Based on over 30 years of practical learning gained from within the Australian sporting system and a substantial review of existing frameworks, models, and concepts, the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) developed the FTEM Athlete Development framework (Foundation Talent Elite Mastery). The framework offers an evidence based and practical  approach for facilitating the three key outcomes of sport: active lifestyle; life-long recreational sport participation; and high performance.

Developed through a dedicated action research approach, the FTEM Framework provides a holistic and multidimensional approach to athletic development. It is non-linear and flexible, accommodating multiple re-entry and exit points and is devoid of fixed age boundaries, allowing broad flexibility and adaptability to all sports.

Within the 2015 International Olympic Committee’s consensus statement on youth athletic development, FTEM was recognised as an exemplar athlete development framework.

The FTEM framework is utilised extensively across the Australian sporting sector and has been adopted by numerous National Sporting Organisations (NSOs), directly informing the review and refinement of their athlete pathways. The ‘best practice’ principles have also provided guidance to support current Sport Australia school-based and parental engagement initiatives, notably the Sporting Schools initiative and online Top Ten Tips resource.

FTEM provides a practical tool to assist NSOs (and their personnel, coaches, teachers, parents, etc.) in reviewing, planning and supporting athlete pathways. The framework consists of four macro phases of athlete development (Foundation, Talent, Elite, and Mastery), which are further differentiated into 10 micro phases.

More information and resources relating to the FTEM Framework are available from the AIS website.

Introduced in 2014, the ADM suggests five stages of athlete development in youth sport. Each stage of advancement is grounded on an athlete’s physical, mental and emotional level, and their potential for growth. The ADM is targeted towards coaches, sports administrators, and parents involved in providing sporting opportunities to young athletes. As the model is predicated on LTAD principles, it is highly age-prescriptive and linear in its description of athlete development. This limits the ADM’s generalisability and adaptability to individuals differing in rates of growth or maturation, or it’s recognition of athletes entering high performance sport via non-traditional routes (e.g. talent transfer etc.).

• American Development Model, Snyder, C. United States Olympic Committee (USOC), (2016).
• American Development Model: Rebuilding athletes in America (PDF), United States Olympic Committee and the Department of Coaching Education in the Division of Sport Performance, (2016).

The ATDE framework considers the role of the environment in the development of the athlete, including support networks (coaches, teammates, family), organisations and cultural setting. This model depicts and provides valuable insight regarding the dynamics at play within a successful high performance environment.

• Successful talent development in track and field: Considering the role of environment, Henriksen, K., Stambulova, N., & Roessler, K. K. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports, Volume 2(20), p.122, (2010). This study presents an analysis of a particular athletic talent development environment within a very successful Swedish track and field club, and examines key factors behind its successful history of creating top-level athletes.
• Riding the wave of an expert: A successful talent development environment in kayaking, Henriksen, K., Stambulova, N., & Roessler, K. K., Sport Psychologist, Volume 25(3), pp.341-362, (2011). This study examines a flat-water kayak environment in Norway and its history of successfully producing top-level senior athletes from among its juniors.

The CYD Model integrates both talent and athletic development to provide an adapted and integrated model for holistic youth development. It considers talent, psychosocial, and physical factors influencing athlete development and offers gender-specific pathways, accounting for differences in maturational status, psychosocial, and physical development. Whilst it is advocated that the CYD Model should be viewed as a flexible guideline in which to develop athletic youth, it is still relatively linear (e.g. age restrictive) and limited in its ability to account for the variability of athlete progression (e.g. multiple re-entry and exit points, etc.). Further, as the authors recognise themselves, future models of athlete development need to be predicated from empirical evidence to ensure guidelines are accurate and relevant.

• Long-term athletic development - Part 1: A Pathway for all youth, Lloyd, R. S., Oliver, J. L., Faigenbaum, A. D., Howard, R., Croix, M. B. D. S., Williams, C. A. & Hatfield, D. L., The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research,Volume 29(5), pp.1439-1450, (2015). Within this 2-part commentary, Part 1 provides a critical review of existing models of practice for long-term athletic development and introduces a composite youth development model that includes the integration of talent, psychosocial and physical development across maturation. Part 2 identifies limiting factors that may restrict the success of such models and offers potential solutions. The concept of developing talent and athleticism in youth is the goal of many sports systems. Consequently, sporting organisations have adopted long-term athletic development models in an attempt to provide a structured approach to the training of youth. Maximising sporting talent and maintaining long-term participation in sport are important goals of development models. This article proposes a composite model that attempts to integrate the philosophies of talent, physical, and psychosocial development. As with all other models, the Composite Youth Development (CYD) model should be viewed as a flexible blueprint as opposed to a rigid structure, from which coaches can promote a holistic approach to the development of all youth (not just the most talented). Practitioners should ensure that youth are provided with individualised programs that enable development commensurate with their specific needs. It is also important to emphasise a lifetime engagement approach to sports participation and physical activity.
• Long-term athletic development, part 2: barriers to success and potential solutions,, Lloyd R, Oliver J, Faigenbaum A, et. al., Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, Volume 29(5), (2015). Irrespective of the model that is adopted by practitioners, there are potential barriers to the success of any developmental pathway. The second part of this commentary highlights common issues that are likely to impede the success of long-term athletic development programs. The authors propose solutions that will address the negative impact of being physically inactive. Recommendations for reducing physical inactivity among youth include: (1) starting early in life, all children should be encouraged to be active and accumulate the recommended amount of daily moderate-to-vigorous physical activity through play, active transport, recreation, physical education, and sport; (2) fundamental movement skills should serve as the foundation for all youth development programs; (3) practitioners need to value both health and skill related components of physical activity, as well as the psychosocial benefits, and; (4) participation in physical activity should not begin with sports practice and competition, but rather evolve out of general preparatory skill acquisition and physical conditioning.

The theory of deliberate practice is based on the philosophy that expert performance in terms of acquired characteristics results from extended deliberate practice, totalling approximately 10,000 hours. The theory, developed from observations specific to the practice histories of violinists, contends that there is a monotonic relationship between practice and performance - where 10 years or 10,000 hours of effortful, not inherently enjoyable, task-specific practice leads to expertise. This theory states that early specialisation in one activity is central to expertise. The theory of deliberate practice remains unsubstantiated to some degree in the sporting context, with numerous investigations showing that expertise can be achieved with a much lesser quantitative investment. Some authors have questioned whether it is the makeup of practice that is more influential than just merely quantity. Early specialisation has been implicated in the literature to be a potential contributor to athlete drop-out, repetitive sporting injury, and a potential constraint to developing a well-rounded and adaptable repertoire of sporting skills.

• The role of deliberate practice in the acquisition of expert performance, Ericsson, K. A., Krampe, R.T., & Tesch-Roemer, C., Psychological Review, Volume 100(3), pp.363-406, (1993). This article explains the theoretical framework underpinning expert performance as the end result of individuals' prolonged efforts to improve performance while negotiating motivational and external constraints. Individual differences, even among elite performers, are closely related to the amount of deliberate practice. Many characteristics once believed to reflect innate talent are actually the result of intense practice extended for a minimum of 10 years.

The DMSP presents three developmental pathways for athletes: Sports Sampling to Recreational sports participation; Sports Sampling leading to Sports Specialisation; and to Elite Performance, and Early Specialisation to Elite Performance. This pathway model is relatively simplistic and generic in its depiction of developmental trajectory in offering three pathway possibilities. Subsequently the DMSP does not acknowledge the nuances of development and the inherent variability of developmental pathways between and within sports and sporting sub-disciplines.

• 'Practice and play in the development of sport expertise', Côté, J., Baker, J., & Abernethy, B., in Handbook of Sport Psychology, 3rd edition, pp.184-202, (2007).
• Youth involvement in sport, Côté, J., & Fraser-Thomas, J. in P. R. E. Crocker (Ed.), Sport Psychology: A Canadian Perspective, pp.266-294, (2007).
• ISSP position stand: to sample or to specialize? Seven postulates about youth sport activities that lead to continued participation and elite performance, Côté, J., Lidor, R., & Hackfort, D., International Journal of Sport & Exercise Psychology, Volume 7(1), pp.7-17, (2009).

The DMGT details the transformation of natural ability or “gifts” into strategically developed skills or “talents” using informal or formal learning and practising. It offers a holistic framework for understanding talent development with its origins in education and acknowledges the contribution and interaction of not only intrapersonal and developmental factors, but also environmental and contextual factors. Whilst the DMGT has been identified as a potential framework for better understanding talent development and expertise in sport, particularly from pre-elite to elite, it is yet to be fully verified empirically within the sporting domain.

