Sports Development Continuum

P1 describe three examples of the sports development continuum, from three different sports M1 compare and contrast three examples of the sports development continuum, from three different sports, identifying strengths and areas for improvement Sports Development Continuum Foundation: means the early development of sporting competence and physical skills (e. g. throwing, catching, and hand-eye co-ordination) upon which all later forms of sports development are based.

Without a sound foundation, young people are unlikely to become long-term sports participants. Participation: refers to sport undertaken primarily for fun, enjoyment and often, at basic levels of competence. However, many very competent sports people take part in sport purely for reasons of fun and health & fitness. Performance: signifies a move from basic competence into a more structured form of competitive sport at club or county level, or indeed at an individual level for personal reasons.

Excellence: is about reaching the top and applies to performers at the highest national and international levels The Golf Foundation reports that its adapted and competitive golf offering for schools is proving a big hit with teachers and pupils. The Foundation’s ‘HSBC Golf Roots’ programme in schools is gathering significant momentum in 2013, as 39 out of 46 County Local Organising Committees have selected an HSBC Golf Roots competition for the current academic year as part of England’s School Games curriculum.

This high proportion is second only to athletics, and ahead of traditional school sports such as football, cricket and netball. Participation: refers to sport undertaken primarily for fun, enjoyment and often, at basic levels of competence. However, many very competent sports people take part in sport purely for reasons of fun and health & fitness. An example for participation would be SNAG golf. Performance: signifies a move from basic competence into a more structured form of competitive sport at club or county level, or indeed at an individual level for personal reasons.

Elite: is about reaching the top and applies to performers at the highest national and international levels. Football Development Centre’s These centres can be found in 70 colleges across the country for players who are above average to compete with players of a similar ability. Here they work in an environment with people who can develop their progression to achieve their highest level of performance. Once players have reached a certain level according to the coaches they can be recommended to a school of excellence or academy. Players can attend these centres by invitation only.

They would have normally taken part in a Local Football Development Scheme activity in the past. Liverpool Football Club have a talent development scheme starting from their under 10’s going up to under 19’s.

• UNDER 10-“age of fun”.
• UNDER 12-“age of technique”.
• UNDER 14-“age of understanding”.
• UNDER 16-“age of competitive match play”.
• UNDER 19-“age of professional preparation”.

This is similar to the Long-term athlete development models devised by Istvan Balyi in 1990 following his work with the Canadian Alpine Ski team in the 1980’s.

This was designed to help prepare players to reach the highest levels. It takes about 10 years of training to develop an elite athlete however they don’t need to train for 10 years in one sport. The LTAD state that playing more than one sport over the 10 years is part of the programme. This programme has 6 phases to it. It also helps prepare people for retirement to the sport. These 6 phases are then split into 3 areas: Objective: what the athlete should be able to do at the end of the phase .Content: the activities contained within the phase Frequency: how often the athlete should train during the phase.

Phase one- FUNdamentals Objective: to learn fundamental movement skills. Content: overall development, focusing on ABCS (agility, balance, coordination, speed) to underpin the generic skills used in many sports (running, jumping and throwing). Frequency: perform physical activity five to six times per week.

Phase two- Learning to Train Objective: to learn fundamental sports skills Content: Concentration on the range of FUNdamental sports skills, such as throwing, catching, jumping and running •Introduction to readiness – being mentally and physically prepared •Basic FUNdamentals tactics, e. g. if fielding, net/wall, invasion games can be introduced. (In net/wall games, players achieve this by sending a ball towards a court or target area which their opponent is defending. The aim is to get the ball to land in the target area and make it difficult for the opponent to return it) •Cognitive and emotional development are central .Skills are practised in challenging formats .Frequency: if there is a favoured sport it is suggested 50% of the time is allocated to other sport/activities that develop a range of skills.

Phase three – Training to Train Objective: to build fitness and specific sport skills

• Fitness training
• Detailed mental preparation
• A focus on sport-specific skill development, including perceptual skills (reading the game/tactical understanding
• Decision making
• Detailed and extensive evaluation Frequency: for the aspiring performer, sport-specific practice will now be 6-9 times a week

Phase 4 – Training to Compete

Objective: to refine skills for a specific event or position Content:

• Event and position-specific training
• Physical conditioning
• Technical and tactical preparation
• Advanced mental practice All of the above come together and are developed under competition conditions Frequency: training can be up to 12 times a week

Phase 5 – Training to Win Objective: to maximise performance in competition Content:

Development and refinement of all the skills learnt already but with more use in competition modelling.More attention paid to rest periods and the prevention of injury due to heavier load. Frequency: training can be up to 15 times a week (some sports may stop at this phase as this is the highest competitive level)

Phase 6 – Retainment For athletes/players retiring from competitive sport, many sports are developing Master’s programmes. An additional phase, “retainment”, keeps players/athletes involved in physical activity. Experience gained as a competitor can be invaluable, should they move into administration, coaching or officiating.