What's the best national sports program?

In the US, youth swimming is the closest. Kids start in competitive programs very, very early, way before junior high school, and if they take to it, race on club teams that bring a much higher level of expertise and commitment than a school team. 

Running and cycling start much later in comparison, and club teams are limited until the high school level.

Aerobic training must start much earlier than High School for sports such as running or swimming....that engine starts being built much earlier.  I agree that swim programs are the best avenue because it's easy on growing bones..... but if you don't have that aerobic capacity started early you won't be able to play if you wait until High School. 

The fast kids I see could all run 5:00 or lower mile times by the time they were in 8th grade.  A surprising number had no run training before they ran those times, but they all swam or played A LOT of soccer.  Soccer players make great young runners.

Actually, in endurance running, quite a few HS x-country stars didn't even have background in other run-heavy sports. Unlike swimming, where you pretty much have to start super early to achieve national level later, there are definitely a lot of pure runners who just take to it naturally, even if they start fairly late, like freshman year HS, and get really fast in a matter of

I suspect a lot of this may have to do with the much higher technical component of swimming - it's very similar in music; I attended the Juilliard school of music, and I can't recall a single peer of mine in the precollege division that hadn't started their instrument after the age of 7. Like it or not, running doesn't have as high a technical component - our brains/spinal cords seem to be able to figure it out pretty quickly for one's given ability.

(I happend to have played a lot of soccer growing up, in competitive youth league starting at age 8 all the way to 15, but I was a lousy x-country runner. Also not trying to stir the hornet's nest, but I'm sure it was due to the low mileage we did in HS well <30mpw, which meant' I was no faster than 21:xx for a 5k at that volume, even training as hard as I possibly could in those <30mpw.)

For me, it's always the most interesting discussion, because I'm around a bunch of kids who are considered top tier in swimming and running...and then the focus for my kids is triathlon.  Although my son is at the very pointy end of triathletes for his age, he is neither a top tier runner or swimmer.   He swam this weekend and went 10:16 in the 1000..  That's really not competitive on the national swim level for his age, but it will get him out of the water with the first pack in draft legal triathlon and will win or be very close to the front in AG triathlon.  Likewise, his sub 16:00 5K is a big plus for triathlon, but on the national level he's one of about 1000 who can do that.

I have wondered many times whether it was the right move to keep him from running too soon, and if I should have pushed/encouraged him to start club swimming earlier when his swim lesson coaches told us that he had a natural stroke and wanted us to explore club swimming.  The fact is, at that age, he didn't want anything to do with it.  He did when he started to fall in love with triathlon, but he was waaaay behind the curve at 14.  Still, like I said, he is a top triathlete for his age and burnout never even becomes part of a discussion with him, he just wants to get faster.....and who knows where he would be if he had started earlier and specialized in one sport....maybe done, but maybe top tier in a single sport and looking at college scholarships. (something that is not that big a deal to us beyond a small savings since the overwhelming majority of kids, even at the top end of running and swimming, won't get anymore than a partial scholarship)

As to the point of starting to look at elite sports at an early age, I don't think I can be knocked off the belief that the top runners all had some aerobic training as young kids.  I know the background of most of the top HS runners in our area and it always includes swimming or soccer.  The top miler in our area ran a 4:08 as a junior.  He played soccer at a very high level.  Our state XC champion was a phenom as a young swimmer.  Most of the top Jr. triathletes that I am around have a background that includes quite a bit of aerobic training, at one sport or another.  I'll stick with my point about 8th graders needing to be right around that 5:00 mark for a mile in order to be competitive as they get older.  Of course, as Yaz pointed out, there is also a large genetic component when it comes to running.....the kids who can do that 5:00 mile at 13 were pretty much born runners on top of being very active at a young age.

At 16, my son drives the bus wen it comes to what he wants to concentrate on.  Sometimes it's swimming, sometimes it's running, and sometimes it's biking.  Sometimes I agree with his choices, and sometimes I don't.....but in the end I don't require that he does it my way in order for me to support it and set him up with the best coaches I can find/afford..... I see my job as a parent as just that....support.  I will even back down a coach if my son doesn't want to head in the direction they want him to, which is very common for us because each coach would like him to concentrate on their specialty as a coach......but that won't happen without a green light from the kid doing the work.

Elite athletes start young......they just do.  As you point out, Fred, it's a reality and truth be told, the right way to go with most sports if your child shows exceptional talent and WANTS to go down that road.  The other end, as you also point out, is a very high rate of burnout for a lot of those kids.  It's a hard balance to strike and takes really honest communication between the parents and the child.......because like the OP rightly pointed out, the big win is to raise kids who grow into an active and healthy lifestyle.

Yeah, putting an age on that is hard.  Purely by accident, that's what happened with my kid.  He got interested in triathlon, started training, and the grew from 5'4" to 6" in a year......then put on another 4 inches the next year.  Still, there are plenty of youth coaches out there who say that the building of the engine starts much earlier.....and I know plenty of examples that point in that direction.  In fact, at 14, I had two different coaches tell me that it was probably too late for him to develop into elite swimming or triathlon.....and I think for a lot of kids,  that's true. 

And then there is my belief in the ~5:00 minute mile by 8th grade..........but it's hard to know how much (probably quite a bit) of that is genetics.  Of all the HS kids I know who are top runners or triathletes, I would guess 9 out of 10 that I have talked to could run between 4:50 and 5:15 for a mile at that age.....and yeah, I ask all of them, because it's very interesting to me to hear the background.