• Transforming gifts into talents: the DMGT as a developmental theory, Gagne, F., High Ability Studies, Volume 15(2), pp.119-147, (2004).
• Building gifts into talents: Overview of the DMGT 2.0 (PDF), Gagne, F., Keynote address presented at 10th Asia-Pacific Conference for Giftedness, Asia-Pacific Federation of the World Council for Gifted and Talented Children, Singapore, (July 2008).

The physical and physiological potential of an individual is influenced by (although not completely defined by) their genetic makeup. Many of the traits that contribute to sports performance (e.g. endurance capacity or muscle power) are linked to single or multiple genetic expressions or variants.

Attempts to identify specific genes that influence performance, and then use that knowledge to develop specific sport development pathways have yielded mixed results. This may be the consequence of the very complex interactions between talent identification domains (e.g. physical, physiological, psychological, socio-cultural, etc.) and talent development factors (e.g. coaching, training quality and quantity, opportunities, facilities, etc.).

The LTAD model features seven stages: Active Start, FUNdamentals, Learning to Train, Training to Train, Training to Compete, Training to Win, and Active for Life. The model is a chronologically prescriptive and generic ‘one fits all’ model of athlete development which is based on maturational and physiological benchmarks. It does not incorporate the perceptual, cognitive and motor development of athletes. The LTAD model has been embraced by the Canadian Sport for Life (CS4L) movement and key elements of the LTAD model (e.g. FUNdamentals, Active for Life, Learn to Train) are embedded in the Canadian Sport Policy 2012 (PDF - 1.3 MB).

• Canadian sport for life: Long-term athlete development resource paper. Balyi, I., Cardinal, C., Higgs, C., Norris, S., & Way, R., Canadian Sport Centres, (2005).
• Long-term athlete development: Trainability in childhood and adolescence. Balyi, I. & Hamilton, A., Olympic Coach, Volume 16(1), pp.4-9, (2004).
• Interpreting and implementing the long term athlete development model: English swimming coaches' views on the (swimming) LTAD in practice. Lang, M., & Light, R., International Journal of Sports Science & Coaching, Volume 5(3), pp.389-402, (2010).
• The long-term athlete development model: Physiological evidence and application, Ford, P., De Ste Croix, M., Lloyd, R., Meyers, R., Moosavi, M., Oliver, J. & Williams, C., Journal of Sports Sciences, Volume 29(4), pp.389-402, (2011).

This model identified that a favourable mix of various psychological characteristics and skills are central to achieving sporting expertise. Whilst multidimensional within the psychological component, the contribution of this research remains predominately uni-dimensional in fully understanding the holistic dynamics of athlete development.

• Eliminating the dichotomy between theory and practice in talent identification and development: Considering the role of psychology, Abbott, A., & Collins, D., Journal of Sports Sciences, Volume 22(5), pp.395-408, (2004).

Consistent with other athletic development research, this model identifies that the process of development is multidimensional in nature, with the aim of enhancing psychomotor, interpersonal, intrapersonal, cognitive, and creative abilities crucial for the developmental process. The authors promote the importance of deliberate practice and the influence of environmental characteristics (such as teachers/coaches, family, peers, and societal values) in the achievement of talent potential. The model also acknowledges the influence of chance, and access and opportunity in the developmental process. The importance of fundamental movement skills (FMS) is highlighted in the paper cited below but FMS are not explicitly included within the model. The authors present an approach largely concerned with talent development within the context of mainstream, curricular physical education “… to redress the imbalance within the current debate from the almost total concern with out-of-school clubs and the preparation for adult elite sport …”.

• Towards a model of talent development in physical education, Bailey, D., & Morley, D., Sport, Education and Society, Volume 11(3), pp.211-230, (2006).

• Developing sport expertise: Researchers and coaches put theory into practice, Farrow, D., Baker, J., & MacMahon, C., Routledge, (2013).
• Comparative Elite Sport Development: systems, structures and public policy, Houlihan B and Green N (Editors), Elsevier, (2008). This book looks at how nine countries (China, France, Germany, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Singapore, and the United states) structure their elite athlete development pathways and systems. The theory of convergence (i.e. countries tend to do the same things) is tested and differences among systems are discussed.
• ‘From play to practice: A Developmental Framework for the acquisition of expertise in team sports’, Cote J, Barker J and Abernethy B, In Expert Performance in Sport: Advances in Research on Sport Expertise, Starkes J and Ericsson K (Editors), Human Kinetics, (2003).
• Functional sport expertise systems, Gulbin J and Weissensteiner J, In Developing sport expertise – Researchers and coaches put theory into practice (2nd ed.), Farrow D, Baker J and MacMahon C (Editors), Routledge, pp.45-67, (2013). This chapter refers to the 3DAD model; a dynamic, multidimensional and integrated model of athlete development. It is grounded on an extensive critique of existing models and accrued practical learnings and will be validated to a sport and sub-discipline specific level, with subsequent athlete pathway & development research initiatives.
• 'Applying talent identification programs at a system wide level: The evolution of Australia's national program', Gulbin  J, In Talent identification and development in sport: International perspectives, Baker J, Cobley S and Schorer J (Editors), Routledge, pp.147–165, (2011).
• 'Symptoms of a crisis-transition: A grounded theory study', Stambulova N, In SIPF Yearbook 2003, Hassmen N (Editor) pp.97-109, (2003).
• The Sports Gene: inside the science of extraordinary athletic performance. David Epstein, (2013)

• Prerequisites & Precursors of Athletic Talent, @YLMSportScience, (18 June 2017). Based on Evidence-Based Prerequisites and Precursors of Athletic Talent: A Review, Issurin, V.B. Sports Medicine (2017) 47: 1993.

• International Olympic Committee consensus statement on youth athletic development. Bergeron, M. F., Mountjoy, M., Armstrong, N., et.al., British Journal of Sports Medicine, 49(13), pp.843-851, (2015).

