Abstract
PurposeThe primary aim was to create a performance progression model of elite competitors in the World Swimming Championships from 2006 to 2017 for all strokes and distances. Secondly, to identify the influence of annual ratios of progression, ages of peak performance and junior status on success in senior competitions.MethodsData regarding the participants of senior and junior World Championships (WCs) between 2006 and 2017 were obtained from FINA. The final filtered database, after removing those swimmers who just participated in junior WCs, included 4076. Statistical models were used to examine differences between the top senior swimmers (the top 30% best performances; T30) and lower level swimmers (the bottom 70% performances; L70) for minimum age (MA), progress (P) and best junior time (BJ). In order to identify the variables that contribute to reach the T30 group, a logistic regression (LR), stepwise LR and decision tree were applied. To analyze the effect of each variable separately, a simple LR (gross odds ratio) was performed. Ratio probabilities (OR) and 95% confidence intervals were calculated for each variable.ResultsSwimmer’s BJ and P were higher in the T30 group (p < 0.000). The decision tree showed the greatest explanatory capacity for BJ, followed by P. The MA had a very low explanatory capacity and was not significant in the LR.ConclusionSwimmers with exceptional junior performance times, or have a high rate of progress are more likely to be successful at the senior WCs.
Highlights
Due to the increasing competition between nations for medals at major international events such as the World Championships (WCs) and Olympic Games (Bosscher et al, 2006), many national sporting organizations have invested their available resources more effectively by identifying talented athletes at younger ages (Vaeyens et al, 2009; Allen et al, 2015).The primary aim of talent identification programs is to select athletes with potential who could later succeed in future international events (Allen et al, 2014)
the first study to carry out a retrospective analysis of all swimmers participating in the
The ages at which swimmers compete in the WC for the first time does not influence
Summary
Due to the increasing competition between nations for medals at major international events such as the World Championships (WCs) and Olympic Games (Bosscher et al, 2006), many national sporting organizations have invested their available resources more effectively by identifying talented athletes at younger ages (Vaeyens et al, 2009; Allen et al, 2015). The primary aim of talent identification programs is to select athletes with potential who could later succeed in future (senior) international events (Allen et al, 2014). Those athletes undergo targeted training through talent development programs (Boccia et al, 2017) based primarily on Analysis of World Championship Swimmers their age-related competition performance (Lloyd et al, 2015). It has been suggested that a high level of junior race performance is a pre-requisite in becoming a successful senior athlete (Svendsen et al, 2018; Yustres et al, 2019)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