Definitely agree the USA swimming is a prime example.

My cousins were big swimmers since we were little, and they went the hardcore track: Junior Olympics and all that... and they both got full rides to pretty prestigious colleges (one for swimming, one for water polo). So many excellent programs and competitive events were available to them.

I'll add that our gymnastics programs might not be totally comprehensive on a national level, like USA swimming (though I could be wrong?), but, like swimming, is a program where the elite are split from the non-elites early on, but all can still compete.

I remember my mom sitting me down when I was like 8 or 9 and saying I could do gymnastic only, or quit and do every other sport I liked instead. HUGE commitment at an early age!

I wish that, as a child, i had exposure to some non-mainstream sports, too. My friend's kid is 10 and she's on an elite junior rock climbing team. I would have loved the opportunity to participate on a smaller stage, and maybe do some bigger things with it.

I see a trend to have kids specialize in one sport at younger and younger ages.

When I was a kid, most kids could play 3-4 sports one each season and you may be good at all or one was your favorite but you had exposure and you didn't have to choose. I was a competitive figure skater which meant 10+ hours at the rink starting when I was young in elementary school. I skated before school often and as I got older did independent study gym so I could skate longer and come to school for 2nd period. I quit the sport as I just got burned out and didn't love it any more when I was 14 or 15.  I wish I had tried more different sports but time didn't allow.

I have kids 15-24 and in those 10 years I see more and more kids joining all year teams for different sports. They pressure parents/players to join otherwise their skill set will behind the other kids that do play all year. Many of these teams have a top team and have lesser competitive teams often to support the coach who runs the teams as a business no Susie's Dad is the coach. Those kids and parents on the lower tier teams are often mislead to have an ongoing revenue stream.  Our younger kids know many who are on these year round soccer teams that cost upwards of $2-3K per year. Our older kids we only knew a few kids who were on those teams but they were very talented and had high potential.

Not only does this early specialization limit exposure to other sports it sets up kids to have major injuries. The number of younger and younger kids having major sports injuries that didn't show up usually until athletes are much older are showing up 5+ years earlier. Moving in different ways in different sports is good for athletes.

I'd love to see that HBO special Fred mentioned but couldn't find it on demand on HBO.

I do question who is driving the desire to compete at higher and higher levels by many...is it the child or the parent?  Most kids who are gifted and have real potential at a sport it is obvious to everyone almost from when they start. Is that true in all sports?

You brought up cost....and that's another really great discussion when we talk about sports programs.  I'll use the USAT Jr. Elite triathlon program and USA swimming since that's what my kids are involved in.  It's expensive to be a part of a swim program....even more so if you h ave multiple kids.  Our swim club bill averages about $400.00 per month when you consider meet fees.  That's for two kids, with one of them swimming in the most expensive group on the club team.  It's expensive, but that cost is pretty static and will let your kid continue to improve and even move up to the highest level of swimming if they end up having that kind of talent.  Once you get to the national level there is some travel, but it's fairly  "cheap" because buses are involved, kids share rooms, etc.  USA swimming is failry accessible for a large segment of the child population, and USA swimming produces some of the best swimmers in the world.

Now look at the USAT Jr. Elite development program.  You almost have to be part of a High Perfiormance Team, which designation comes from USAT.  You can participate in the youth and jr. elit eraces if you aren't a part of a team, but with only 75 spots per race available, you miss the information as soon as the races come open.  So you join a HPT.....anywhere from 600 - 1000 per year, which will give you very generic trianing plans.  For personalized plans count on another 75-100 per month for workouts that come across TP.  There are 3 cup races and a national champiojnship race.  The cup races are on each coast an din the midwest.  The kids who want to keep progressing attend all three races because there is no other draft legal opportunities.  So a trip to Seattle, a trtip to Richmond, Va., a trip to Des Moines, and a trip to Cincinatti.  That doesn't include trips to USAT Select camps, with travel and fees, or equipment.....no, you really can't compete at all with your mountain bike, or your father' old schwinn continenental. It's realistically about 7500 - 10,000 per year when it's all added up.

Do you want to know why we are not up to par with the rest of the world in triathlon?  It's too damn expensive.  We miss some REALLY fast athletes becausse there is no way for them to afford the travel and equipment.  I'd like to see cup races in all 8 USAT regions to cut down on travel expensives....swimming does it wiht little problem.  I'd like to see us identify the fast kids who can't afford triathlon......because they are out there by the hundreds.  You can make the argument that they don't need to do that type of triathlon yet, and can wait until they are older, and that's fine.......except they really can't wait to start swimming, and in case you haven't been paying attention, a 16-19 year old with this experience will rain hell on any triathlon they enter.....because the program works, and builds really fast kids, but not near enough of them because it's cost prohibitive.

Just another discussion point if we are talking about national level programs.  I don't have any answers, justr experiences....and I don't have much money left either. LOL

Too late.

I think it depends a bit too on what you played. I played soccer from the time I was five up through college (outdoor) and indoor from middle school into college. Lots of club league play, travelling teams, every single week year round. Not many breaks running around an indoor pitch We also did a fairly large amount of running outside of games and practices. It's what I credit my ability now as a halfway decent runner to. 

Yep