The rapidly increasing popularity and lucrative rewards associated with elite athletics has progressively motivated and pressured young athletes to specialize in one sport at an early age for supposedly optimal chances of success and scholarships. However, early specialization continues to be a controversial topic within Kinesiology research due to possible adverse risks such as higher rates of injury, burnout, decreased quality of life, or not reaching their athletic potential.
Throughout my various research and personal experiences, I have firmly concluded that minimizing early specialization in all sports will greatly benefit youth athletes and athletics as a whole due to the many negatives that early specialization can hold. Despite this stance, it is important to prioritize athlete’s choice and passions when considering how they choose to participate in sports and how many sports they participate in, if any at all.
Speaking from my own experience in this topic, I spent many years playing multiple sports throughout middle school and then decided to dedicate all of my highschool years focused only on basketball, working towards my goal of college basketball. I ended up achieving this goal and after one year of playing collegiately, I moved onto my next challenge which was starting a brand new sport of track and field. I began training and learning the sport and within 4 months I earned an NCAA offer, which I greatly credit to my strong diverse athletic background and intense basketball training which allowed me to thrive in the sport almost from the start. Contrarily, many of my fellow NCAA track teammates have specialized in track since the beginning of high school, which sparked my interest in this subject and the differences involved.
As an athletic trainer who works with youth athletes, I have clearly observed an increase in the trend towards early specialization and have noticed some consequences such as increased injuries and poor coordination. Another goal of the following research is to clarify the connection between these symptoms and causes, and help to spread awareness throughout youth sports.
My experience is one example of how a broader athletic background can lead to distinctive advantages in athletics and open many doors to future opportunities. As an aspiring physiotherapist with ambitions to run my own clinic while continuing coaching in youth athletics, promoting athletes' wellbeing and health is at the top of my priority list. Hence, understanding sports specialization and the risks involved is essential for my professional growth as well as important for helping develop the young athletes under my mentorship. To gain insight into this topic comprehensively, I will analyze ten academic papers thoroughly in the following annotated bibliography.
Annotated Bibliography
Ahlquist S. et al. (2020). Associations of Early Sport Specialization and High Training Volume
With Injury Rates in National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I Athletes.
Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine
As this research team noticed the trend of early sport specialization and increased training volume increasing among young athletes, they wanted to explore the possible risks or benefits with this decision such as injury rates and scholarship attainment. This cross-sectional study targeted all Division I athletes from a single school, observing the associations between early sports specialization (ESS) and high training volume with injury rates. The research team surveyed the athletes about their demographics, reasons for specialization, age at specialization, training volume, and injury history. The results showed that athletes who specialized in their varsity sport before the age of 14 were significantly more likely to have a larger history of injuries, and required more time out for recovery, but these athletes were also more likely to be recruited and receive a scholarship. The athletes who trained for over 28 hours per week in their primary sport before high school reported multiple injuries and required longer recovery periods during their college sport. This study highlights the potential risks associated with ESS and high-volume training in relation to injury rates, a key consideration for those in sports medicine and education, where designing safer training regimens and making informed recommendations to athletes are important. Contrary to other studies, this study shows a slight advantage of ESS in the area of recruitment and scholarship attainment, which is a primary motivating factor for many young athletes and parents. This advantage comes at a trade off though, that tradeoff being the higher injury rates. It’s crucial to share these results with young athletes and parents to help them make the best decision for themselves, knowing all the risks and potential benefits involved.
DiCesare et al. (2019). Sport Specialization and Coordination Differences in Multisport
Adolescent Female Basketball, Soccer, and Volleyball Athletes. Journal of Athletic
Training
In this research article, DiCesare et al. (2019) explores the impact of early sport specialization on coordination among female adolescent athletes. The study involved a total of 366 sport specialized and 366 multisport adolescent female athletes who engaged in basketball, soccer, and volleyball. The researchers utilized the drop-vertical-jump (DVJ) assessment to measure the athletes' coordination abilities. The results revealed that sport specialized athletes exhibited increased variability in certain hip and knee joint couplings during the DVJ landing, which could potentially lead to unstable landings, inefficient force absorption strategies, and greater contact forces, which all lead to increased risk of injury. These findings are especially relevant to athletes in jump dominant sports such as volleyball and basketball. The authors conclude that early sport specialization could affect coordination in a way that increases injury risks. Although the differences in mechanics were modest, the results agree with and support our stance against early sport specialization and prove a connection to increased risk of injury.
