ABSTRACT
The elite young athlete is one who has superior athletic talent, undergoes specialized training, receives expert coaching and is exposed to early competition (Mountjoy et al., 2008). It is not unusual to see 2 year-old children in gymnasium initiation programmes and training time increases with age with, for example, elite young gymnasts training for 30 hours or more each week. Participation in organized competitive sport often begins as early as 6–7 years of age and by their teens some young athletes have experienced several years of intensive training and high-level competition.
