Early Sport Specialization Is Not the Answer

There is no question that early sport specialization has been increasing amongst youth athletes

throughout the last few decades. With pressure coming from parents, coaches, and other athletes we are

seeing young kids competing in just one sport year round with the idea that this is how you become elite.

Some of the most respected coaches and professional athletes in the world have plenty to say about this.

In an interview with Tom Brady, a reporter asked him about early sport specialization. The following

statement highlights Tom’s long message, “I think that can wear out a young individual, a young teenager.

It’s just hard, because all the parents are doing it, it seems. The competition, it feels like it starts so early

for these kids, whether it’s to get into college, or to get into the right high school.” With negative

outcomes like injury, burn out, and depression all linked to early sport specialization this topic certainly

deserves some more attention.

Before delving into the plethora of research that backs this discussion, let's take a look at some

living, breathing examples that prove playing multiple sports leads to greater athleticism and healthier,

happier athletes. Let's start with one of the most popular current stars, Patrick Mahomes. Patrick was a

dominant and promising athlete in three high school sports; football, baseball, and basketball. Patrick

went on to play baseball and football at Texas Tech where he was eventually drafted to the MLB before

deciding to ultimately fully pursue a career in football. Patrick is known for his incredible movement on

the field, quick decision making, and ability to turn nothing into something. What about “Prime Time”

Deion Sanders? The first professional athlete to play in two pro sporting matches on the same day. Also

the first professional athlete to play in a Superbowl and World Series. Deion has one of the most

impressive athletic careers in the history of sports. Looking at swimming and water polo a couple of

individuals immediately come to mind. Some of the best polo players and swimmers I competed with or

against played multiple sports throughout high school and even college. I recall a teammate of mine being

ranked 1st in the country for 12 year olds in the 100m Butterfly. He was also an amazing whole set from

the moment he started playing water polo. He told our club swim coach that his dream was to play water

polo at Stanford. Our coach replied “You need to quit water polo. You're this good at swimming while

only being here half the time. Imagine what I could turn you into if you were here everyday.” Some might

see some legitimacy in this statement. I see complete ignorance. We have to remember as athletes,

coaches or anyone involved with sports, that success leaves clues. We didn't have any other top ranked

kids in the country. Definitely some special ones, but none like this guy. So wouldn't it be more intelligent

to look at the clues and think that he was maybe doing something right playing multiple sports? Think

about the most amazing athletes you played sports with... they were probably often rushing off to another

sport practice.

There is also plenty of science and research to back the idea against early sport specialization. Dr.

Howard J. Luks, a top orthopedic surgeon and sports medicine specialist wrote in an article, “From a

physical perspective, single sports participation forces our children to work the same regions of their

bodies and stress the same bones, ligaments, and tendons in the same manner day in and day out

throughout the year. Sports Medicine professionals have witnessed a dramatic rise in overuse injuries. We

have also seen a dramatic rise in devastating injuries such as ACL tears and ulnar collateral ligament

(Tommy John) tears. Many of these have been attributed to over-training and single sports participation.”

We all know the phrase too much of one thing is a bad thing. Playing one sport year round can cause

dysfunction in athletes. One research study titled, Does Early Sports Specialization Increase Negative

Outcomes and Reduce the Opportunity for Success in Young Athletes?, conducted a clinical review and

found that “Sports specialization is defined as year-round training (greater than 8 months per year),

choosing a single main sport, and/or quitting all other sports to focus on 1 sport. Specialized training in

young athletes has risks of injury and burnout, while the degree of specialization is positively correlated

with increased serious overuse injury risk. Risk factors for injury in young athletes who specialize in a

single sport include year-round single-sport training, participation in more competition, decreased

age-appropriate play, and involvement in individual sports that require the early development of technical

skills” (Myer et al. 2015). The lack of diversified movement does not allow athletes to develop the proper

neuromuscular skills that are effective in injury prevention and skill acquisition, all while not allowing for

the necessary rest from constant use of the same areas in the body. Researchers in another study titled,

Revisiting Early Sport Specialization: What’s the Problem?, found that “the average age of sports

specialization for elite athletes is about 14 years and is therefore during a crucial stage in human

development—early adolescence. According to the World Health Organization, adolescence occurs

between 10 and 19 years of age and is the transition period from childhood to adulthood” (Mosher et al.

2021). This is potentially the time frame in which the athletes specializing get injured or burn out, while

the other athletes develop a variety of movement patterns and motor skills from multiple sports that allow

them to suffer less from dysfunction and have more success later on.

While some coach or parent “experts” advocate for early sports specialization, claiming it's

essential for athletes to reach elite levels, it's crucial to consider the potential consequences for the vast

majority of young athletes who may not achieve such heights. It often comes at a significant cost,

potentially leading to burnout, overuse injuries, and a lifetime aversion to sports participation. I once

heard an amazing coach say, “kids' lives are too short to waste their youth and have the experience of

sports ruined.” Sports should be providing kids with lifelong memories, friends, and building blocks to be

successful in the rest of their lives.

By: Cal Brown

Email: calbrown26@yahoo.com

Phone: (925) 586-7114

Works Cited

Luks, Howard J. “Is Single Sport Specialization Hurting Our Children.” Howard J. Luks,

MD, 17 Sept. 2021, www.howardluksmd.com

Mosher, Alexandra. “Revisiting Early Sport Specialization: What’s the Problem?”

15 Oct. 2021, journals-sagepub-com.calpoly.idm.oclc.org/doi/full

Myer, Gregory D. “Sport Specialization, Part I: Does Early Sports Specialization Increase

Negative Outcomes and Reduce the Opportunity for Success in Young Athletes?”

journals-sagepub-com.calpoly.idm.oclc.org/doi/full