• A look through the rear view mirror: Developmental experiences and insights of high performance athletes, Gulbin J, Oldenziel K, Weissensteiner J and Gagne F, Talent Development & Excellence, Volume 2(2), (2010). In this study a large pool of high performance athletes with established sports talent competencies were asked to look back on the experiences of their athletic development and provide additional insights which could help refine talent development pathways for the next generation of athletes. The aim was to capture and chronicle a plausible and generalisable account of talent development. The findings revealed a number of commonalities and some interesting differences dependant on sport type across the cohort. Consistent with other multi-disciplinary studies, it was found that progression to an elite level of competition is multi-factorial, requiring a favourable synchronisation of extrinsic and contextual factors, a vast investment in practice, high quality coaching, positive chance factors, intrinsic factors (i.e. strong motivation and passion for the sport), and resilience to adverse overcomes.
• An examination of the stakeholders and elite athlete development pathways in tennis, Brouwers J, Sotiriadou P and De Bosscher V, European Sport Management Quarterly, Volume 15(4), (2015). Data from 18 semi-structured in-depth interviews with international tennis experts were thematically analysed to explore stakeholder involvement and how their interactions and strategies shape elite tennis pathways. The findings offer empirical evidence on the roles of stakeholders and their support to players in shaping development pathways in tennis. The shift in stakeholder dynamics and variation in their roles and relationships suggests that stakeholders can have different levels of involvement depending on the developmental stage of the athlete.
• An integrated framework for the optimisation of sport and athlete development, Gulbin, J., Croser, M., Morley, E., & Weissensteiner, J. Journal of Sports Sciences, Volume 3(12), pp.1319-1331, (2013).
• The attraction, retention/transition, and nurturing process of sport development: Some Australian evidence, Sotiriadou K, Shilbury D and Quick S, Journal of Sport Management, Volume 22(3), (2008). The purpose of this study was to explore and map the sport development processes in Australia, before and after the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games. Reports from 35 National Sporting Organisations (NSOs) were examined over a four year period. Sport development is a process whereby effective opportunities, processes, systems, and structures are set up to enable individuals or groups to improve their performance. The sport development processes cater to different sport development segments (e.g., young, indigenous, female participants), but share two important attributes: (1) they require pathways to allow and facilitate movement between processes, and; (2) each process generates opportunities for the creation of different pathways. In this context, a pathway is the outcome of one process. The relationship between stakeholders, strategies, processes, and pathways is reciprocal. For example, stakeholders formulate different strategies to target each process and each process requires different strategies. The three processes – attraction, retention/transition, and nurturing – work better if considered together, rather than in isolation.
• Distinct trajectories of athlete development: A retrospective analysis of professional rugby league players, Balin Cupples, Donna O’Connor & Stephen Cobley, Journal of Sports Sciences, (27 April 2018). Contemporary models of athlete development (e.g., Development Model of Sport Participation) suggest attainment benefits from early age multi-sport “sampling” behaviour before progressive transition into “invested” single-sport involvement in teenage years compared to intensive early-age specialisation. However, specific examinations of these development patterns across a number of team sports and cultural contexts remains limited. This study involved a large sample of professional Australian Rugby League (RL) players (N = 224) who progressed along the RL system pathways. It defined two contrasting athlete development trajectories based upon initial entry into formal age group representative teams (“Early”: U16, U18; “Later”: U20+) to compare their developmental participation patterns using the National Rugby League Athlete Development Questionnaire (NRLADQ). The authors conclude that RL professional senior elite success level can be attained via early intensified specialised investment and accelerated youth success as well as by a rather decelerated, much less cost-intensive participation pattern.
• Factors affecting the rate of athlete development from novice to senior elite: how applicable is the 10-year rule? Oldenziel K, Gagne F and Gulbin J (abstract) presented at the Pre-Olympic Congress: Sports Science through the Ages, Athens (6–11 August 2004). A retrospective survey explored the key catalysts affecting athletes’ developmental progression at well-defined competition phases. Data was extracted from the National Athlete Development Survey and limited to those athletes who have represented Australia at either a senior or junior (≤ 23 years) level of competition; 459 athletes (mean age 20.8 years) from 34 different sports were evaluated. The average period of development from novice to senior national representation was 7.5±4.1 years, although 28% developed ‘quickly’ (≤4 years) and 30% ‘slowly’ (≥10 years). Those making the transition from national junior representation to senior representation required, on average, 2.7±2.1 years.
• Factors that impact on athlete development within a talent detection program, Morley E, Gulbin J, Weissensteiner J and MacMahon C, European College of Sport Science Conference, Bruges, Belgium (July 2012). The aim of this study was to examine the characteristics of a successful talent detection and development (TDD) program and to investigate why some talent detection athletes transition successfully into high performance sport, while others do not. A case study approach was adopted using talent detected flatwater kayakers, interviews and questionnaires were completed by 14 athletes and 4 coaches. Coaches emphasised the importance of athletes’ natural ability, intrapersonal characteristics including determination and ‘coachability’, and environmental and process factors such as the importance of early and ongoing success and a satisfying social setting. Successful athletes attributed their achievements to environmental provisions such as quality training programs and international competition, influential others including parents and coaches, and intrapersonal factors such as motivation and perseverance. The impact of poor injury management, competing priorities, performance plateaus, and ambiguous expectations were highlighted as consequential by underachieving athletes.
• Familial, social, and environmental factors in the development of elite Australian cricketers. Multidimensional antecedents for expertise: Findings from a developmental survey in cricket, MacMahon C and Weissensteiner J, European College of Sport Science Conference, Barcelona, Spain (June 2013). This study used a large-scale online survey to collect information on player development in Australian cricketers. The analysis presents data for the elite male cohort, between the ages of 17 and 35 (N = 81). The findings from this study demonstrate the breadth of support (sources and type) required to complement the development of elite athletes. While receiving strong support from multiple sources, these elite performers took ownership, sought better developmental opportunities and were relatively autonomous in their decision making specific to their career planning/strategy.
• Giving the Athlete a voice: Preliminary findings from the My Sporting Journey Questionnaire, Weissensteiner, J.R., Warmenhoven, J., Medlicott, R., & Gulbin, J. P., in A. Radmann, S. Hedenborg, E. Tsolakidis (Eds.), 20th Annual Congress of the European College of Sport Science p.303, (2015).
• The importance of listening: Engaging and incorporating the athlete’s voice in theory and practice, Weissensteiner, J. R. British Journal of Sports Medicine, Volume 49, pp.839-840, (2015).
• The importance of self-regulatory skills during junior to senior transition in Australian tennis, Mathews A, Farrow D, MacMahon C and Weissensteiner J, International Congress of Sport Psychology (ISSP), Beijing, China (July 2013). Self-regulation or the extent to which learners exert control over their own learning to master a specific task and improve their performance is a key psychological discriminator between successful and unsuccessful athletes. This study utilised evidence sourced from semi-structured interviews with retired elite Australian tennis players.
• Improving the identification & development of Australia’s sporting talent, Toohey, K., Funk, D., Woolcock, G., MacMahon, C., Hahn, A., Auld, C., Gulbin, J., et.al., Australian Research Council Linkage Project, LP1001000324, (2015).
• Participant development in sport: An academic review, Bailey R, Collins D, Ford P, MacNamara A, Toms M and Pearce G, Sports Coach UK and Sport Northern Ireland (2010). Participant development involves the activities experienced, the pathways followed, and the motivations or obstacles that impact upon one’s physical activity choices or sporting career. This review seeks to identify the main findings and the underlying principles associated with participant development.
• Patterns of performance development in elite athletes, Gulbin J, Weissensteiner J, Oldenziel K and Gagne F, European Journal of Sport Science, Volume 13(6), pp.605-614, (2013). This investigation sought to contrast generalised models of athlete development with the specific pathway trajectories and transitions experienced by 256 elite athletes across 27 different sports. The collective findings of this investigation demonstrate that, contrary to the popular pyramidal concept of athlete development, a single linear assault on expertise is rare, and that the common normative junior to senior competition transition is mostly characterised by complex oscillations featuring highly varied transitions.
• Policy, politics and path dependency: Sport development in Australia and Finland, Green M and Collins S, Sport Management Review, Volume 11 (2008). This article reviews the national sport development policies, from mass-participation to elite, in Australia and Finland; two countries with quite distinct political, cultural, and sporting backgrounds. The authors suggest that Australia has centred policy around ‘elite sport’ and Finland around ‘sport for all’ and each country has remained on quite specific sport development pathways with little deviation, despite a few programs being created in Australia to increase the levels of sport participation for targeted groups such as women and indigenous Australians.
• Sibling dynamics and sport expertise, Hopwood M, Farrow D, MacMahon C and Baker J, Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports, Volume 25(5), (2015). Family members are known to be highly influential in the development of sport expertise. This investigation explored associations between sport expertise, sibling characteristics, and sibling participation in sport and physical activity. Athletes representing three skill levels provided details of sibling characteristics and participation in sport and physical activity via the Developmental History of Athletes Questionnaire. The results suggest siblings may play a key role in sport expertise development.
• Strive to thrive: Stress and leadership under the test, Weissensteiner, J.R., & Cook, C. Presentation at AIS Coach and Athlete Forum, Canberra, Australia, (November 2015).
• Talent identification and development in elite youth disability sport, Houlihan B and Chapman P, Sport in Society: Cultures, Commerce, Media, Politics, (18 January 2016). This paper examines the talent identification and development process in three youth disability sports: wheelchair basketball, boccia and tennis. The authors found that the policies and practices behind ‘disability’ sport have converged with mainstream sports.
• Talent identification and development (TID) programs for Paralympic athletes: A cross-National comparison, Radtke S, International Paralympic Committee Seminar, Vuokatti, Finland (17 January 2011). Talent identification in sport for athletes with a disability is often left to chance. This study looks at the organisational structure of sports and TID programs for athletes with disability, in three selected countries (Canada, Great Britain, and the United States). Eight action strategies are recommended to improve talent identification: (1) cooperation with schools; (2) greater investment at the grassroots level; (3) government strategy and funding; (4) long-term planning; (5) top-down strategy to improve awareness; (6) incentive funding for National Governing Sports bodies; (7) coaching education, and; (8) equal pay for coaches and administrators working in sport for persons with disability.
• Three Worlds: new directions in participant development in sport and physical activity, Collins D, Bailey R, Ford P, MacNamara A, Toms M and Pearce G, Sport, Education and Society, Volume 17(2), (2012). The authors explore the link between participation, performance sport, and elite achievement through critical consideration of key theories. They point out that perceived and actual movement competence, metacognitive skills, and the optimum bio-psycho-social balance must be nurtured and deployed within any developmental framework.
• Using transdisciplinary research to examine talent identification and development in sport, Kristine Toohey, Clare MacMahon, Juanita Weissensteiner, et.al., Sport in Society, Volume 21(2), pp.356-375, (2018). Effective sport talent identification and development (TID) programmes are integral to a nation’s success in international sport. Using a transdisciplinary approach that involved sport practitioners and researchers with diverse theoretical perspectives, we investigated TID factors in four Australian sports (Australian rules football, cricket, kayaking and tennis). A transdisciplinary approach allowed us to isolate and explore a range of factors critical to successful sport TID. This methodological article explores how this project moved TID research beyond its paradigmatic, quantitative, sport science lens and advanced knowledge and practice in TID from both theoretical and applied perspectives. The use of a transdisciplinary approach in future TID research is recommended.

