University
of Venda
TALENT IDENTIFICATION AND
DEVELOPMENT IN SOUTH
AFRICA: SUGGESTIONS FOR
DEVELOPING POTENTIAL
ATHLETES
L.O. Amusa and A.L. Toriola
University of Venda, Thohoyandou,
South Africa
Tshwane University of Technology, Pretoria,
South Africa
Faculty of Science
Introduction
• South Africa attained independence following multiracial
elections in 1994.
• Sport administration in the country has witnessed series
of transformation.
• After independence, the National Sports Commission
(NSC) was established to coordinate sports and
recreation in the country.
• The NSC was the operational arm of
the Ministry of Sports and Recreation.
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Introduction - contd.
• The NSC subsequently established the national Sports
Science and Information Agency (SISA) that provided
scientific support to elite athletes under its high
performance programme.
• The Ministry of Sport and Recreation published the white
paper on sport and recreation in 1997 that guided sport
and recreation development in the country.
• The rural development and reconstruction programme
(RDP) launched by the ANC in 1998 was aimed at using
sport and recreation as a catalyst for development in the
country.
• In 2002, the NSC introduced the concept of provincial
academies of sport.
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Introduction – contd.
• Despite these structures, sport and sports development in the
country face a number of problems:
• National squads were not representative of the
demographics of the country.
• Performances of national teams at international competitions
were inconsistent and unreliable.
• Sports development programmes were not properly designed
and implemented.
• In soccer for example, the country has had 13 coaches in its
12 years of independence.
• Physical Education is more a feature of the curriculum of
public schools.
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Recent developments
• In 2004 the NSC was dissolved and replaced with a
new body: South African Sport Confederation and
Olympic Committee (SASCOC).
• While SASCOC is now responsible for coordinating
elite sport, the Department of Sports and
Recreation administers recreation and leisure
programmes at the national level.
• The provincial sport academies still exist alongside
private academies, but no strategic approach is
implemented to coordinate sports development
initiatives among the various stakeholders.
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Management Structure of Sport
and Recreation in South Africa
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Debate
• Is ‘talent identification’ the same as ‘athlete selection’?
• What are sport organizations in South Africa doing
regarding talent identification/athlete selection?
• Are there specific models of talent identification that
South Africa has adopted?
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Recognition of Stages of development
of an elite athlete
• Catch them young: Not catch them old
• Initiation phase: (1-6 years), i.e. development of fundamental
movement patterns.
• Developmental phase: (6-12 years), i.e. development of sports
skills.
• Perfection phase: (12-18 years), i.e. Correction of missing gaps
in sports skills development.
• Discrimination phase: (19+ years), i.e. professional or elite
sports participation.
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What happens to the athlete
during these phases?
• Body/growth crisis
• Psychosocial adjustment (psychological problems, social
problems)
• Discrimination
• Peer crises
Guidance should be provided by parents, teachers,
peers, coach and society at large)
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Coping Mechanism During
The Development
• Childhood: Readiness, motivation, interest, knowledge
(cognition)
• Adolescence: Identity formation, sport/athlete identity,
identity foreclosure (sees himself only in sport), student
athlete (dual identity).
• Young Adulthood: Role formation, partnership
formation, societal role/expectations.
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Goal of Competitive sport –
Development of Elite Athlete
• What makes a champion athlete?
• Multidimensional factors are involved: Physical,
physiological, social and training factors.
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Developing an elite athlete
Nutrition
Nurture
Genetic Endowment
Physiological
Champion Athlete
Training
Physical
Psychological
Cognition
Socio-economic
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Talent characteristics
Psychology: Attitude, interest
and motivation
Motor skills
Championship
potential
Morphology
Physiology
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Talent Identification
Talent – Dynamic/
Non-static
A complex process
Talent Identification
Sport specific
Athlete specific
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Talent Identification Processes
Identification
Selection
Detection
Development
Identify
Develop
Nurture
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Need for a paradigm shift
From:
Talent selection
Athlete coming from within the sport
(Has been engaging in the sport)
Talent identification
Athlete coming from
outside the sport
(Possesses all required
potentials)
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Talent search basics –
contd.
From:
Broad
Focused
Older
Youth
Novice
Experience
Physiological
forms
Physical
variables
Individual
sports
Team sports
Centralized
Decentralized
General
Specific
Longitudinal
Short term
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Talent search basics
• Phase 1: At school (Catch them young –
FS+SS+Perfection)
• Phase 2: Sent to a developer (Academies, training
institutes, schools of excellence, etc.)
• Phase 3: Invited for trials
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Talent ID Program Issues
• Growth and development continuum- Individual must be
in the right environment with the right management
• Labour intensive
• Capital intensive
• Athlete acceptance uncertainty
• Requires enthusiasm of teachers, coaches, developers
and other role players
• Information privacy concern – For the athlete, his training
and development (cf. Jabu Pule)
• Response to immediate changes/development
• Response to immediate athlete needs – Money,
education, health and safety, technical development
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Support structures for
talent development
• Health, safety and sports medicine
• Sports science
• Technical development aids
• Research and information management
• Counseling
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Summary/
Conclusion
• South Africa has abundance of sports talents, but there
are problems with its talent identification system and
practice.
• Problems include:
• Priorities
• HIV/AIDS
• Nutrition
• Sport science
• Absence of PE in schools
• Facilities
• Necessary sports structures – At national, provincial,
district and regional levels
• Fragmented approaches to sport developmentHolistic/strategic approach is preferable.
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Thank you!
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