Is It Wise to Specialize?: What Every Parent Needs to Know About Early Sports Specialization and its Effect Upon Your Child’s Athletic Performance

by John O'Sullivan

Do you feel like your young athlete is being asked to do more, more, more at a very young age? Isn't youth sports very different than when we were growing up? Should your child play multiple sports, or pick a single sport and go for it? It's enough to drive you crazy. John O’Sullivan has complied the latest research into the physical, social and psychological impacts of early vs late sport specialization, so that parents and coaches can lead their athletes down the right path when it comes to youth sports. You will learn:

1. The facts about early sport specialization that many parents, coaches and organizations don’t know but can significantly effect your child’s sports experience
2. The path that most athletes have taken to become professional and elite athletes, and gives your child the BEST chance of optimal performance
3. How to ensure sports are physically, psychologically and socially beneficial to your child
4. How to speak to coaches and organizations that are pushing your child down a path that is not supported by the best practices of player development

...and so much more. If your child is being forced into a sport, an dif you don't know where to turn for answers, "Is It Wise to Specialize" will provide you with practical guidance and cut through all the red tape, so your child and you can enjoy youth sports.

46 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 22, 2014

About the author

John O'Sullivan is the author of Changing the Game The Parents Guide to Raising Happy High-Performing Athletes and Giving Youth Sports Back to Our Kids and Every Moment Matters: How the World's Best Coaches Inspire Their Athletes and Build Championship Teams. He is a consultant for numerous sport governing bodies around the world including the US Olympic Committee, US Soccer, US Ski and Snowboard, USA Swimming, PGA Golf, Ireland Rugby, as well as a frequent contributor to CNN, ESPN, Outside Magazine and other sports publications. He is the founder of the Changing the Game Project, and has spent over two decades involved as both a soccer player and coach at the youth, high school, college and professional level. John received his BA from Fordham University and his MA from the University of Vermont.