at the age of 12. This type of model challenges the notion of early specialization and supports the idea that children should be able to participate in a variety of activities before specializing.

A study of collegiate soccer players concluded that it did not really make a difference whether they had specialized in soccer or whether they were multisport athlete in order to play in the NCAA.

As a parent, allowing your child to be a multisport athlete ensures that their muscles and bones adapt to different movements, thus avoiding overuse injuries. Introducing children to a number of different sports also enables them to develop other characteristics and positive social interaction with a wide rage of new friends and less pressure, since they are not playing the same sport all year round.

References from the SIRC Collection:

1. Callender S. The Early Specialization of Youth in Sports. Athletic Training & Sports Health Care: The Journal For The Practicing Clinician. November 2010;2(6):255-257.

2. Côté J, Lidor R, Hackfort D. ISSP POSITION STAND: TO SAMPLE OR TO SPECIALIZE? SEVEN POSTULATES ABOUT YOUTH SPORT ACTIVITIES THAT LEAD TO CONTINUED PARTICIPATION AND ELITE PERFORMANCE. International Journal Of Sport & Exercise Psychology. March 2009;7(1):7-17.

3. Ford P, Ward P, Hodges N, Williams A. The role of deliberate practice and play in career progression in sport: the early engagement hypothesis. High Ability Studies. June 2009;20(1):65-75.

4. Jenkins S. Leading Article: Digging it out of the Dirt: Ben Hogan, Deliberate Practice and the Secret. International Journal Of Sports Science & Coaching. December 15, 2010;5:1-21.

5. Malina R. Early Sport Specialization: Roots, Effectiveness, Risks. Current Sports Medicine Reports (American College Of Sports Medicine). November 2010;9(6):364-371.

6. Moesch K, Elbe A, Hauge M, Wikman J. Late specialization: the key to success in centimeters, grams, or seconds (cgs) sports. Scandinavian Journal Of Medicine & Science In Sports. December 2011;21(6):e282-e290.

7. Roberts W. EDITORIAL: Youth Sports: Who's Pushing the Cart?. Current Sports Medicine Reports (American College Of Sports Medicine). November 2010;9(6):323.