Jayanthi N. et al. (2015). Sports-Specialized Intensive Training and the Risk of Injury in Young
Athletes. The American Journal of Sports Medicine.
Due to the current lacking data regarding early sports specialization and its connection to injury and growth rate among athletes, Jayanthi et al. held a case-control study on 1214 young athletes, focusing on this area of potential risk of injury associated with intensive single-sport training and the rate of growth. The survey included questions about hours per week spent in organized sports, free play, and the degree of sports specialization. The researchers identified a connection between sports-specialized training and an increased risk of injury and serious overuse injury, even after adjusting for age and weekly hours spent in sports activity. Furthermore, athletes participating in more hours of sports per week than their age, or those whose ratio of organized sports to free play time was more than 2:1, had higher chances of experiencing serious overuse injuries. Surprisingly, growth rate did not appear to affect injury risk. The results of this study can aid clinicians, young athletes, and their parents in understanding the injury risks related to sports specialization and help to promote a wide variety of activities during this stage of life.
Latorre-Román et al. (2017). Early sport dropout: high performance in early years in young
athletes is not related with later success. Retos 210-212
This study sought to explore top ranked youth athlete’s career paths and dropout rates, looking to question the belief that early success guarantees later achievement. The athletes studied were 14 to 19 years old during the period of 2004-2014 and involved 1,144 participants (594 males and 550 females) who were ranked in the top 10 among various sports in 2004. Surprisingly, by 2014 a staggering 96.50% of the athletes had dropped out from high performance athletics. Among these athletes, females had a higher dropout rate at 98.72%,where males had a rate of 94.45%. In sport specific results, they found that sprints and hurdles in males (99.4%) and middle/long running and walks in females (100%) had the highest dropout rates. These exceptionally high sport specific statistics have several factors contributing to their high percentages, such as a lack of monetary reward for professional status in track and field, or this could be due to the body attrition and the high injury rates in these sports, causing them to potentially not be physically able to compete anymore. These results clearly point out that early success does not guarantee continued future success. This result should be very encouraging to any athletes who aren’t happy with their current performance and feel behind their competition. I believe that traits such as perseverance and work ethic may be a better determining factor for continued athletic success as many young high achievers may become complacent and not develop that necessary work ethic for sport and life success.
Leite N. et al. (2009). Paths to expertise in Portuguese national team athletes. Journal of Sports
Science & Medicine.
This study explores the various paths to attaining athletic expertise among Portuguese national team athletes across different team sports (roller-hockey, volleyball, soccer, and basketball). To understand how they achieved this elite athleticism the authors aimed to understand the volume and variety of sporting activities these athletes undertook in their early developmental stages. The findings revealed a significant variation in sporting activities both between and within the sports studied, with athletes generally commencing participation in sports between the ages of 6 and 10. The study found that the athletes' engagement in multiple sports activities increased until early adolescence.The results further advised against early specialization as they showed that the involvement across multiple sports during early development led to increased acquisition of complex skills and athletic traits required in sport. This research adds to the growing body of evidence challenging the idea of early specialization in sport, suggesting instead that engaging in a variety of sports during early stages of development is a viable path to achieving expertise and improving overall athletic ability (improved complex skill acquisition).
Pasulka J. et al. (2017). Specialization patterns across various youth sports and relationship to
injury risk. The Physician and Sportsmedicine.
The researchers sought to investigate the patterns of early sports specialization involved in various sports. This clinical case-control study surveyed 1,190 young athletes (7-18 years) from sports medicine clinics and compared them to uninjured athletes, investigating the connection between early sports specialization and injury risks across different sports. Of the total participants the researchers found that 26% of the participants were single-sport specialized, with the highest proportion seen in tennis, gymnastics, and dance. Single-sport athletes in individual sports started specializing earlier and reported higher training volumes than those in team sports, and also exhibited a higher proportion of serious overuse injuries, but fewer acute injuries. These results show that individual sport athletes are more likely to specialize in a single sport than team sport athletes. Of these specialized individual sport athletes, they had reported higher training volumes, likely being the cause of their higher rate of serious overuse injuries. This information can benefit parents and young athletes by helping to become aware of potential risks involved in individual sports.
Post E. G et al. (2017). The Association of Sport Specialization and Training Volume With
Injury History in Youth Athletes. The American Journal of Sports Medicine.
