Pediatric Sports Specialization in Elite Ice Hockey Players

Black, Sarah S; Black, Kevin P.; Dhawan, Aman; Onks, Cayce; Seidenberg, Peter H.; Silvis, Matthew

doi:10.1177/1941738118800446

Cited by 25 publications

(37 citation statements)

References 10 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…All identified studies were cross-sectional (level III) or retrospective epidemiological (level IV); no prospective studies were identified. Fifteen of the 22 studies addressed career performance outcomes,22–36 whereas the remaining 7 looked at the effect of sport specialisation on specific task performances 20 21 37–41. Studies ranged from single-sport investigations in basketball, soccer, volleyball, field hockey, golf, track and field and ice hockey to those involving numerous sports.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Most studies defined specialisation as participating in a single sport, while one required the athletes to have quit other sports to focus on one sport 25. Two studies required specialisation to have occurred by a specific age of 12 or 14 years 23 38. Three studies used the Jayanthi 3-point scale to define sport specialisation level as low, moderate or high 20–22…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Martin et al 35 found a similar proportion of D1 athletes, 42%, specialised at some point prior to college—though this study did not report the definition of specialisation. According to a study conducted by Black et al ,23 24% of NCAA D1 hockey players specialised before the age of 14 years and 12% specialised before the age of 12 years. Bridge and Toms24 reported that a large group of athletes 16–18 years of age who participated in a variety of sports were between 1.4 and 3.7 times more likely to participate in elite sport if they participated in multiple sports between the ages of 11 and 15 years.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Impact of youth sports specialisation on career and task-specific athletic performance: a systematic review following the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine (AMSSM) Collaborative Research Network’s 2019 Youth Early Sport Specialisation Summit

et al. 2019

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

ObjectiveThe impact, positive or negative, of youth sport specialisation (YSS) on short-term and long-term performance is not fully understood; however, the desire to maximise performance goals is generally considered the primary reason children and adolescents specialise at a young age. We performed a systematic review of original research to establish the association of YSS and task-focused or career-focused performance outcomes.DesignSystematic review.Data sourcesDatabases searched include PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane, CINAHL and SPORTDiscus.Eligibility criteriaWe followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines to identify peer-reviewed research articles published in English between 1 January 1990 and 31 December 2018 that reported original findings on the association of YSS and performance outcomes. Studies without an explicit measure of sport specialisation, for example, volume measures without measuring sport specialisation, were excluded.ResultsTwenty-two articles were included in the final review; 15 addressed career performance outcomes and 7 considered task performance outcomes. All identified studies were cross-sectional or retrospective in design. The proportion of elite athletes who specialised early ranged between 7% and 85%, depending on sport and definition of specialisation. Elite athletes often specialised between the ages of 14 and 15 compared with their non-elite or semi-elite peers who typically specialised prior to 13 years. In addition, neuromuscular control, anterior reach asymmetry and physical task outcomes did not differ by specialisation status.ConclusionThe volume and methodological rigour of published research in this field are limited. Our review suggests that YSS is not required to achieve success at elite levels. YSS also does not appear to improve task-related performance (eg, anterior reach, neuromuscular control) outcomes for specialised athletes when compared with non-specialised athletes during childhood and adolescence.

show abstract

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Impact of youth sports specialisation on career and task-specific athletic performance: a systematic review following the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine (AMSSM) Collaborative Research Network’s 2019 Youth Early Sport Specialisation Summit

et al. 2019

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Most cohort studies [5][6][7]15,16,18,19 of the relationship between early single-sport specialization and long-term sport performance have been conducted in non-US athletes. More recently, a growing number of studies of US athletes [20][21][22][23] have generated questions about the role of early single-sport specialization. However, few authors have explored the potential role of genetic influences on exceptional US athletes and compared such findings to a peer group whose participation did not advance beyond the youth level.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Early Single Sport Specialization in a High-Achieving US Athlete Population: Comparing National Collegiate Athletic Association Student-Athletes and Undergraduate Students

