Individual athletic abilities and choice of sport
On the structure of sports abilities and giftedness
Most studies on the theory and methodology of sports selection (Bril, 1980; Bulgakova, 1986; Shaposhnikova, 1994) use a special technology for assessing sports abilities and sports giftedness. The main content of such technology is to study and determine the model characteristics of highly qualified athletes, to study the informational significance of parameters that affect sports results, their stability and genetic conditioning, as well as to substantiate organizational issues (1-2).
The theoretical and practical significance of these studies is beyond doubt. However, when developing such a complex problem, it is necessary, first of all, to clearly define the concept of "sports selection", and then the content of its criteria, taking into account not only the subject of research, but also their direction.
According to V. Filin (1987), sports selection is a system of organizational and methodological measures, on the basis of which the predispositions and abilities of children, adolescents and boys for specialization in a certain sport are revealed. In the field of view of researchers and practitioners, predispositions should be present, that is, natural, anatomical and physiological features and abilities - individual characteristics of a person, on which the success of performing certain types of activities depends. Achieving high results in any type of activity, including sports, requires the highest forms of manifestation of abilities - giftedness, talent. Therefore, in the definition of the concept of "sports selection" it is advisable to include the concept of "giftedness" (Platonov, Sakhnovsky, 1988). V. Platonov (1987) considers sports selection as a process of searching for the most gifted people capable of achieving high results in a particular sport. Giftedness is interpreted as such a combination of abilities that determines the highest level of activity.
Researchers believe that the diversity and contradiction of approaches to the problem of sports selection and methods of its study have led, in essence, to a different understanding of the subject of research. Therefore, for further development of the sports selection system, it is necessary to clarify such concepts as predispositions, abilities and giftedness (from the point of view of sports activity). The greatest discrepancies are observed in the definition of the concept of "sports giftedness", which, according to some authors, is a combination of innate predispositions and abilities (V. Volkov, Filin, 1983), and according to others (L. Volkov, 1973, 1997) - the presence of genetically determined morphofunctional, motor and psychophysiological features.
The theoretical analysis and the results of experimental studies convince that sports giftedness can be considered as a combination of abilities that ensure high achievements in sports.
Training and competitive actions develop predispositions in motor, physical and mental abilities. This approach to understanding the meaning of predispositions is primarily due to the requirements of modern sports, since, as V. Keller (1995) and V. Platonov (1997) argue, in competition conditions it is possible to study the motor, physical and mental potential of a person. Therefore, information is needed about those features that determine the content of predispositions and are, in fact, the core of sports talent. Such information covers the age range from the initial stage of sports to the stage of higher sports achievements.
Currently, there is sufficient information about the influence of morphological, physiological, psychophysiological and other features on results in various sports, as well as data on the genetic basis of many parameters that ensure sports success.
Further research into the problem requires the study of sports talent as a dynamic system that has a certain structure with many interconnected components. The data obtained in the process of such a study can have a significant impact on the further development of the content of the criteria for sports talent. In this case, it is necessary to provide for the study of the structure of both general and special sports talent.
A systematic approach to the study of abilities and talent in sports
Sports abilities and talent can be considered as a single whole, the properties and features of which depend primarily on the internal nature of its constituent parts. The study of the development of the whole, the relationships and interaction of its parts is the basic principle of cognition of reality. This principle has also found its reflection in the development of a comprehensive approach to the study of biological and social objects. Comprehensive study involves the organization of the activities of various specialists working on a single program and coordinating joint actions to achieve a common goal. Such an approach to the study of the object necessitates the need to consider sports talent as a system with many interconnected elements.
A comprehensive study of athletic talent as an object allows us to apply one of the forms of theoretical awareness of the object in the study - the general theory of systems.
The study of the whole can be carried out at different levels. We consider it advisable to study the problem of sports talent at the level of the organism, without denying the study of talent and abilities in sports at other levels.
The system of sports talent can be represented by the following scheme: a holistic organism - a system of organs - organs - tissues - cellular and non-cellular elements of tissues.