Guidelines

1. Long Term Involvement. A major focus of junior sport is the development of life-long participation in sport by providing a quality sports experience so that young people are encouraged to make a lifetime commitment to regular physical activity.
2. Getting Young People Involved. All young people should have an equal opportunity to participate in sport, regardless of ability, body shape, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, geographic location and socio-economic status.
3. Physical Growth and Maturation. For the best physical and skill development, consideration must be given to factors related to growth and maturation to help with decisions about grouping young people for participation.
4. Sport Pathways. Pathways need to be designed for young people to move progressively through sport, based upon their skill, interest, and maturity.
5. Forming Links. Collaboration and communication between stakeholders (e.g. national/state/local sport organisations, governments, schools, commercial providers) can enhance the delivery of junior sport programs.
6. People Making it Happen. The most important resource in junior sport is the people who deliver activities and created the social atmosphere and culture around sport.
7. Quality Coaching. Coaches are influential in shaping young peoples’ attitudes about participation, now and into the future.
8. Making Sport Safe. Sport providers have a legal duty of care to protect the welfare of young people by managing risk factors.
9. The Law and Sport. Legislation exists to protect the safety, health, welfare, and wellbeing of all participants, particularly children and youth. Sport providers must be aware of their responsibilities and obligations.

Resources

To further assist sport providers in developing their junior sport framework and specific policies, the ASC created several resources:

• Junior Sport Policy Checklist for National Sporting Organisations.
• Junior Sport Checklist for Sports Providers.
• Template for National Sporting Organisation to write a Junior Sport Policy.

A review of the guidelines in 2012 by the ASC, in consultation with NSO/SSO stakeholders, produced a number of evidence summaries from the published literature. These reviews are intended to inform the Australian sport sector on world best practice. The ASC commissioned UniQuest (University of Queensland) to prepare a review of literature on ten topics relevant to junior sport development. These ‘briefing papers’ cover:

1. Positive Youth Development through Sport, Côté J and Mallett C, UniQuest (2012). This paper outlines the components of a positive development framework for youth sport, that focus on the development of the youth including both participation and elite performance. The ‘positive youth development’ (PYD) perspective means that adults involved in organised sports can have a positive impact through intervention at the policy, programs, and individual levels. The model emphasises the vital role of policy makers in assuring there is infrastructure (i.e. facilities and systems) and accessibility (i.e. inclusion and equity) for all youth to participate in sports programs. The model also highlights the setting features of youth sport programs that should be put in place to further develop better people through sport. Finally, the framework proposes concrete outcomes (e.g. competence, confidence, connection, and character) that should be the focus of any sport program that aims to develop positive assets, performance, and continued participation in youth sport.
2. Health and Welfare of Junior Sport Participants and Safe Delivery of Junior Sport, Hallinan C, UniQuest (2012). Organised sports programs for juniors are highly valued in Australia as an important learning and growth experience. This paper explores the positive and negative elements that may be encountered in junior sports. The safe delivery of junior sports participation is normally guided and regulated by national sports organisations, but administered for most participants through local sports clubs across the country. Coaches, team managers, parents, and other volunteers play are vital role in the provision of a safe and healthy junior sports setting; their contribution is discussed.
3. Sport for Development and Community Building, Hanrahan S, Nelson A and Rynne S, UniQuest (2012). Although the idea of using sport for non-sport purposes is not new, there are increasing efforts to scrutinise the potential, as well as the limitations, of sport in achieving a range of personal, community, national, and international development objectives. This paper considers the role of sport in terms of: (1) peace and reconciliation; (2) social justice; (3) education; (4) health and wellbeing, and; (5) corporate social responsibility. It should be noted that as a field of interest, sport for development is relatively new compared to other topics within the Junior Sport Framework. This paper draws upon this emerging but somewhat limited body of knowledge.
4. Cost of Participation, Hoye R, UniQuest (2012). This paper reviews the evidence base regarding the cost of junior sport participation; specifically, what is known of the true costs of participating in junior sport and the impact of these costs. It draws on a number of empirical studies from around the world and a limited number of reviews. It identifies what is not yet known about the relationship between cost of participation and the effect on participation rates. It concludes by providing some recommendations.
5. Role of Adults in Junior Sport, Mallett C and Rynne S, UniQuest (2012). The quality of a young person’s sporting experience is contingent upon the quality of adult leadership. Ideally, adults should be responsible for assisting children and youth in their general development, as well as specific sport and psychosocial skills, while enjoying their sporting experiences. This paper reviews the evidence.
6. The role of external providers in Junior Sport, Williams B, Macdonald D and Hay P, UniQuest (2012). New providers of access to junior sport experiences, coaching and competition opportunities are challenging existing forms of service. In this paper, attention is given primarily to the role of private (i.e. commercial) providers.
7. Trends in sport and physical activity participation in Australian children and youth, Trost S, UniQuest (2012). This paper looks at the gaps in our knowledge about current and long-term sport participation in Australia. It considers the importance of factors such as age, gender, socioeconomic status, cultural and ethnic background.
8. Growth and Maturation, Bailey D, Engstrom C and Hanrahan S, UniQuest (2012). Although the majority of research has focused on biophysical growth and development (i.e. associated with muscle, bone and physiological function) through sport involvement; it’s now acknowledged that children’s psychosocial growth and development (i.e. associated with feelings, attitudes, and beliefs) and social interaction with others may be strongly influenced through their sport experience. Quality experiences for children in sport settings have been shown to support appropriate development across several domains. This paper reviews the evidence.
9. Opportunities and Pathways from Beginners to Elite to Ensure Optimum and Lifelong Involvement, Cȏté J,  UniQuest (2012). The concept of pathways to ensure optimal development in sport is based on the assumption that different learning and motivational demands are important at different ages and levels of involvement (e.g. recreational, social, competitive) in sport. This paper focuses on the activities that are likely to change throughout development as a participant moves through different pathways of sport involvement.
10. Historical Cultural and Social Perspectives, Phillips M and Macdonald D, UniQuest (2012). Organised sport for youth is a phenomenon of the second half of the 20th century, shaped by factors such as ability (able bodied or with disability), gender, socioeconomic status, ethnicity, and location (rural or urban). This paper traces the development of junior sport in Australia.

Top 10 Tips 

The Top 10 Tips (accessed 12 June 2020) provide evidence-based advice on how to best nurture a child's sporting development.

• Tip 1 - Don't forget the fundamental movement skills!
• Tip 2 - Deliberate play
• Tip 3 - Family support
• Tip 4 - Age-modified sport formats and equipment
• Tip 5 - Sport sampling
• Tip 6 - Smart practice
• Tip 7 - Observational skills
• Tip 8 - Self-regulation
• Tip 9 - The 'sport-ready athlete'
• Tip 10 - Right coach and club fit

Teaching Sport to Children Discussion Paper

In August 2017 the ASC produced a discussion paper on Teaching Sport to Children Discussion Paper, which was open to consultation from individuals and organisations with expertise or interest in this area of development. The goal of the discussion paper was to contribute to reinvigorating sport and physical activity in children’s lives by ensuring that the people who deliver physical activity to children are suitably prepared and supported in their roles. It was developed as part of a broader commitment to address the nationwide decline of sport in our communities and schools, and the increasingly low levels of physical activity of Australian children.

Youth Participation

Between the ages of 13 to 17 years a significant number of young people stop playing organised sport. This includes in secondary schools.This webpage provides an overview of the research into barriers, motivators, and engagement strategies for helping youth stay engaged in sport participation.

• Addressing the decline in sport participation in secondary schools: full report, Australian Sports Commission, (November 2017). The information and tools provided are the result of a research partnership between Sport Australia and La Trobe University’s Centre for Sport and Social Impact, and the generous support of the national sporting organisations, sport deliverers, students, teachers, schools and parents/guardians who contributed to this research. Summary report also available.

Physical Literacy

Physical literacy involves holistic lifelong learning through movement and physical activity. It delivers physical, psychological, social and cognitive health and wellbeing benefits.

Developed by Sport Australia, in consultation with eminent scholars and practitioners, the Position Statement on Physical Literacy outlines the commitment to create a healthier generation of more active Australians.

The Australian Physical Literacy Framework activates this commitment, through the establishment of a common language, to support all Australians to develop their physical literacy, at every stage of life.

Physical literacy gives you:

• physical skills and fitness
• the attitudes and emotions that motivate you to be active
• the knowledge and understanding of how, why and when you move
• the social skills to be active with others.

More information is available on the Sport Australia website and in the Clearinghouse for Sport, Physical Literacy and Sport topic.

