A considerable amount of evidence has demonstrated that most athletes who have the opportunity to play a range of sports in their youth are more likely to achieve an elite level of performance in sport.

Elite athletes with multisport backgrounds often speak about how exposure to different sports as a child helped them develop skills and exposed them to different movement patterns that when transferred into the sport that they focused on later in life, supported them to excel. Elite athletes also discuss how playing a variety of sports means they picked up valuable lessons through different coaches, teammates and cultures, which helped them be much more adaptable later in life.

Silver Ferns legend Temepara Bailey is no exception. Growing up she dabbled in gymnastics, netball, touch, volleyball and basketball.

“Playing a lot of sports when I was younger has definitely helped my career as a netballer. Just the different skills you get… it’s also helped the longevity that I’ve had in my career because playing different sport obviously offers different body movements and uses your whole body in different ways.”

Bailey hopes that the Keep up with the play campaign will challenge adults to rethink their own roles, expectations and behaviour. She is passionate about improving sporting experiences for young people, using sport as a driver for positive change in the health and wellbeing of young people and our country.

For more follow: Temepara Bailey on why young people shouldn’t specialise too soon - Balance is Better

Article added: Tuesday 02 July 2024