The systems approach makes it possible to consider all processes, phenomena, objects as systems that have a particular structure (organization). This means that in determining the specificity of a particular whole, its features, properties, the structure is of great importance - the internal form of the whole, which is a way of interconnection, interaction of its components. At the same time, the study of the structure involves knowing it in its historical aspect: origin and development.
Obtaining information about the system on the basis of its component-structural analysis allows us to proceed to the study of the way it functions, that is, to considering it as a dynamic system.
The analysis of the system in the historical aspect is provided in two directions - genetic and prognostic. In this study of the development of the system, the relationships and connections between the elements of the set are determined, that is, the integration properties of the system as a whole are established. It should be noted that any integral system has its own special, inherent only to it integral factor, which subordinates all parts and processes of this whole.
The study of the whole is carried out through the analysis of the structure, which includes such moments as the interconnection of elements, relations and connections, hierarchical structure, behavior of elements and the structure as a whole.
A large role belongs to mathematical methods, the application of which contributes not only to the successful study of the origin and development of the system, but also to its forecasting, which has important practical significance in various fields of human activity, including sports.
When applying a systems analysis to study the problem of the origin and development of sports talent as a self-developing and self-regulating system, it is defined as an "open system", which allows using the environment, that is, training action, to improve all components of the system and the organism as a whole.
SPORTS SELECTION AND SPORTS GIFT
The main subject of the theory of sports selection is giftedness, that is, such a combination of abilities that determines the highest level of activity.
One cannot but agree with the opinion of Z.G. Martyrosov and a number of other researchers that the variety of approaches and methods of studying the problem of sports selection, the contradiction of many of them have essentially led to a different understanding of the subject of study.
An important issue for the further development of the sports selection system is the clarification of such concepts as predispositions, abilities and giftedness, in accordance with sports activity.
Currently, the task of studying the structure of general athletic talent can be specified as follows:
1. General athletic talent can be studied only on the basis of an analysis of the activities of representatives of all sports, modern requirements for the training process and loads, competitions.
2. Large training loads and rapid recovery after them are characteristic of high-class athletes, which requires excellent health, a high level of performance and is determined by the level of development of physical abilities. It is necessary to note the important role of studying the features of the body structure, somatotype and constitution.
3. Sports results in many sports are determined by the quality of performing exercises that require a high level of development of coordination of movements, muscle sensitivity, spatial orientation and other properties that ensure a high level of development of motor abilities.
4. Activity, competition, places high demands on the athlete's nervous system, his emotional stability, the ability to manage feelings in conditions of sports stress.
5. Sports talent is considered as a combination of predispositions that contribute to the maximum development of motor, physical and mental abilities for high achievements in sports. Depending on the type of sport, the significance of these abilities may vary.
6. The study of sports talent should include considering it as a dynamic system with a certain structure and a set of interconnected components that ensure consistently high sports results.
7. At the initial stage of sports training of children and adolescents, general sports talent can be determined by testing motor and physical abilities, pedagogical observation, survey, questionnaire to assess somatic development and emotional stability. Later, at the stage of advanced sports training (specialization), differentiation and selection of sports specialization are carried out taking into account the assessment of the features of somatic and psychophysiological development, as well as the level of development of physical and motor abilities. These features determine the structure of special sports talent.
Criteria for assessing sports talent
A specific type of activity requires a person to have specific abilities. In sports, this is clearly evident even with a visual assessment of somatic development. Studies show that the structure of special talent of a highly qualified athlete is determined by a large number of components. The main components should be considered somatic development, psychophysiological properties, and the level of development of motor and physical abilities.
Anthropometric criterion
The structure of a person's body has a significant impact on the sports result, and therefore, the determination of special giftedness begins with a visual assessment of indicators of somatic development, which include: the shape of the chest (it is desirable that it be cylindrical, not flat and not conical), the shape of the abdomen (should be straight and strong, not protruding and not sunken), the shape of the spinal column (straight, with moderate development of bends, without any significant curvatures in one direction or another), body posture.
To determine somatic development, you can use not one, but two classifications. The basis is the classification of V.V. Bunak, which presents 7 types - thoracic, muscular, abdominal and four transitional. To determine the somatotype in children, there is a special classification of V.G. Shtefko, in which 5 normal types are distinguished - asthenic, thoracic, muscular, digestive, abdominal. When determining the somatic typology of women, the classification of I.B. Talant is recommended, which distinguishes 3 types and 7 subtypes:
Lentosomal: asthenic and stenoplastic.
