POSITIONING YOUTH TENNIS FOR SUCCESS POSITIONING YOUTH TENNIS FOR SUCCESS BRIAN HAINLINE, M.D. CHIEF MEDICAL OFFICER UNITED STATES TENNIS ASSOCIATION United States Tennis Association Incorporated 70 West Red Oak Lane, White Plains, NY 10604 usta.com © 2013 United States Tennis Association Incorporated. All rights reserved. PREFACE The Rules of Tennis have changed! That’s right. For only the fifth time in the history of tennis, the Rules of Tennis have changed. The change specifies that sanctioned events for kids 10 and under must be played with some variation of the courts, rules, scoring and equipment utilized by 10 and Under Tennis. In other words, the Rules of Tennis now take into account the unique physical and physiological attributes of children. Tennis is no longer asking children to play an adult-model sport. And the rule change could not have come fast enough. Something drastic needs to happen if the poor rate of tennis participation in children is taken seriously. Among children under 10, tennis participation pales in relation to soccer, baseball, and basketball. Worse, only .05 percent of children under 10 who play tennis participate in USTA competition. Clearly, something is amiss, and the USTA believes that the new rule governing 10-and- under competition will help transform tennis participation among American children through the USTA’s revolutionary 10 and Under Tennis platform. The most basic aspect of any sport rollout is to define the rules of engagement for training and competition. So in an attempt to best gauge how to provide the proper foundation for kids to excel in tennis—through training, competition, and transition—the USTA held its inaugural Youth Tennis Symposium in February 2012. Experts from around the world were invited to address training, competition, and transition in 10 and Under Tennis, as well as to address the unique aspects of children relative to adults. This book sprung from that symposium and the accompanying pertinent literature, with the goal being to provide a rationale for developing a child-centered training, competition, and transition model through 10 and Under Tennis. Children are not young adults. They differ physically, physiologically, and medically. And because children differ from adults, imposing an adult model on a child’s sport is unlikely to succeed. This book will examine what makes a child unique, how that affects the training that is necessary to develop children who are successful and active in sport and society, and how to get them more involved and active through tennis by increasing participation. This is a critical time for such thinking. Never has participation in sport been more important. The United States has become the “fattest” country on the planet, and this includes adults and children. Obesity in children more than tripled between 1990 and 2010, and obesity health-related costs are more than 42 percent compared to normal- weight individuals. The societal contributions to the American obesity epidemic are manifold, and the ability to reverse the effects of these forces is difficult at best. Still, we believe tennis can be a significant force for good—but only if it is tennis that is learned and played the right way. So as we navigate the tipping points of youth tennis, sport, and health in the United States, the USTA has asked: “Is there a better way?” This book attempts to explore this question in detail, breaking down the fault lines that exist in the current tennis and developmental structure, and exploring 10 and Under Tennis as a definitive, viable solution for the long-term health of our lifetime sport of opportunity—and the people who play it. Scott Schultz Managing Director, Youth Tennis United States Tennis Association ACKNOWLEDGMENTS There are so many people to thank for assuring that Positioning Youth Tennis for Success became a finished product. Importantly, Positioning Youth Tennis for Success is the culmination of a joint project between USTA Community Tennis and USTA Player Development. This project was a true team effort, and sprung from the creativity and hard work of the inaugural USTA Youth Tennis Symposium’s organizing committee members: Kirk Anderson, Jessica Battaglia, Lew Brewer, Jose Higueras, Craig Jones, Kurt Kamperman, Mark Kovacs, Paul Lubbers, Patrick McEnroe, and Scott Schultz. I am grateful to Kirk Anderson, Craig Jones, Kent Kinnear, Lauren Kittlestad, Mark Kovacs, Paul Lubbers, Patrick McEnroe, Bill Mountford, Geoffrey Russell, and Scott Schultz for reading the first draft of Positioning Youth Tennis for Success and providing thoughtful commentary. E.J. Crawford provided insightful and consistent editing. Monica Kirmayer and Sue Hunt navigated how to position this booklet. Andrew Hickcox, Sarai Bartels, and Beth Meyer gave Positioning Youth Tennis for Success its polished and creative look. Jim Loehr’s vision for USTA Player Development forms the core of “Youth Tennis: Psychological Overview,” and Tom Farrey’s groundbreaking book Game On is the backbone of “The Health of American Sport.” Scott Schultz consistently and reliably tied all of the pieces together, and will ensure that Positioning Youth Tennis for Success becomes an integral part of the USTA 10 and Under landscape. Brian Hainline, M.D. Chief Medical Officer United States Tennis Association CONTENTS Introduction ..............................................................................................................8 America’s Health .....................................................................................................12 The Health of American Sport ................................................................................14 The Health of American Tennis: General .................................................................17 The Health of American Tennis: Player Development .............................................20 International Tennis Perspective .............................................................................24 Youth Tennis: Medical Overview .............................................................................29 Gender Differences .......................................................................................................29 Growth and Physiological Development ......................................................................30 Medical Concerns .........................................................................................................31 Strength Training ����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������33 Recovery and Periodization ������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������34 Youth Tennis: Psychological Overview ....................................................................36 Ability of 10 and Under Tennis to Fulfill Basic Needs of Children ................................38 Psychosocial Development and 10 and Under Tennis ..................................................38 Cognitive Development and 10 and Under Tennis ......................................................41 Deliberate Practice .................................................................................................42 Long-Term Athlete Development Model ................................................................44 Character Development ..........................................................................................48 Initiation and Specialization ....................................................................................49 Training and Competition .......................................................................................52 Rankings ........................................................................................................................57 Training and Competition: USTA Perspective ..............................................................58 Transition from the Red to Orange to Green Ball ...................................................64 USTA Player Development Perspective ........................................................................70 Transition from 10 and Under Tennis to 12-and-Under Tennis.................................74 Player Identification ................................................................................................77 The USTA Approach to Player Identification ................................................................82 Coaching .................................................................................................................84 Parenting ................................................................................................................85 Concluding Remarks ...............................................................................................87 References ..............................................................................................................88 Appendix I: ITF Rules of Tennis 2012: 10 and Under Tennis Competition ���������������96 Appendix II: USTA Youth Tennis Symposium Speakers and Attendees ...................97 Appendix III: USTA Youth Tennis Symposium Agenda .............................................99 USTA Youth Tennis Symposium Organizing Committee .............................................101 Appendix IV: Three Representative Sports and Long-Term Athlete Development ��102 Hockey ........................................................................................................................102 Baseball