Too much training, too young could be the root cause of a mass exodus from the sport
SPORT ENGLAND’S most recent “Active People Survey” highlighted that childhood participation in athletics and distance running has become increasingly popular in England. Although this growth in participation is promising for England Athletics, the number of athletes taking part in the sport declines after puberty. This issue is not exclusive to distance running, with poor retention rates being reported within most organised sport, both team and individual.
However, England Athletics has recently spent valuable effort researching the factors that may cause this issue. One possible cause of this dropout is that these athletes may be training too hard too soon, thereby damaging their long-term development and negatively influencing their motivation to continue in the sport.