Masosomal: pycnic and mesoplastic.
Megalosomic: athletic, subathletic and zuroplastic.
When assessing special abilities, it is necessary to pay attention to the proportions of the body, primarily the ratio of the length of the body and limbs, as well as individual segments (shoulder, forearm, thigh, etc.).
Representatives of different somatic types have certain physical abilities. Assessment of the somatic type, thus, can serve as a criterion for determining the abilities of children and adolescents when choosing a sports specialty. Most of the signs included in the content of somatic classifications have a genetic basis.
Naturally, practicing one or another sport affects the structure of the body, changes the shape of the body and the shape of individual muscle groups, but not skeletal and somatic indicators.
The features of representatives of different sports are included in the content of models for orientation and selection of sports specialization. For example, when developing models of somatic development of athletes specializing in various types of athletics, data obtained by the English scientist J. Tanner, scientists from Poland and Ukraine were used.
As it turned out, the participants of the Olympic Games in all types of track and field athletics have a large body length compared to the other studied groups. A minor exception is short-distance runners. It should be noted that the athletes of the Ukrainian national team differ slightly in body length from the Olympic athletes, which cannot be said about the athletes of the Polish national team.
The general trend of all three groups is a large body length in pole vaulters, as well as in throwers and pushers, and a low one in long-distance runners. However, the athletes of the Ukrainian national team (in almost all types of track and field athletics) have a slightly smaller body length compared to the data obtained in the study of the participants of the Olympic Games.
Minor differences in all groups of athletes are observed when comparing body weight. The athletes of the Polish national team have a significantly lower weight, which can be explained by their age, which is on average 18-19 years. The greatest body mass is in throwers and pushers, the average is in hurdlers and jumpers, and the smallest is in long-distance runners.
The data obtained by J. Tanner show that in terms of the length of the lower limbs, the participants in the Olympic Games surpass the athletes from the Ukrainian and Polish teams. The smallest length is in the athletes from the Polish national team (almost in all types of athletics). The athletes from the Ukrainian national team and the participants in the Olympics are close in their indicators. The large length of the lower limbs in the 400 m and 110 m hurdlers, high jumpers, discus and hammer throwers is noteworthy.
In terms of the length of the upper limbs, it is almost impossible to distinguish any of the groups, with the exception of the high indicators of this characteristic in the discus throwers - participants in the Olympics. The longest upper limbs are possessed by 110 m hurdlers, high jumpers, throwers and pushers.
A comparative analysis of the average data of the shoulder diameter of athletes indicates high indicators of this characteristic in the members of the Ukrainian national team, medium indicators - in Olympians, low indicators - in athletes from Poland. The largest shoulder diameter is possessed by tall athletes - throwers and pushers, who, by the way, also have a large body mass. Low indicators - in long-distance runners. A similar picture is observed when analyzing the average data of athletes according to pelvic diameter indicators.
The shoulder girth indicators indicate that the largest values in almost all types of athletics are possessed by athletes from the Ukrainian team, the lowest - by athletes from Poland. At the same time, throwers and pushers significantly differ from representatives of other types of athletics in high indicators of this characteristic.
There are no significant differences in hip circumference between the representatives of the mixed group, which is the Olympic team, and the participants of the national teams from Ukraine and Poland. The highest indicators are possessed by throwers and pushers, and the lowest by short-distance runners.
The data obtained when comparing the somatic development of athletes of different groups indicate that the smallest differences are observed in skeletal indicators, the largest in body circumferences and diameters, which may indicate a difference in the training methods used in training in national teams of different countries of the world.
Currently, models of somatic development of athletes specializing in different sports have been developed, which helps to navigate in the choice of sports specialization.
Psychophysiological criterion
The peculiarities of the nervous system, its typological properties allow for a fairly clear differentiation of young athletes both when choosing a sports specialization and when developing individual means and methods of training action.
