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Many people start swimming at a young age, but few manage to continue in their adult life and become professional swimmers. Most people stop voluntarily. Unfortunately, quite a few promising young swimmers, they leave the sport with a bitter taste from their experience. Because young swimmers burn out easily
These departures are usually assessments of coaches as individuals who did not have the mental reserves to continue. Of course not everyone would reach a high level, but it would be a lie to say that the swimming federations do not have a share of responsibility in this.
Many of those who left cite negative reviews of their coaches, injuries, or blame excessive pressure from their parents. Since participation in sports usually depends on having your friends with you, when people on the team leave it can lead to a larger part of the group leaving as well.
One way to keep kids in the sport is to understand WHY they quit. Some studies were done on 62 athletes who quit and the most common excuse is that they had better things to do.
Because young swimmers burn out easily
Lack of fun, the belief that they would fail, and the thought that they lacked talent were also associated with these quits. Women emphasized more than men that they were under tremendous pressure, that the training was too hard, that they did not like the competition, and that they did not feel important enough.
Younger athletes said they were more interested in another sport. Another study showed that in sports, dichotomies: health-physical condition, fun-friendship, competition-talent, as well as social status play an important role. Coaches and of course parents play a big role in this area. No kid deserves a gold medal just for showing up to practice. Even the children themselves have not shown good enough judgment to rate themselves and assess their abilities.
In a study done in a summer swimming program with over 100 children, it was found that the climate created by the coach plays a very important role in the development of the children and their participation in the sport.
Conclusion
Unlike many football and basketball players who don't stop playing until they're old, many young swimmers say they never want to see a pool again. If you have the answer to that, I'm sure many would pay a lot of money to hear it. The simplest approach is to admit that we can all improve and start by taking an honest look at why so many swimmers give up the sport long before they reach their ideal result.
Saltamanikas Nikolas
TEFAA graduate, swimming specialty
Class A swimming coach
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