[Sport] 40% of young people leave the sport due to the high levels of demand

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HOW TO FOSTER THE POTENTIAL OF CHILDREN WITHOUT PRESSING THEM

(5-5-2023). Covap Cup and Spanish Psychologists recommend not labeling minors as 'talent' to prevent abandonment of sport, a fact that affects 40% of young people. The high level of demand in sports practice causes a bad mood, agitation, aggressiveness and anger, a feeling of guilt, blockage and emotional exhaustion.

The Covap Cup, an educational and sports initiative organized by the Cooperativa Ganadera del Valle de los Pedroches, and the General Council of Psychology of Spain (COP), a collaborating entity in the tenth edition of this project, recommend not labeling minors as ' talent' to prevent abandonment of sports activity, a fact that especially affects 40% of adolescents and young people in general.

This percentage is taken from a joint study by the Pablo de Olavide University (Seville) and the University of Huelva where the behavior of boys and girls towards sport is independently analysed, highlighting that the dropout rate is higher in them (48%) than in them (33%).

The resignation from sport is due, to a large extent, to the pressure exerted on the youngest to consider them as 'sports talents' with the intention of bringing out their full potential in this field, which generates "high levels of demand for part of the parents or relatives, and even a high self-demand developed by the child himself with the aim of winning, not failing or disappointing ”, warns the specialist in Sports Psychology of the General Council of Psychology of Spain, Mª Carmen Espartero.

Likewise, there are other reasons that affect the decision to abandon sporting activity, such as competitive demands, high performance, the difficulty of combining it with other tasks or hobbies, and premature injuries. This is underlined by the research work Physical Education and Sports.

These factors have psychological consequences for children, manifesting themselves through different behaviors such as "bad mood, aggressiveness and anger, agitation, feelings of guilt, blockage, reluctance and, in extreme cases, emotional exhaustion", highlights the expert. .

 

HOW TO FOSTER THE POTENTIAL OF CHILDREN WITHOUT PRESSING THEM
Fathers and mothers, as well as coaches and trainers, play an important role in motivating minors to practice some physical activity. However, there is a "phenomenon of professionalism in which high competition sport has been transferred to grassroots sport, with which we focus on results and we identify this with sporting excellence, often ignoring the interests of the minors, which are fun, education and development”, explains Espartero.

For this reason, the Covap Cup and the COP propose guidelines to generate good experiences that favor adherence to sport and prevent its rejection or abandonment:

• Do not forget the values of sport and promote self-confidence based on the ability and ability of the little ones.
• Value what they are capable of doing, as much or more than the result obtained.
• Team up and make minors feel protected, understood and respected.
• Seek healthy communication (verbal and non-verbal) with constructive messages, give them space to speak openly and make it easier for them to set realistic goals.
• Supervise and control, as far as possible, social networks, since they are the main element of communication and key in the construction of their identity.

 

https://www.cmdsport.com/multideporte/actualidad-multideporte/el-40-de-los-jovenes-abandona-el-deporte-por-los-altos-niveles-de-exigencia/