A study published in the journal Sports Health found that “for most sports, there is no evidence that intense training and specialization before [age 13 or 14] are necessary to achieve elite status. Risks of early sports specialization include higher rates of injury . . . and quitting sports at a young age.”
How big is the risk of injury if you specialize in one sport? A Loyola University Chicago study of 1,200 youth athletes found that kids who specialized in one sport were 70 percent to 93 percent more likely to be injured than multi-sport athletes.That’s a lot.
Kids who specialize in one sport also get burned out. An Ohio State University study found that kids who played a single sport were more likely to quit their sport and be physically inactive as adults.
There are a ton of studies and articles published stating the benefits of being a multi sport athlete such as the above and virtually none extoling the virtues of being a " specialized' athlete.
BEFORE 13-14!! The discussion was around high school sports. You make yourself look foolish when you cite a study that actually supports the opposite position. Read it again ... "A study published in the journal Sports Health found that “for most sports, there is no evidence that intense training and specialization before [age 13 or 14] are necessary to achieve elite status." Implying that after age 13-14 (high school for most but maybe u started at 16?) to achieve elite status specialization actually could be important. Nice job genius.
Yeah, and studies that show smoking is bad for pre-teens imply that it is good for high school and college kids.
