Specializing In Sports Research Paper

Being a professional athlete is one of the most commonly heard dreams of a young boy or girl who currently elementary school. Whether it is realistic or not, these kids will be participating in the sport that they wish to thrive in. But, time after time we hear adults complain about their child’s insane soccer schedule, or how they have to spend their whole weekend traveling for games. The parents complaints shouldn’t be the topic of discussion, in fact the only opinions that matter are the children. The question shouldn’t be asking whether or not youth sports are too intense, it should be asking if it is worth it. If a child loves what they’re doing then they have every reason to continue playing their sport, but if they are not all in, he or she has to question whether or not all the craziness is worth it.

Sports specialization among young people is when a child or teenager trains for and competes in only one sport. They work extremely hard

My first example is that when asked why they quit competitive sports, most kids said this: “It’s no fun anymore.” There are many reasons a sport can be “no fun”. These reasons include too much pressure, lack of friends, or even just plain old boredom. Also, playing just one sport is bad for your body. By playing only one sport your muscles that you use often build up more than the muscles you would use for another sport. This can lead to injuries when trying a new sport. Furthermore, kids feel like they have had enough. They want to start playing a new sport, but they are all ready so good at their current sport it would be a waste to try something new.

Sports are good for exercising but it can become very intense in the future. Intense practicing among youth sports programs can be damaging to youth athletes. Sports involve teaching tactics, some children may be at that point where they are not able to do it. Some parents argue about their child's coach is too tough on them and emotionally that could damage for young athletes. There is instances that children

1.Farrey and Sagas argued against the mentality that early sport immersion and early specialization will lead children to successful careers as athletes. Early specialization was described as children around the age of six choosing only one sport and concentrating only on that specific sport’s performance and practice (Sagas,2013). People in society might presume that specializing children at young ages will help guide them into becoming great athletes, however, “early specialization can have significant negative consequences on the development of an athlete over time” (Sagas, 2013, p.2). Some evidence that Sagas’ (2013) mentioned in his article to dispel the myth of early specialization included multiple studies where it showed children that were early specialized had an increase of dropping out of sports, burnout, social isolation, physiological imbalances, and limited range of motor skills. Farrey also presented evidence that early involvement and early specialization in sports doesn’t lead children to greater success. One argument that Farrey made was that early specialization can cause mental exhaustion and overuse injuries which made the “AAP now formally opposes specialization before a child reaches puberty” (Farrey, 2008, p.58). This evidence proves that overtraining children at young ages will inevitably have negative effects. Farrey also discussed the data that was found from surveying the training patterns of U.S. Olympians. From this data Farrey concluded that “many [U.S. Olympians] played multiple sports as teenagers, dispelling the myth of early specialization” (Farrey, 2008, p.191). Overall, Farrey and Sagas proposed several valid reasons that early immersion and early specialization in sports has negative impacts on children rather than helping them to achieve success.

In regards to the development of young athletes, a controversial question exists; will the path of early sport diversification or the path of early sport specialization ultimately lead to greater sport expertise and elite performance? Specifically, what effects can each pathway have on development of a child’s physical fitness and motor coordination as well as a young athletes career development? Stakes run high for sports with limited scholarship availability and national team sports, so, when it comes to athletes who are identified as talented at a young age, in many cases they are pushed to specialize in that sport early by parents with high expectations and aggressive coaches eager for success. Early sport diversification begins with the

The first reason specialization in sports is not good at a young age is because it increases your risk of injury.“High school athletes who specialize in a single sport are 70 percent more likely to suffer an injury during their playing season than those who play multiple sports, according to a study released late last month

When you talk about competitive sports, what do you think of? Soccer, track, basketball? Well, these are all good examples. All sports keep you healthy, are all about learning from your mistakes, and most of all, putting in your best effort. Athletes learn determination, that they cannot always be the best, and that they need to be prepared to fail. According to Tommy Lasorda, a former Major League baseball player, “The difference between the impossible and the possible lies in a person’s determination.” The most important thing when kids play competitive sports is that they need to be determined to do their best. However, sports do not only give kids benefits physically but also mentally. Kids should play competitive sports because there are

Everyplace you travel you see sports fanatics and most them as a child didn’t do thus good in sports, then they attempt to put their kid in sports programs. They would wish to get the athlete they never were. In sports you see athletes get hurt all the time. As a parent you would hate to see that happen to your child. Children who have a big risk of injury and could easily hurt their bodies. That doesn’t defeat the purpose of them being able to stay fit and learn lessons from playing. As a kid I enjoyed watching and playing sports, so it’s important for my kids to be able to enjoy it too.

However, placing your child in a sport and allowing them to thrive to be the best that they can be will teach your child a tremendous amount of responsibilities. Whether or not your child wants to play sports or not, you as a parent should be able to stand by your child in whatever decision they may make in life. But having your child play sports will allow them to be more active in playing and also allow them to live a more healthy life instead of your child sitting on the couch and watching TV. Placing children in sports can teach them many goals in life, they will be able to use them when they grow older, especially when they reach middle or high school level

I am a student athlete. Not only am I a student athlete, I am the starting Quarterback for my high school. With this role comes great responsibility. As a high school football player I currently spend 7 hours in school each day, 2- 3 hours in football practice that includes weight training, conditioning, and run through of plays along with 2-3 hours a day in homework. While my friends are working and able to make money for themselves and do other things my career is being a student athlete and I don’t have that opportunity. I am fortunate to have my parents that can take care of my needs while I enjoy being an athlete. Now let me put myself in the shoes of a college football player which I will be very soon. This load becomes even greater

Students can be put under a lot of pressure to succeed, which results in them not giving their best effort. According to Michael Lorene, J.V. basketball coach at Jesuit High School in California, “Those that seem to have an overwhelming schedule and are playing multiple sports tend to be doing better academically than kids who don’t do extra curricular activities.” While this may be true of some kids, everyone’s brain works a different way, and this is not the case for most high schoolers. Andre Gregory, a Sophomore at Jesuit, says, “It’s very difficult fitting in studies and having to go to practice late at night.” So, while parents may believe that they’re doing what’s right for their kids, putting them in sports may cause extra, unnecessary

Parents have their kids specialize in one sport at an early age all too often. They do this because the coaches of their children tell them that if they don't specialize now, then their child will have no shot at making their high school or travel team later in their childhood. Sometimes, it isn't even the kid’s choice to specialize in a sport; for the parent decides.

The first reason why kids should play sports younger then 12 is because children’s injuries, “children ages 5-12 account for nearly 40 present of all sports related injuries treated in hospitals”(Higgins). “On average the rate of injuries increases with a child’s age. Injuries associated with participation in sports and recreational activities account for 21% of all traumatic brain injuries among children in the United States” (Huggins). Most kids like to do what they want when they want. That’s not okay, their parents need to be on top of that and make sure their children are okay. As kids go on to play sports at a higher age they need to take care of their body’s and not let them get weak and not want to try anymore. “Among athletes ages 5-12, 28 percent of football players, 25 precent of baseball players,

Youth sport specialization has been seen as a moral issue in society for some time now. According to a study published in the Journal of Sports Sciences, “young athletes who competed in three sports at are 11, 13, and 15 were significantly more likely to compete at an elite national level in their preferred sport than those who specialized” (Reed, 1). Secondly, from an article published in 2012 by the Journal of Sports Science, “young male athletes who participated in multiple sports were found to be more physically fit, have better gross motor coordination, more explosive