• ISSP position stand: To sample or to specialize? Seven postulates about youth sport activities that lead to continued participation and elite performance, Cote J, Lidor R and Hackfort D, International Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, Volume 9(1), pp.7-17, (2009). In a number of sports, early sampling serves as the foundation for both elite and recreational sport participation. Early sampling is based on two main elements of childhood sport participation – involvement in various sports, and participation in deliberate play. In contrast, a few sports use an early specialisation approach. This paper proposes seven postulates regarding the role that sampling and deliberate play, as opposed to specialisation and deliberate practice, have on long-term participation in sport.

• Competition is a Good Servant, but a Poor Master, Way R and Balyi I, Canadian Sport for Life (2007). Competition is a critical issue in all sports, especially team sports. Unfortunately, the system of competition in many sports was never properly designed; it simply ‘evolved’ on the basis of ‘tradition’, without consideration for the sport science or athlete development. This report raises a number of issues and highlights the challenges faced by sports programs in Canada, based upon current ‘best practice’ principles and the science of athlete development.
• Straight facts about making it in pro hockey, Parcels J, Ontario Minor Hockey Association, (1999). The author uses his experience as an ice hockey coach and administrator to state the case that it is unrealistic to think that players at a young age, who participate in advanced programs and make many family and lifestyle sacrifices, have any better chance of eventually making ice hockey a professional career than players who stayed at home, concentrated on a career outside hockey, and played the game for fun.

• A look through the rear view mirror: Developmental experiences and insights of high performance athletes, Gulbin J, Oldenziel K, Weissensteiner J and Gagne F, Talent Development & Excellence, Volume 2(2), (2010). Data was collected from the National Athlete Development Survey which chronicles the key developmental experiences and insights of 673 high performance Australian athletes, including 51 Olympians, across 34 sports. Several general themes emerge, including: (1) that high performance athletes are characterised by diverse and high level sports participation prior to specialisation; (2) there is an investment and commitment to training and access to high quality coaching; (3) substantial parental support; (4) an early and enduring passion for sport in general, and; (5) resilience to overcome obstacles and bounce back.
• Childhood Sports Participation and Adolescent Sport Profile, François Gallant, Jennifer L. O’Loughlin, Jennifer Brunet, et.al., Pediatrics, Volume 140(6), (December 2017). This study demonstrates that children who specialize in a sport may increase the risk of sport nonparticipation in adolescence. It also highlights that children who do not participate in sports are unlikely to participate in adolescence. In line with current clinical recommendations and supported by these results, the authors recommend that to encourage long-term physical activity participation it is necessary to encourage children to participate in a variety of sports early on.
• Development of elite adolescent golfers, Hayman R, Polman R, Taylor J, Hemmings B and Borkoles E, Talent Development & Excellence, Volume 3(2), (2011). This study examined the nature of developmental, psychosocial and contextual factors experienced by elite adolescent golfers. Participants were eight adolescent golfers with a handicap of between +2 and +4 who were international junior representative players from England. Participants did not follow a specific specialisation pathway, instead they encountered numerous sporting activities within a playful, developmentally supportive environment until such time as they were selected as international representatives in late adolescence. At that point their deliberate practice in golf became more evident.
• Differences in self-regulatory skills among talented athletes: The significance of competitive level and type of sport, Jonker L, Elferink-Gemser M and Visscher C, Journal of Sports Sciences, Volume 28(8), (2010). Self-regulation is the extent to which learners exert control over their own learning to master a specific task and to improve their performance. This study looked at the extent to which talented athletes apply cognitive, motivational, and behavioural practices in their own learning process. A total of 222 talented athletes between the ages of 12 and 16 years were studied, they were classified by either team or individual sport and level of sporting achievement (junior-international or junior-national). The results indicated that individual sport athletes scored higher in their ‘planning’ ability and that internationally competing athletes were better at self-regulation. The authors felt that the distinction between internationally and nationally competitive athletes was relevant.
• Distinct trajectories of athlete development: A retrospective analysis of professional rugby league players, Balin Cupples, Donna O’Connor & Stephen Cobley, Journal of Sports Sciences, (27 April 2018). Contemporary models of athlete development (e.g., Development Model of Sport Participation) suggest attainment benefits from early age multi-sport “sampling” behaviour before progressive transition into “invested” single-sport involvement in teenage years compared to intensive early-age specialisation. However, specific examinations of these development patterns across a number of team sports and cultural contexts remains limited. This study involved a large sample of professional Australian Rugby League (RL) players (N = 224) who progressed along the RL system pathways. It defined two contrasting athlete development trajectories based upon initial entry into formal age group representative teams (“Early”: U16, U18; “Later”: U20+) to compare their developmental participation patterns using the National Rugby League Athlete Development Questionnaire (NRLADQ). The authors conclude that RL professional senior elite success level can be attained via early intensified specialised investment and accelerated youth success as well as by a rather decelerated, much less cost-intensive participation pattern.
• Early specialization in youth sport: A requirement for adult expertise?, Baker J, High Ability Studies, Volume 14(1), pp.85-94, (2003). This review examined the evidence (both for and against) regarding an early specialisation perspective and an early diversification approach, as a pathway to elite sport. The mechanisms by which diversification (e.g. sampling a number of sports) influences skill-development are related to transfer of skills and the effects of cross-training. Diversified training in the early stages of development is generally presented as the preferred model, but with two qualifications. First, transferrable skills must have similar underlying performance elements in order to be useful. Second, the effect of diversified training decreases as the level of expertise increases. Research from the fields of physiology and motor learning support these caveats. Considering the potential consequences of advocating an early specialisation approach, coaches and sport scientists should consider the early diversification approach as a viable alternative.
• Early sport specialization versus quality physical education (abstract), Jones L and Petlichkoff L, Chronicle of Kinesiology & Physical Education in Higher Education, Volume 19(2), (2008). This article looks at the debate over whether children and youth should specialise in a particular sport, or receive an overall high-quality physical education experience. Youth sport participation literature suggests that children participate in sport because it is fun; because they are good at it; to improve their skill level; to improve health and fitness; and to be part of a team (social inclusion). A long-standing belief that focusing on one sport early in life will lead to greater success later in life is not reflected in the literature. Evidence in the United States suggests otherwise; many studies have shown that early specialisation does not guarantee continued sport participation or success. Retrospective studies that have surveyed parents of senior elite athletes, consistently show that parents encouraged their children to participate in a variety of physical activities during the foundation years of skill development.
• Factors affecting the rate of athlete development from novice to senior elite: how applicable is the 10-year rule? Oldenziel K, Gagne F and Gulbin J (abstract) presented at the Pre-Olympic Congress: Sports Science through the Ages, Athens (6–11 August 2004). A retrospective survey explored the key catalysts affecting athletes’ developmental progression at well-defined competition phases. Data was extracted from the National Athlete Development Survey and limited to those athletes who have represented Australia at either a senior or junior (≤ 23 years) level of competition; 459 athletes (mean age 20.8 years) from 34 different sports were evaluated. The average period of development from novice to senior national representation was 7.5±4.1 years, although 28% developed ‘quickly’ (≤4 years) and 30% ‘slowly’ (≥10 years). Those making the transition from national junior representation to senior representation required, on average, 2.7±2.1 years.
• Familial, social, and environmental factors in the development of elite Australian cricketers. Multidimensional antecedents for expertise: Findings from a developmental survey in cricket, MacMahon C and Weissensteiner J, European College of Sport Science Conference, Barcelona, Spain (June 2013). This study used a large-scale online survey to collect information on player development in Australian cricketers. The analysis presents data for the elite male cohort, between the ages of 17 and 35 (N = 81). The findings from this study demonstrate the breadth of support (sources and type) required to complement the development of elite athletes. While receiving strong support from multiple sources, these elite performers took ownership, sought better developmental opportunities and were relatively autonomous in their decision making specific to their career planning/strategy.
• The importance of self-regulatory skills during junior to senior transition in Australian tennis, Mathews A, Farrow D, MacMahon C and Weissensteiner J, International Congress of Sport Psychology (ISSP), Beijing, China (July 2013). Self-regulation or the extent to which learners exert control over their own learning to master a specific task and improve their performance is a key psychological discriminator between successful and unsuccessful athletes. This study utilised evidence sourced from semi-structured interviews with retired elite Australian tennis players.
• The path to expertise in youth sport: Using a retrospective interview in three different competitive contexts, Diogo F and Goncalves C, Perceptual and Motor Skills, Volume 118(2), (2014). The goal of this study was to identify contextual factors in the path to excellence in youth sport, interviewing 48 male athletes under 17 years of age from a soccer academy and a volleyball club. Although the athletes are first of all adolescents, the characteristics expected to discriminate elite players from their peers playing at a lower level are achievement orientations and the will to become experts through deliberate practice. The motivation to practice at a high level for extended periods of time is a crucial factor. The specialisation years, usually between the ages 14 and 20 may be the foundation of a professional career. How athletes perceive the intensity of training, physical effort, focus on the tasks, and fun, are related to their ability to sustain deliberate practice. The results showed that the environment specificity shapes the way young male athletes perceive their participation and commitment in sport.
• Patterns of performance development in elite athletes, Gulbin J, Weissensteiner J, Oldenziel K and Gagné F, European Journal of Sport Science, Volume 13(6), pp.605-614, (2013). This study looked at the specific pathway trajectories and transitions experienced by 256 elite athletes across 27 sports. Data were taken from the National Athlete Development Survey conducted in Australia. The collective findings of this investigation demonstrate that, contrary to the popular pyramidal concept of athlete development, a single linear assault on expertise is rare, and that the common normative junior to senior competition transition is mostly characterised by complex oscillations featuring highly varied transitions.
• Sports specialization and intensive training in young athletes, Brenner J, Pediatrics, Volume 138(3), (2016). Evidence suggests that when sports specialisation occurs too early, detrimental effects may occur, both physically and psychologically. Young athletes who train intensively, whether specialised or not, can also be at risk of injury and other adverse effects. This report supports the American Academy of Pediatrics clinical report Overuse Injuries, Overtraining, and Burnout in Child and Adolescent Athletes. This paper reviews the epidemiology of youth sport concerns and offers these guidelines for paediatricians.
• • The primary focus of sports for young athletes should be to have fun and learn lifelong physical activity skills.
  • Participating in multiple sports, at least until puberty, decreases the risk of injuries, stress, and burnout in young athletes.
  • For most sports, specializing in a sport later (ie, late adolescence) may lead to a higher chance of the young athlete accomplishing his or her athletic goals.
  • Early diversification and later specialisation provides for a greater chance of lifetime sports involvement, lifetime physical fitness, and possibly the progression into elite participation.
  • If a young athlete has decided to specialise in a single sport, discussing his or her goals to determine whether they are appropriate and realistic is important. This discussion may involve helping the young athlete distinguish these goals from those of the parents and/or coaches.
  • It is important for parents to closely monitor the training and coaching environment of ‘elite’ youth sports programs and be aware of best practices for their children’s sports.
  • Having at least a total of 3 months off-time throughout the year, in increments of 1 month, from their particular sport of interest will allow for athletes’ physical and psychological recovery. Young athletes can still remain active in other activities to meet physical activity and fitness guidelines during the time-off.
  • Young athletes having at least 1 to 2 days off per week from their particular sport of interest can decrease the chance of injury and promote recovery.
  • Closely monitoring young athletes who pursue intensive training for physical and psychological growth and maturation as well as nutritional status is an important parameter for health and wellbeing.
• Talent identification and promotion programmes of Olympic athletes, Vaeyens R, Gullich A, Warr C, and Philippaerts R, Journal of Sports Science, Volume 27(13), (2009). The authors believe that forecasting Olympic success years in advance remains problematic. In this article, they discuss issues related to the identification and preparation of Olympic athletes. They suggest that earlier onset of rigorous training and competition, during childhood or adolescence may not be associated with greater success in senior international elite sport.
• Transfer of pattern recall skills may contribute to the development of sport expertise, Abernethy B, Baker J and Cote J, Applied Cognitive Psychology, Volume 19, (2005). Superior recall of domain-specific movement patterns is well established as a defining attribute of expert performers. Many studies on the developmental histories of expert team ball-sport players suggest that learning a wide range of movement skills and player positions during the formative years may be advantageous and reduce the amount of sport-specific training needed to become an expert.
• What do we know about early sport specialization? Not much! Barker J, Cobley S and Fraser-Thomas J, High Ability Studies, Volume 20(1), (2009). While associations between early specialisation and expertise development are highlighted, much research also suggests that early specialisation is associated with a range of negative consequences affecting physical, psychological, and social development. Evidence suggests that an early diversification approach does not disadvantage athletes in acquiring expertise, and is important for the development of intrinsic motivation and skill transferability. This review has found that inadequate evidence exists to resolve the issue in favour of either a specialisation or diversification approach.
• What does the science say about athletic development in children?, Project Play, U.S. Sport Policy and Research Collaborative, (2013). This paper summarises the review of relevant and important literature on the topic of developing children as athletes. The paper addresses five prevailing questions regarding early specialisation and the role of practice and play in the development of skill acquisition and expertise in sports. The discussion draws upon over 50 published research papers, reviews, and book chapters.
• Why do they engage in such hard programs? The search for excellence in youth basketball, Goncalves C, Coelho e Silva M, Carvalho H and Goncalves A, Journal of Sports Science and Medicine, Volume 10, (2011). Excellent performance in sport has a strong positive relationship with the accumulated hours of practice. The purpose of this study is to describe the achievement and motivation variables that can explain commitment of 82 elite basketball players under the age of 16 years. The most discriminant variable was ‘Will to Excel’; this was a better predictor of success than accumulated hours of practice or a collective of motor skills assessments. Therefore, the inclusion of measures of specific motivation should be part of a talent identification/orientation assessment.
• Youth sport specialization: How to manage competition and training? Capranica L and Millard-Stafford M, International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance, Volume 6(4), (2011). Prevailing thinking in many sports is that elite performance requires specialised early childhood skill development and high training volume. Debate continues whether children specialising early by training and competing in a single sport, have a significant advantage compared with those who sample various sports early and specialise later in adolescence. Retrospective analysis of the childhood sports history of elite performers, and numerous case studies, suggest a variety of pathways can yield elite status later in life. The evidence regarding any long-term effects of rigorous training and competitive schedules during childhood remains unclear.