This study examines the relationship between sports specialization, training volume, and injury history in young athletes. The current recommendations regarding youth’s safe participation in sport includes recommendations such as advising against single sport specialization, limiting sport participation to less than 8 months per year, and limiting participation to fewer hours per week than a child's age, this study seeks to find evidence for proper recommendations. The researchers surveyed 2011 youth athletes, including 989 females and 1022 males between the ages of 12 and 18. The survey gathered data on their specialization status, yearly and weekly sport participation volume, and injury history. Their findings showed that single sport specialized athletes were most likely to have a previous injury or overuse injury in comparison to the athletes who participated in multiple sports. The results proved that athletes exceeding the sport volume recommendations were more likely to have a history of overuse injuries. These results help to support these recommendations against early specialization and highlight the need for parents and young athletes to be aware of the potential risks associated with sports specialization and excessive training volume.
Rugg, C. et al. (2021). Early Sport Specialization Among Former National Collegiate Athletic
Association Athletes: Trends, Scholarship Attainment, Injury, and Attrition. The
American Journal of Sports Medicine
In their study, Rugg et al.(2021) investigated the various different patterns of early sport specialization among former NCAA athletes, and how it could impact scholarship attainment, injury rate, and body attrition. The authors developed a cohort study using an electronic survey distributed to NCAA athletes who participated from 1960 to 2018. The survey had key questions including their sport, years of participation, scholarship status, amount of injuries incurred in college that persisted longer than or equal to 30 days, career length and age of single sport specialization. The results showed that only 18.1% of athletes specialized in a single sport before the age of 15. However, the trend towards early specialization was much more common among more recent graduates and female athletes. Yet early specialization did not significantly impact the athletes scholarship attainment or injury rate. The studies results also found that early specialization was associated with a higher rate of burnout among athletes. The results of this study agree with and support some of our earlier statements such as confirming the increasing trend of early specialization among athletes and that early specialization can lead to burnout. This study can serve as a key support to our statement as even in elite athletic groups such as NCAA athletes, early specialization didn’t provide a competitive advantage but instead increased the risk of burnout. These results emphasize the possible psychological consequences that come with early specialization and prove that it was not advantageous when it came to scholarship attainment. This is a key point to note as many young athletes and parents often feel pressured to specialize young in hopes of acquiring a free education through sport.
Sheppard et al. (2020). Early Sport Specialization and Subjective Hip and Groin Dysfunction in
Collegiate Ice Hockey Athletes. Journal of Athletic Training.
Due to the increasing trend of early sport specialization especially among youth hockey player Sheppard et al. wanted to examine how early specialization in ice hockey might contribute to hip and groin dysfunction in college athletes. A total of 187 (106 males, 81 females) collegiate athletes were surveyed, using the Hip and Groin Outcome Score questionnaire. The results clearly highlighted a correlation between high levels of early specialization and increased hip and groin pain, symptoms, daily activity dysfunction, and decreased hip-related quality of life. The research suggests early ice hockey specialization can negatively affect hip and groin health in college athletes and possibly lead to decreased athletic performance in the long run.
Waldron et al. (2020). Exploring Early Sport Specialization: Associations With Psychosocial
Outcomes. Journal of Clinical Sport Psychology.
We are well aware of the potential risks to our physical health that can come with early sport specialization but an aspect that is just as important has been largely left out, this aspect is the potential negative psychosocial outcomes that can arise. This need is what led Waldron et al.'s study (2020) to find the relationship between early sport specialization (≤ age 12) and potential psychological health outcomes. The research found that athletes who specialized early reported higher levels of several negative psychological outcomes, including burnout, emotional and physical exhaustion, sport devaluation, and amotivation. The study highlights the importance of considering the age of specialization as well as the environment in which specialization occurs. This study supports the suggestion that early specialization can increase health risks, emphasizing the need for guidelines to aid in positively influencing athletes' psychological outcomes. Athletes and parents should use this information to weigh into their decisions regarding early sports specialization.
The studies examined consistently show that early specialization in sports can lead to a greater likelihood of injury and negative psychosocial outcomes. Post et al. (2017) and Ahlquist et al.'s (2020) research highlights the increased risk of injuries while Waldron et al.'s (2020) work captures the emotional exhaustion, physical fatigue, amotivation, and sport devaluation linked with early specialization. These are very important aspects to bring light to, especially in regards to helping young athletes and parents make the best all around decisions.
Despite these various concerns around early specialization's impact on young athletes' health, the promise of scholarships, fame, and large financial incentives may be continuing to obscure sound judgment by parents and coaches, along with the young athletes themselves. This hopeful outcome may be connected to Ahlquist et al.'s study which indicates that there is a positive correlation between early sport specialization and an increased likelihood of recruitment for scholarships which may pressure young athletes into an intense training routine.
