Sporting Excellence: A Family Affair?

Abstract

This paper examines the central role played by the family in the development of children’s sports talent, with particular emphasis on the practical ways in which families support children’s excellence in sport. The paper reviews research on the impact that families have on young people’s sports careers, then draws on a recent empirical study to examine the other side of this relationship–how the family is affected by delivering this level of support. Interviews with 20 families from three sports (swimming, tennis and rowing) are used to investigate how family units provide support for young performers, and how they are affected by doing so. The findings showed that, in addition to providing essential financial resources, families’ abilities to accommodate the activity patterns required by the sport are critical to children’s participation. The implications of these findings are then considered in the context of recent social and economic trends in Britain that are widely considered by social policymakers to be contributing to change in the conduct of family life. It is shown that a number of these factors are also likely to affect families’ abilities to support children’s sport talent. Evidence of growing polarization in family situations is reviewed, and the implications for promoting broader access to sport and the development of talent are discussed. The paper concludes that the published data on major socioeconomic and demographic trends have value to the sports policymaker and may enhance the effectiveness of sports policy interventions. In the case of talented child sports performers, they may assist in the development of policies that allow children from diverse family circumstances to realize their sports talent and so contribute to their broader social inclusion.