DiFiori

Quitiquit

Gray

et al. 2019

Journal of Athletic Training

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Context Early single-sport specialization and the relative age effect are often cited as improving the chances of sport success. Both concepts suggest that genetics and the environment have little influence on sport success. Objective To compare National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I student-athletes (SAs) with their undergraduate nonathlete peers (NAs) in terms of birth month, age of sport initiation, and age of single-sport specialization. A family history of sport participation was examined as a potential marker for genetic and social influences. Design Cross-sectional survey. Setting Large urban university. Patients or Other Participants A total of 273 Division I SAs (138 women, 135 men) and 155 NAs (78 women, 77 men) participated. The NAs had been involved in competitive youth sports before entering the university. Main Outcome Measure(s) Participants were asked to complete a questionnaire that addressed the age of sport initiation, birth month, age of single-sport specialization, and parental and sibling sport achievement. Main Results Neither birth month nor the age of sport initiation differed between groups (age of sport initiation = 7.16 ± 2.6 years for the SAs versus 7.71 ± 3.5 for the NAs; P = .176). A larger proportion of SAs began participating before 10 years of age (80% versus 63%; P = .02). The parents of SAs were more likely to have participated in collegiate (32.4% versus 8.4%; P < .0001) and professional (10.9% versus 1.3%; P = .0005) sports. The SAs specialized in a single sport at an older age (15.38 ± 2.7 years versus 14.30 ± 2.6 years; P = .002). Both groups participated in multiple sports in childhood (SAs = 3.9 ± 1.8 sports, NAs = 3.2 ± 1.8 sports; P = .366). Conclusions The Division I SAs did not specialize in a single sport at a younger age than the NAs. No evidence of a relative age effect was present. Importantly, higher levels of sport achievement among the parents and siblings of SAs suggest that genetic endowment and family or other environmental dynamics play a large role in athletic performance. Overall, the results are not consistent with deliberate practice theory and point toward an alternative model that includes not only sport-specific skill development but also genetic and social factors as key elements of long-term sport achievement.

show abstract

“…Additionally, high school athletes who reported participating in a single sport for greater than 8 months of the year were more likely to give a history of hip injuries, but this study did not include ice hockey athletes. 15 In a small sample of NCAA Division I and III men's ice hockey athletes, approximately 46% (22/ 48) stated that they had specialized in ice hockey by the age of 14 years, 16 suggesting that a large proportion of ice hockey athletes may already be specialized by the time they reach high school.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Early Sport Specialization and Subjective Hip and Groin Dysfunction in Collegiate Ice Hockey Athletes

Sheppard

Nicknair

Goetschius

2020

Journal of Athletic Training

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Context Sport specialization is a popular trend among youth athletes that has been associated with an increased risk for developing lower extremity overuse injuries. Early ice hockey specialization may contribute to the high rates of noncontact and overuse hip and groin injuries in collegiate ice hockey athletes. Objective To examine the effects of high, moderate, and low levels of sport specialization on subjective hip and groin dysfunction in collegiate ice hockey athletes. Design Retrospective cohort study. Setting Data were collected during the midseason of the 2018–2019 hockey season at a local ice hockey arena. Patients or Other Participants National Collegiate Athletic Association Division III and club ice hockey players from Midwestern college programs (n = 187; 81 women, 106 men). Main Outcome Measure(s) Participants were stratified into high-, moderate-, and low-specialization groups based on ice hockey participation before grade 9 of high school. The 6 subscales of the Hip and Groin Outcome Score questionnaire were used to assess current subjective hip and groin dysfunction. Results The high-specialization group had lower scores than the low-specialization group on the Symptoms (P = .001), Pain (P = .003), Activities of Daily Living (P = .001), Sport and Recreation (P = .014), and Quality of Life (P = .002) subscales. The moderate-specialization group had lower scores than the low-specialization group on the Symptoms (P = .015) and Activities of Daily Living (P = .006) subscales. Conclusions Collegiate ice hockey athletes who were highly specialized before high school reported greater current hip and groin pain, symptoms, and dysfunction during activities of daily living and sport and recreation and lower current hip- and groin-related quality of life compared with low-specialization ice hockey athletes. Early ice hockey specialization may be detrimental to hip and groin function in collegiate ice hockey athletes.

show abstract

Pediatric Sports Specialization in Elite Ice Hockey Players

Cited by 25 publications

References 10 publications

Impact of youth sports specialisation on career and task-specific athletic performance: a systematic review following the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine (AMSSM) Collaborative Research Network’s 2019 Youth Early Sport Specialisation Summit

Impact of youth sports specialisation on career and task-specific athletic performance: a systematic review following the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine (AMSSM) Collaborative Research Network’s 2019 Youth Early Sport Specialisation Summit

Early Single Sport Specialization in a High-Achieving US Athlete Population: Comparing National Collegiate Athletic Association Student-Athletes and Undergraduate Students

Early Sport Specialization and Subjective Hip and Groin Dysfunction in Collegiate Ice Hockey Athletes

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About