This comprehensive view around the possible risks and rewards tied to early sports specialization provides valuable insights for both families of young athletes and coaches. A point to highlight in this review is Latorre-Román et al.'s research which looked into top-ranked youth athlete's career trajectories and showed that initial achievements do not guarantee continued success; with roughly 97% dropping out by the end of their study period. I believe that characteristics such as strong work ethic and perseverance are much stronger determinants of continued success than achievement in youth, and that this result should be shared among youth sport professionals to encourage young athletes.
Furthermore, cross-sport research similar to the work of Leite et al. (2009) has clearly demonstrated adverse effects tied to being specialized in one sport, as shown across different athletic fields; similarly Pasulka et al.'s work (2017) highlights negative reported outcomes across multiple sporting disciplines. These studies all contribute to supporting diverse engagement in multiple activities and sports throughout this developmental phase of life.
Thus it appears logical and important to emphasize encouraging multi-sport participation during childhood to develop well-rounded athletes who are less susceptible to sport-related injuries and are able to perform better because of their complex skill acquisition. Conducting this review has only served to affirm earlier perspectives plus expand my understanding to potential psychosocial and additional physical risks linked with early sport specialization.
As an athletic trainer studying to become a physiotherapist, I look forward to applying this knowledge when guiding young athletes toward making informed decisions and choices concerning their training. I hope to play a part in influencing positive sport policies and helping to assure that athletes achieve long-term success while preserving their overall well-being. It's essential to emphasize a balanced approach incorporating diverse sports and activities whilst prioritizing both physical and mental health. This research has made clear the need for widespread awareness of this topic especially as sport continues to grow. Moving forward it’s important to recognize the collective responsibility among athletes, parents, coaches, and healthcare providers to continue to learn and ensure a safe and rewarding future of sport. The future of sport and the well being of our young athletes depends on it.
References
Ahlquist, S., Cash, B. M., & Hame, S. L. (2020). Associations of Early Sport Specialization and High Training Volume With Injury Rates in National Collegiate Athletic Association
Division I Athletes. Orthopaedic journal of sports medicine, 8(3), 2325967120906825.
DiCesare, C. A., Montalvo, A., Foss, K. D. B., Thomas, S. M., Hewett, T. E., Jayanthi, N. A., & Myer, G. D. (2019). Sport Specialization and Coordination Differences in Multisport Adolescent Female Basketball, Soccer, and Volleyball Athletes. Journal of athletic training, 54(10), 1105–1114.
Jayanthi, N. A., LaBella, C. R., Fischer, D., Pasulka, J., & Dugas, L. R. (2015). Sports-specialized intensive training and the risk of injury in young athletes: a clinical case-control study. The American journal of sports medicine, 43(4), 794–801.
Latorre Román, Pedro & Pinillos, Felipe & Robles, J.. (2018). Early sport dropout: High performance in early years in young athletes is not related with later success. Retos. 210-212.
Leite, N., Baker, J., & Sampaio, J. (2009). Paths to expertise in portuguese national team athletes. Journal of sports science & medicine, 8(4), 560–566.
Pasulka, J., Jayanthi, N., McCann, A., Dugas, L. R., & LaBella, C. (2017). Specialization patterns across various youth sports and relationship to injury risk. The Physician and sportsmedicine, 45(3), 344–352.
Post, E. G., Trigsted, S. M., Riekena, J. W., Hetzel, S., McGuine, T. A., Brooks, M. A., & Bell, D. R. (2017). The Association of Sport Specialization and Training Volume With Injury History in Youth Athletes. The American journal of sports medicine, 45(6), 1405–1412.
Rugg CM, Coughlan MJ, Li JN, Hame SL, Feeley BT. Early Sport Specialization Among Former National Collegiate Athletic Association Athletes: Trends, Scholarship Attainment, Injury, and Attrition. The American Journal of Sports Medicine. 2021;49(4):1049-1058.
Sheppard, M., Nicknair, J., & Goetschius, J. (2020). Early Sport Specialization and Subjective Hip and Groin Dysfunction in Collegiate Ice Hockey Athletes. Journal of athletic training, 55(3), 232–237.
Waldron, Shelby & DeFreese, J. D. & Pietrosimone, Brian & Register-Mihalik, Johna & Barczak-Scarboro, Nikki. (2019). Exploring Early Sport Specialization: Associations With Psychosocial Outcomes. Journal of Clinical Sport Psychology. 14. 1-34.
