Practical coaching applications for children in the four to six-year-old range: Perspectives from the USTA’s American Development Model

The principles discussed in this article have been designed for junior players of all ages and abilities, and therefore, are translational to 10 and under tennis. These are the same principles that are represented in the USTA’s American Development Model (ADM). The theory behind the principles will be represented and then practical applications will be put forward that are pertinent to 4-6-year-olds and speak to long-term athletic development. The overall premise of the ADM is to attract, engage, and retain young players (4-6 years old) and keep them playing for a lifetime.

Parkour-Based Activities in the Athletic Development of Youth Basketball Players

While ideas from long-term athlete development (LTAD) models have been adopted and integrated across different sports, issues related to early specialization, such as increased risk of injury and burnout, are still common. Although some benefits may be associated with early sport specialization, sports sampling is purported to be a more effective approach to the long-term health and wellbeing of children. Furthermore, the concept of developing what are commonly referred to as “fundamental movement skills” (FMS) is central to the rationale for delaying single sports specialization. However, in place of sports sampling, it appears that the practice of strength and conditioning (S&C) has become a driving force behind developmental models for youth athletes, highlighted by the growing body of literature regarding youth athletic development training. In this perspective piece, we explore how conventional S&C practice may insufficiently develop FMS because typically, it only emphasizes a narrow range of foundational exercises that serve a limited role toward the development of action capabilities in youth athletic populations. We further discuss how this approach may limit the transferability of physical qualities, such as muscular strength, to sports-specific tasks. Through an ecological dynamics lens, and using basketball as an example, we explore the potential for parkour-based activity within the LTAD of youth basketball players. We propose parkour as a training modality to not only encourage movement diversity and adaptability, but also as part of an advanced strength training strategy for the transfer of conventional S&C training.

THE BENEFITS CONFERRED BY MULTI-SPORT PARTICIPATION MAY NOT INCLUDE IMPROVED FUNCTIONAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL READINESS FOLLOWING INJURY

Background: Multi-sport participation has been advocated for youth as a means to foster athletic development and reduce over-use injury. Whether this sport variety may influence functional and psychological readiness after injury is unclear. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to compare presentation, and functional and psychological recovery between single sport and multi-sport pediatric athletes following an ACL reconstruction (ACLR). Methods: Following IRB approval, prospectively collected data in consecutive patients treated for ACL injury (1/2015-2/2017) in a pediatric sports medicine clinic was reviewed. Inclusion required primary ACLR. Injury and surgical data, patient reported outcome measures (PROM) including both functional (Pedi-IKDC) and psychological PROM (ACSI-28 and ACL-RSI), functional clearance data (Y balance testing), timing of return to play clearance, and any re-injuries were reviewed. Comparison of multi-sport and single sport athletes was performed using a Kruskal-Wallis test and ANOVA analysis followed by T-tests for multiple comparisons. Results: 81.5% of patients who underwent an ACL reconstruction were single sport athletes. Single sport athletes presented with a higher initial BMI (24.47 ± 5.67 vs 22.45 ± 3.81, p = 0.03) than multi-sport athletes. In this cohort, soccer players (89%) were more likely to be specialized compared to football (61%) or basketball players (69%, p<0.01). No differences between groups were noted regarding surgical procedures or concomitant injuries. While no significant differences were found between the groups in time to functional clearance or clearance scores, it was noted that only ¾ of single sport athletes returned to sports (74.0% vs 92.3%, p = 0.06). Reported confidence in functional and psychological recovery improved in both groups throughout rehabilitation (see Table 1). Multi-sport athletes in this cohort demonstrated no advantage in either phase of recovery. Conclusion: Although multi-sport participation has been established to improve athletic development, and decrease burnout and over-use injury; it may not confer advantages in comparison to the specialized athlete for functional or psychological recovery following ACL reconstruction. [Table: see text]