• 'Applying talent identification programs at a system wide level: The evolution of Australia's national program', Gulbin  J, In Talent identification and development in sport: International perspectives, Baker J, Cobley S and Schorer J (Editors), Routledge , pp.147–165, (2011).
• Routledge handbook of youth sport, Ken Green and Andy Smith [eds.], Routledge, (2016). The book covers youth sport in all its forms, from competitive game-contests and conventional sport to recreational activities, exercise and lifestyle sport, and at all levels, from elite competition to leisure time activities and school physical education. It explores youth sport across the world, in developing and developed countries, and touches on some of the most significant themes and issues in contemporary sport studies, including physical activity and health, lifelong participation, talent identification and development, and safeguarding and abuse. (held by the Clearinghouse for Sport, GV709.2.R66 2016)

• Prerequisites & Precursors of Athletic Talent, @YLMSportScience, (18 June 2017). Based on Evidence-Based Prerequisites and Precursors of Athletic Talent: A Review, Issurin, V.B. Sports Medicine (2017) 47: 1993.

• Sporting milestones and career progression of male Australian junior international level team sport athletes, blog, Pathways to the Podium Research Project (29 November 2011). Identifying the ages at which highly skilled athletes reach these milestones gives us an idea of the typical timescale of the ‘pathway to expertise’. This information can essentially be interpreted as a time course of career progression that has been successful for the attainment of international level sports performance, and the avoidance of burnout and dropout. This information can then be used both as a marker to assess athlete development and to design developmentally appropriate youth sport programs. A comparison of football (soccer), volleyball and basketball players showed that soccer players reach each of the team sport milestones earlier than the basketball players, who in turn reach them earlier than the volleyball players. By the time athletes reach the junior national level of competition, the age gap between the sports begins to narrow. Interestingly, athletes from all 3 sports tend to make their junior international level debut and progress through the junior international level milestones at roughly the same age.

