The Effects Of Sports Specialization In Sports

Youth sports ages are considered to be high school sports and below. “And more than 45 national sports groups, including the USTA, MLB, NFL, PGA, and NHL are backing an effort to encourage multi-sport play” (Rosenwald, 2017, p. 3). Kids love sports, and it’s one of the things that they do for fun. Sports keep the youth in today’s society physically and socially active which can help prepare them for their future greatly. Most kids that do play youth sports are out for more than just one sport, which helps kids even more, and that is very helpful for them. When they play more than one sport it helps them develop skill that they can use in other sports. “They(the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and

Competitive sports in some cases are becoming very unhealthy for children. Most children would rather play on a losing team than sit on the bench of a winning team. Youth sports are a great idea to get children up and active, as well as improve their social skills. Just like every other thing in life it is important to practice and work hard to achieve success. However it is unhealthy to push for results over the needs or wants of the child. Aside from the mental stress that young athletes may experience from intense training and physical play long lasting injures is now a growing concern. Fact is competitive sports is a double edge sword if done right it is the greatest thing world, but if done wrong it can be very unhealthy for a child.

If kids don’t try other sports, how do they know whether or not they might like those sports more or be better at them? For many athletes their bodies are not completely developed. By playing at the speed of the higher conditioned and developed players in the professional league, young underdeveloped athletes run the risk of suffering an early career ending injury. These opportunities, though, come at a cost. While young athletes are participating in intensive sporting education, their academic education may be neglected. Age effects take a greater approach to the physical side of the sports people body, as the older the sports person is, the more mature and developed their body is and the younger the person is the less developed they are. Training and traveling all

The purpose of this paper is to argue the fact that youth sports are not becoming too intense. After reading the New York Times article I decided to pick this topic and argue against this theory because as a division one athlete I have my own opinions. I picked three sources which can back up and prove that sports being too intense is very much your own opinion.

Each year in the United States, more than 36 million school-aged children participate in an “organized sport” (“Youth Sports Statistics”). Especially over the past few years, many studies have proved or disproved the idea that sports are beneficial for young kids. Those studies have found that youth sports have both positive and negative effects on young children, and research shows parents and coaches have the greatest effect on a child’s experience.

Research shows that early specialization in a single sport while eliminating others can have adverse effects. From the intense practices to pressure-filled competitions, young athletes can feel a considerable amount

Mark Hyman, author of Until It Hurts: America’s Obsession With Youth Sports and How It Harms Our Kids says, “There’s no evidence that kids who specialize in one sport are more likely to go pro or get a scholarship. None.” Hyman explains that there is no evidence of kids having more success if they specialize in one sport. Dr. Matt Matava, a sports-medicine specialist at Washington University in St. Louis also says that “you’re more likely to have success in most sports at the college level if you diversify while you’re growing up.” Matava says a similar thing- that people are more likely to have more success in sports if they try a variety of sports. Both quotes imply that people will not have a better life if they centralize on one sport- in fact, their lives may be worse. Focusing on a single sport- and putting himself/herself under pressure- is not a good thing to do, as these two people are trying to tell us. Success is important- not doing a lot of one sport. It won’t do much

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

Many youth sports are part of community organized after-school programs. There are many different types of these programs such as T-Ball, Little League Baseball, Pop Warner Football, soccer, martial arts, cheerleading, and so forth. “There are over 40 million youth participating in organized sports, and both girls and boys have a dazzling array of choices and can play a sport year round” (Le Menestrel and Perkins 13). Communities use youth sport as an outlet to encourage social activity, a healthy lifestyle, and skill development for that particular sport. For example, “Participation in organized sports can provide opportunities for youth to learn more about specific skills and exercises associated with a particular sport” (Perkins and Noam 76). These programs offer opportunities to boost skills and connect positively with others. Without these activities, parents will have to find another developmental setting that may not give similar or beneficial outcomes as those of organized youth sport. Studies found that, “Sports

However, the days of simply playing ball with your friends are over. It is a different world for young athletes. Sports at a young age should be fun and a great source of physical activity. Yet, many children are specializing in one sport early- playing year-round, joining competitive clubs, or travel teams and participating in special training programs- believing they’ll put themselves on the fast

As mentioned by Sokolove on page two, “... we increasingly ask more of young athletes, especially if they show talent: play longer, play harder, play faster, play for higher stakes. And we ask this of boys and girls equally -- unmindful of physical differences. The pressure to concentrate on a ‘best’ sport before even entering middle school -- and to play it year-round -- is bad for all kids.” I agree with Sokolove’s quote because overspecialization can harm the social, emotional, and physical development of young athletes. Specifically, in terms of the physical development of an athlete for this reading response paper, overspecialization leads young athletes to commit the majority of their physical activity to one sport and

The authors claim that players go through three different stages in sport development: the sampling, specializing and investment years. Athletes participate in a great number of sports in the sampling stage (less structures activities, intended to maximize enjoyment and flexible rules adapted to age (Côté & Hay, 2002); in the remaining two stages, athletes reduce the number of sports played and focus to practice in deliberate activities related to the sports chosen (this include more organised activities, involve effort, produce no instant rewards, and are inspired by the desire of improving performance instead of pure enjoyment; Ericsson et al., 1993).

Since the creation of man, sports have had a tremendous role in the way people live their lives. From the time we are born, until our elderly age, most of us are involved in some way with sports. Whether it is a scrimmage game of soccer at recess in elementary school, playing on the varsity athletic team or simply watching the Olympics or sporting events on television, sports have an influential role in our everyday lives. The outstanding popularity of the sports industry has profoundly affected youth sports organizations that an estimated twenty-six million children ages six through eighteen participate in at least one school or community based athletic program (Smith & Smoll, 1997). Well structured sport programs can provide youths with

The bang of the head, the crack of the bone, the tear of a muscle, are all things that high school athletes put themselves at risks for. Every time a high school athlete steps foot on a field, rink, or court they put themself in a risky situation. Although the risk may be there, athletes achieve many valuable lessons throughout high school sports. The valuable lessons promote self-confidence, socialization and team spirit, as well as decreases stress. While playing sports, athletes are at excessive risks of being injured. Although high school athletes have a risk of being injured, the benefits of high school sports programs outweighs the physical risk because of its benefits to teenagers mental health, benefits to teenagers physical health,

Practicing a sport can be highly beneficial to children, until it’s taken too far. Often called training now, children as young as six years old are participating in sports that require too much time. At that age, sports should be something fun to do and a favorable source of physical activity. However, whenever an athlete shows a hint of a talent, child exploitation occurs (Bean 10234). Between the ages of 7-12, adolescents should be learning identity, motives, beliefs, and values, but nearly all athletes are practicing 5 days a week with games every Saturday. This leaves no time or energy for hanging out with friends, homework, family time, and relaxation. Dr. Shane Murphy reports that if a coach or trainer sees talent in a young child, immediately they are convincing the