Children and youth in organized sports

The present volume provides in depth discussions of youth sport from two perspectives, i.e., youth sport in different cultures and as an important dimension of the daily lives of growing, maturing and developing children and adolescents. The first part highlights youth sport in the Portuguese cultural context. The second part focuses on youth sport as a part of development, i.e., the learning of culturally appropriate behaviors, motivations, and so on. It considers youth sport participants, coaches and parents, and includes data from Portugal, Mexico, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the United States. The third section considers youth sport in the contexts of growth and maturation, biological processes that are central to discussions of training. In addition to several general discussions, two internationally popular youth sports are highlighted, soccer and swimming. The final section considers the risk of injury in youth sport in general, in the context of psychological factors, and then in the context of artistic gymnastics.