• A cross-cultural comparison of talent identification and development in Paralympic sports: Perceptions and opinions of athletes, coaches and officials (PDF), Sabine Radtke and Gudrun Doll-Tepper, Nachwuchsgewinnung und -förderung im paralympischen Sport, Sportverlag, (2014). Provides an overview of the current state of knowledge in the area of (international comparisons of) the overall funding of elite sport (i.e. not relating to disability sport alone), taking special account of talent recruiting and development, before going into the state of research in the area of high-performance disability sport.
• Conventional and genetic talent identification in sports: Will recent developments trace talent?, Breitbach S, Tug S and Simon P, Sports Medicine, Volume 44, (2014). This article provides a single review of both conventional talent identification models and those using genetic markers, elucidating the limitations of each. Both conventional and genetic testing have methodological and technical limitations, such as: test designs; the point in time of testing, and; psychological skills or traits and unknown interactions between different variables. The challenge facing conventional talent identification programs is the development of valid and reliable sport-specific test designs that also consider psycho-social, economic and many intrapersonal factors. Genetic tests determine DNA variants (polymorphisms) that are directly or indirectly associated with the disposition for sports-related physical capabilities. Genetic studies are statistical measures of the correlation with a trait, they seldom account for small (but potentially significant) gen-gene and gene-environment interactions. Human traits may demonstrate very complex developmental characteristics. As an alternative solution, sports might focus on a talent development approach; identifying the environments and conditions most suitable for widespread participation and guidance of those individuals expressing performance potential. While genetic testing may find a place as a tool for risk assessment in sport participation.
• Development of elite adolescent golfers, Hayman R, Polman R, Taylor J, Hemmings B and Borkoles E, Talent Development & Excellence, Volume 3(2), (2011). This study examined the nature of developmental, psychosocial and contextual factors experienced by elite adolescent golfers. Participants were eight adolescent golfers with a handicap of between +2 and +4 who were international junior representative players from England. Participants did not follow a specific specialisation pathway, instead they encountered numerous sporting activities within a playful, developmentally supportive environment until such time as they were selected as international representatives in late adolescence. At that point their deliberate practice in golf became more evident.
• Eliminating the dichotomy between theory and practice in talent identification and development: Considering the role of psychology, Abbott A, and Collins D, Journal of Sports Sciences, Volume 22(5), (2004). This paper explores prerequisites to success in sport, and the comparative efficacy of employing these prerequisites within talent identification schemes. The authors advocate that talent identification and development schemes, while emphasising the multidimensional nature of talent, need to recognise the essential role of psychology in the ability of individuals to fulfill their sporting potential.
• Factors that impact on athlete development within a talent detection program, Morley E, Gulbin J, Weissensteiner J and MacMahon C, European College of Sport Science Conference, Bruges, Belgium (July 2012). The aim of this study was to examine the characteristics of a successful talent detection and development (TDD) program and to investigate why some talent detection athletes transition successfully into high performance sport, while others do not. A case study approach was adopted using talent detected flatwater kayakers, interviews and questionnaires were completed by 14 athletes and 4 coaches. Coaches emphasised the importance of athletes’ natural ability, intrapersonal characteristics including determination and ‘coachability’, and environmental and process factors such as the importance of early and ongoing success and a satisfying social setting. Successful athletes attributed their achievements to environmental provisions such as quality training programs and international competition, influential others including parents and coaches, and intrapersonal factors such as motivation and perseverance. The impact of poor injury management, competing priorities, performance plateaus, and ambiguous expectations were highlighted as consequential by underachieving athletes.
• Familial, social, and environmental factors in the development of elite Australian cricketers. Multidimensional antecedents for expertise: Findings from a developmental survey in cricket, MacMahon C and Weissensteiner J, European College of Sport Science Conference, Barcelona, Spain (June 2013). This study used a large-scale online survey to collect information on player development in Australian cricketers. The analysis presents data for the elite male cohort, between the ages of 17 and 35 (N = 81). The findings from this study demonstrate the breadth of support (sources and type) required to complement the development of elite athletes. While receiving strong support from multiple sources, these elite performers took ownership, sought better developmental opportunities and were relatively autonomous in their decision making specific to their career planning/strategy.
• The importance of self-regulatory skills during junior to senior transition in Australian tennis, Mathews A, Farrow D, MacMahon C and Weissensteiner J, International Congress of Sport Psychology (ISSP), Beijing, China (July 2013). Self-regulation or the extent to which learners exert control over their own learning to master a specific task and improve their performance is a key psychological discriminator between successful and unsuccessful athletes. This study utilised evidence sourced from semi-structured interviews with retired elite Australian tennis players.
• Improving the identification & development of Australia’s sporting talent, Toohey K, Funk D, Woolcock G, MacMahon C, Hahn A, Auld C, Farrow D, Bauman A, Weissensteiner J and Gulbin J, Australian Research Council Linkage Project, LP1001000324 (April 2015). This study aimed to identify and analyse the individual, combined and interactive effects of athlete, environmental and system determinants of talented athlete identification, confirmation and development (TID) in Australia. The research team investigated environmental, psychological, socio-cultural and developmental attributes previously overlooked in research specific to athlete recruitment and development. Findings from this research project provide sport organisations with strong evidence to help them refine their TID strategies, resource provision, and program design. This research represents a significant step towards a more detailed and nuanced understanding of sport participation and pre-elite development than has previously been undertaken in the Australian context.
• Predictability of physiological testing and the role of maturation in talent identification for adolescent team sports, Pearson D, Naughton G and Torode M, Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport, Volume 9 (2006). Maturation is a major confounding variable in talent identification during adolescence, as significant changes during puberty make the prediction of adult performance difficult from adolescent data. The authors conclude that there is limited success in scientifically based talent identification in a range of team sports.
• Riding the wave of an expert: A successful talent development environment in kayaking, Henriksen K, Stambulova N and Roessler K, The Sport Psychologist, Volume 25(3), (2011). This study examines a flat-water kayak environment in Norway and its history of successfully producing top-level senior athletes from among its juniors.
• Second chances: Investigating athletes’ experiences of talent transfer, MacNamara A and Collins D, PLOS One, (24 November 2015). Talent transfer initiatives seek to fast-track the performance of mature athletes from one sport to another. However, there is limited evidence on the underpinning mechanisms by which success is ‘transferred’ from one sport to another. This exploratory study sought to identify the factors which successfully transferring athletes cite as facilitative. Participants identified a range of psycho-behavioural and environmental factors as key to their successful transfer of sports. Interview data were collected from seven elite, individual sport athletes (5 female, 2 male) whose mean age was 36.5 years. All participants had successfully transferred from an elite level (i.e. defined as participation at a global standard) in the donor sport to the equivalent standard in the transfer sport. Two higher order themes were found to facilitate the transfer process: (1) the talent transfer environment, and; (2) a number of individual factors that underpinned the transfer. The authors suggest that further research into the mechanisms of talent transfer is necessary to strengthen the evidence base underpinning methodologies used in talent transfer initiatives.
• Successful talent development in track and field: considering the role of environment, Henriksen K, Stambulova N and Roessler K, Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports, Volume 20, Supplement 2 (2010). This study presents an analysis of a particular athletic talent development environment within a very successful Swedish track and field club, and examines key factors behind its successful history of creating top-level athletes.
• Talent identification and deliberate programming in skeleton: Ice novice to Winter Olympian in 14 months, Bullock N, Gulbin J, Martin D, Ross A, Holland T and Marino F, Journal of Sports Sciences, Volume 27(4), (2009). This study looked at the quantity and quality of skeleton-specific training and competition that would enable an athlete to rapidly develop and qualify for the Australian Winter Olympic Team for the 2006 Games in Torino. Using a deliberate programming model, the athlete who eventually represented Australia did so following approximately 300 start simulations and 220 training/competition runs over a 14 month period.
• Talent identification and development in elite youth disability sport, Houlihan B and Chapman P, Sport in Society: Cultures, Commerce, Media, Politics, (18 January 2016). This paper examines the talent identification and development process in three youth disability sports: wheelchair basketball, boccia and tennis. The authors found that the policies and practices behind ‘disability’ sport have converged with mainstream sports.
• Talent identification and development programs in sport, Vaeyens R, Lenoir M, Williams M and Philippaerts R, Sports Medicine, Volume 38(9), (2008). This article provides an overview of current knowledge in this area with special focus on problems associated with the identification of gifted adolescents. There is a growing agreement that traditional cross-sectional talent identification models are likely to exclude many, especially late maturing, ‘promising’ children from development programmes due to the dynamic and multidimensional nature of sport talent.
• Talent identification and development (TID) programs for Paralympic athletes: A cross-National comparison, Radtke S, International Paralympic Committee Seminar, Vuokatti, Finland (17 January 2011). Talent identification in sport for athletes with a disability is often left to chance. This study looks at the organisational structure of sports and TID programs for athletes with disability, in three selected countries (Canada, Great Britain, and the United States). Eight action strategies are recommended to improve talent identification: (1) cooperation with schools; (2) greater investment at the grassroots level; (3) government strategy and funding; (4) long-term planning; (5) top-down strategy to improve awareness; (6) incentive funding for National Governing Sports bodies; (7) coaching education, and; (8) equal pay for coaches and administrators working in sport for persons with disability.
• Talent identification and promotion programmes of Olympic athletes, Vaeyens R, Gullich A, Warr C, and Philippaerts R, Journal of Sports Science, Volume 27(13), (2009). The authors believe that forecasting Olympic success years in advance remains problematic. In this article, they discuss issues related to the identification and preparation of Olympic athletes. They suggest that earlier onset of rigorous training and competition, during childhood or adolescence may not be associated with greater success in senior international elite sport.
• To Be or Not to Be: An investigation into the factors affecting the development of athletes who have been identified through talent detection (abstract), Morley E, Gulbin J, Weissensteiner J and MacMahon C, North American Society for the Psychology of Sport & Physical Activity Conference, Honolulu, Hawaii (June 2012). This study examined the characteristics of a successful talent detection program and to investigate why some talent detection athletes transition successfully into high performance sport, while others do not. A case study approach was adopted using flatwater kayakers detected through the Australian National Talent Identification and Development Program.

