ABSTRACT
In this chapter we contrast two approaches to talent development in sport. The first approach is centered on a deliberate practice-oriented model in which early specialization in one sport is the main feature of talent development. The second approach is centered on a late specialization model that considers the interaction of skill development with psychosocial variables and the sampling of various sports during childhood. We draw a working distinction between learning activities that are typically regarded as practice or training and those that may be more accurately regarded as play, and draw a contrast between the concepts of early specialization and early sampling for the acquisition of skill in sport.
