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corrado33 t1_iyniwjv wrote

This just backs up what I've been saying for YEARS about children's sports.

It has NOTHING to do with talent, and EVERYTHING to do with maturity.

Your kid isn't "good" at sports, they're just bigger than most people they're playing against.

If you mature early (like I did), you will likely be "good" at sports. (I was 5'10" in 8th grade.) You will be pushed to do sports more than someone who matures later, so, by the time that talent DOES come into play, you have many many more hours of training than someone who didn't start playing until a few years later.

It's relatively rare that someone matures late or is small and their talent alone carries them to the furthest levels of sports. (Think of people who were the "wrong" size for their sport. Generally someone who is very small in most american sports.)

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-Twigs- t1_iyqia5y wrote

I don't really think it'd be correct to say it's 100% a question of maturity and nothing else. Things like genes, nutrition and health are examples of factors that could be playing a part. Loads of things contribute to a child even getting the chance to start playing a sport, which is a requirement for them to be good at it. To reduce all that down to differences in "maturity" is a bit simplistic in my mind.

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corrado33 t1_iyrm080 wrote

Of course you are correct. I'm just saying that the MAIN factor in determining if someone will be good at sports is literally how physically mature/how big they are. (As a kid, "size" is pretty much determined by physical maturity (and to a lesser extent, the things you mentioned).

Some dirt poor, poorly fed kid who is 5'6" (due to maturing quilckly) is still going to destroy a rich, well fed kid who is 4'10" tall in any physical sport.

Genetics and what not will determine the final height of most people, but the speed at which one matures will determine how quickly they get there (and therefore, how much larger they are than their peers when they are young.)

And let's be honest here, MOST children who will be playing sports (in the US) are fed well enough not to affect development.

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