Junior Athletics Guidelines, Athletics Australia, (accessed 12 June 2020). In September 2019, following the October 2018 release of the Position Statement for Children Participating in Athletics, Athletics Australia announced the released of new guidelines aimed at educating parents, coaches, athletes, teachers and administrators in relation to training and competition for children and adolescents.

The FIT Model is a framework that outlines the recommended types of activities and loads that are most developmentally appropriate for participants. It provides a framework to assess and guide existing and future activities that meet the developmental needs of children and adolescents, as well as being an educative tool for parents, coaches, teachers, administrators, and athletes. These guidelines are based on research and evidence and have been adapted and developed from highly regarded models widely used by multiple sports and nations.

The FIT Model contains 5 stages of development:

• Fundamentals 1
• Fundamentals 2
• Introduction to Training
• Training I (General)
• Training II (Specific)

Accompanying the framework is a second document that provides an overview of the stages of development and has been developed to ensure a clear understanding of the objectives and focus of the guiding principles for each stage of a young athlete’s development. The athlete development pathway aligns with evidenced based programs and models used in other nations (UK and Northern Island, Canada, North America, New Zealand) with a similar sporting structure and culture to Australian athletics.

The third document – Minimum Age Recommendations for Road Distance Events - provides guidance on recommended minimum ages for participation in various road running distance events from 5km through to ultra marathons.

For more information visit the Athletics Australia website.

• Australian Football Match Policy: AFL guidelines for the conduct of Australian Football for players aged 5-18 years, AFL, (2016). It is vital that providers of the game are familiar with, and adopt, the procedures contained in this policy to ensure participating boys and girls have a fun, safe and positive football experience that is suitable to their needs. We don’t want to put kids in adult environments too early and that includes large grounds, congested play, unnecessary physicality and an over-emphasis on winning when skill development is more important.

• Junior Sport Policy, Cricket Australia, (2004)

• Junior Cycling Policy, Cycling Australia (2015). This policy is designed to assist all cycling administrators, coaches and volunteers in the development and provision of safe, healthy and fun environments in which young people can participate in cycling. The primary focus of this policy is junior cycling programs covering participants aged between 5-12 years but information on development and appropriate activities for young people up to 17+ years is also included. Sections of the policy include these topic areas: quality coaching, understanding learning and developing skills, planning, safety considerations, liability, images of children, privacy, health and safety, facilities and equipment, training and competition, physiological considerations, environmental conditions, medical considerations, and dealing with emergencies.

• Laws of Mini Football & Mod League, 27th edition, Corcoran P, National Rugby League (2013). This document provides options for competition formats among junior players (ages 6 to 12 years) in regional locations where participation numbers and maturation levels must be considered.

• Kinder Gym guiding principles, Gymnastics Australia (2014). Guidelines for clubs to be recognised providers of Gymnastics Australia’s 5 years and under program, Kinder Gym. Attention is given to the developmental needs of children at this age.

• Junior Netball Policy, Netball Australia, (2015).

• Junior Sport Policy, Swimming Australia, (2008).
• Rule tolerances policy, Swimming Queensland (2008). This policy allows swimming officials the flexibility to interpret competitive swimming rules used in Queensland competitions so that junior swimmers (under the age of 10 years) are not unnecessarily disqualified for technical infractions.

Policies and guidelines

Canadian Sport Policy 2012, endorsed by Federal, Provincial and Territorial Ministers responsible for sport, physical activity and recreation, June 2012.

Athlete development

Long-Term Athlete Development (LTAD) – Sport models, Canadian Sport for Life, resources page. This website provides an index of LTAD models by sport. The LTAD model features seven stages: Active Start, FUNdamentals, Learning to Train, Training to Train, Training to Compete, Training to Win, and Active for Life. The model is a chronologically prescriptive and generic ‘one fits all’ model of athlete development which is based on maturational and physiological benchmarks.

University pathways

Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) is the national governing body of university sport in Canada. Every year, over 12,000 student-athletes (men and women) and 700 coaches from 56 Canadian universities compete in 21 national championships in 12 different sports. CIS also provides high performance international opportunities for Canadian student-athletes at Winter and Summer Universiades, as well as numerous world university championships. CIS provides financial assistance for Canadian student-athletes to pursue both academic and sporting goals. The 2016 Canadian Olympic Team contained 81 current and 66 former CIS student-athletes.

• 16 CIS athletes medal at 2016 Olympic Games, Independent Sports News, (23 August 2016). The 16 athletes accounted for seven of Canada’s 22 medals at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games.

University pathways

Winner Education Model: Facilitating higher education for athletes, Lifelong Learning Programme, European Union, (accessed 17 June 2020). The objective of this project is to make European society stronger by supporting the social dimension of higher education. Winner is piloting the case of talented athletes studying at higher education institutions in Europe. The project also aims to contribute to the process of ensuring high quality education to athletes in parallel to their sports career, and thus integrate athletes into the labour market after their sports career has ended. The project seeks to find solutions to the challenges of educating young athletes for a “dual career” by establishing a flexible study model for students with atypical learning paths. The curriculum structures, teaching methods, and the individual needs of these student-athletes will be considered.

EU Guidelines on Dual Careers of Athletes: recommended policy actions in support of dual careers in high-performance sport. EU Expert Group "Education & Training in Sport", (28 September 2012). These Guidelines are addressed primarily to policy makers in the Member States, as inspiration for the formulation and adoption of action-oriented national dual career guidelines and to raise awareness at national level about the concept of dual careers. They aspire to sensitise governments, sport governing bodies, educational institutes and employers to create the right environment for dual careers of athletes, including an appropriate legal and financial framework and a tailor-made approach respecting differences between sports.

Policies and guidelines

The Framework for Sport in England, making England an active and successful sporting nation: A vision for 2020, Sport England, (2004). This framework for sport is seen more as a process than a product. Sport England’s commitment is to refine and review priorities on a regular basis. This is a whole of sport document.

Athlete development

Bridging The Gap: Research to provide insight into the development and retention of young athletes, prepared by Simon Shibli and David Barrett, Sport Industry Research Centre for England Athletics. The focus of this research was specifically on identifying the performance, progression, retention in the sport, and drop out from the sport by young talented athletes. It aimed to provide greater insight and understanding into one of the key performance and development challenges faced by athletics: how do we retain young athletes in the sport but develop and condition them to ensure the best opportunity to succeed as seniors?  Some key findings were:

• Athletes do not achieve their peak performance until well into adulthood.  On average this is around 26 for men and 25 for women.
• Previous research into young elite athletes in the UK reveals that over a ten year period 41% were no longer involved with athletics.
• In terms of athlete progression a study of 560 top 20 Under 15 athletes revealed that 10 years later 7% were still ranked in the top 20 for any event.

Athlete development

American Development Model, Snyder, C. United States Olympic Committee (USOC), (2016).  Introduced in 2014, the ADM suggests five stages of athlete development in youth sport. Each stage of advancement is grounded on an athlete’s physical, mental and emotional level, and their potential for growth. The ADM is targeted towards coaches, sports administrators, and parents involved in providing sporting opportunities to young athletes.

• American Development Model: Rebuilding athletes in America, United States Olympic Committee and the Department of Coaching Education in the Division of Sport Performance, (2016).

National Standards for Youth Sports, National Alliance for Youth Sports (2008). The purpose of these Standards is to provide a framework by which youth sports programs are designed and executed. Historically, many youth sports programs have been modelled after programs for more senior athletes. The National Alliance for Youth Sports advocates for contemporary programs (across all sports) to be designed and administered so that every child, regardless of their abilities, has an opportunity to positively benefit from sport participation.

Changing the Game in Youth Sports Project. The mission of the Changing the Game Project is to ensure that youth sports in the United States becomes more child centred. Because parents and other adults are so influential, this project provides the information and resources they need to make sports a healthy, positive, and rewarding experience for their children, and their whole family. Parenting and coaching young athletes is an art, not a science, and the information provided can help adults make better decisions.