In sports, there are representatives of different typological groups, but the highest achievements are achieved by athletes who have the appropriate properties of the nervous system. For example, to achieve high results in speed sports, that is, when working with maximum power, the mobility of nervous processes plays a big role. A person with sprinter's predispositions has a good reaction and quick thinking. These important qualities for a sprinter are usually inherent in children with increased excitability. A good sprinter is always mobile, active and has sharp movements. A sports coach should look for a sprinter among adolescents with a nervous sanguine temperament, because this is the distinguishing feature of a high-class sprinter. If we talk about the mobility of the nervous processes of a sprinter, then they have very high mobility, and in many of them, excitatory processes prevail over inhibitory processes. Representatives of speed sports should have high mobility of nervous processes with a predominance of the excitatory process.
When working at high and moderate power, relatively lower mobility of nervous processes, which are distinguished by high balance, is characteristic.
As for the features of the central nervous system of sprinters, in most cases they have a certain predominance of the excitatory process over the inhibitory one. They do not have the balance of nervous processes that is characteristic of long-distance runners.
Representatives of speed-power sports (throwing, jumping) resemble sprinters in the nature of elementary conditioned-reflex activity.
With a relatively short latent period of motor reactions, many of them have difficulty developing differentiated inhibition to negative stimuli. This indicates a certain predominance of the excitatory process over the inhibitory one. Only hammer throwers have good balance of nervous processes.
Having studied runners at different distances using the "latent period of motor reaction aftereffect" method, we determined that the mobility of the nervous system depends on the length of the distance. The longer the distance, the greater the balance of the athlete-runner. Thus, the greatest balance is possessed by athletes specializing in long distances, less - in medium ones, and sprinters are distinguished by the predominance of the excitatory process over the inhibitory one. In addition, despite the statements of some researchers that in walker athletes, excitatory processes prevail over inhibitory ones, we believe that sprinters are close to long-distance runners in terms of the characteristics of the nervous system.
Mobility and balance of nervous processes are of great importance for the motor activity of swimmers, since human movements in an unusual environment somewhat complicate the formation of dynamic stereotypes underlying motor skills. Here we observed the same picture as in athletics: the features of the nervous system depend on the length of the swimming distance.
Specialization in sports, rhythmic gymnastics and acrobatics also places special demands on the nervous system. The variety of motor activity, speed and strength work and the need to quickly change the strength and direction of movements in the process of gymnastic exercises require high mobility of the nervous system - a quality characteristic of a strong, balanced and mobile type.
Naturally, success is achieved by representatives of those typological groups who have great working capacity and the ability to perform highly coordinated exercises in the phase of impending fatigue.
Of particular importance in wrestling, fencing, boxing and sports games is such a quality as the speed of motor reactions, which is mainly due to the reduction of the latent reaction period. A well-trained athlete minimizes the time for discrimination, cognition and especially for the choice of movements by developing an appropriate dynamic stereotype. An experienced athlete instantly reacts to the most imperceptible signals from the opponent, who involuntarily gave out his intentions, uses a very short period of time to assess the situation and make a decision. The high intensity of modern competitions places certain demands on all properties of nervous activity - strength, mobility and balance. Only a sufficiently strong nervous system is able to withstand a large number of different stimuli coming from the visual and proprioceptive analyzers, can provide intense attention throughout the competition, despite the changing situations, and initiative in a duel with the opponent.
In situational sports, the speed of orientation and tactical conclusions is ensured by the mobility of the nervous system, that is, the ability to timely transition from excitation or inhibition in some areas of the cortex to the same processes in others. In an attacking athlete, those areas are excited that ensure the technical and tactical correctness of the actions with which he seeks to strike or take on the opponent. If the attack fails, a rapid switch of attention occurs: the excitement now spreads to the centers that ensure the performance of defensive actions against the opponent's counterattack.
The balance of the nervous system is of great importance in situational sports. Competitions require significant excitement from the athlete. However, with excessive excitement, control over one's actions is lost, which reduces the likelihood of making the right decisions and responding in a timely manner to a changing situation. The predominance of inhibitory processes over excitement negatively affects the emotional coloring of the competition, the speed of thinking and motor reactions.