|
The
IWBF Europe Executive is very concerned about the level of
participation of youth players in our sport.
The 2003 survey shows that, overall, only 5.7% of registered
male players in Europe are under the age of 22. This is a
decrease from the figure of in the 2002 survey. Results of the
survey for women shows that, overall, around 10% of female
players are under 22 years of age.
One of the priorities of the IWBF Europe Standing Committee for
Development is to work with NOWB’s to stimulate youth programs
in order to provide opportunities for young players to play
Wheelchair Basketball. We have recently received this proposal
from Wouter Terryn, which is designed to provide an incentive to
teams giving court time to younger players by amending the
classification system.
Both the IWBF Europe Standing Committee for Development and the
European Executive have considered the proposal and, in
principle, we think that Wouter’s idea is a good one. We would
now like to receive further feedback from players, clubs, NOWB’s
before we decide on the best way to implement the proposal.
If you have any thoughts, positive or otherwise, please forward
them, via e-mail to
Maurice Hammerton, the Development Officer for IWBF Europe
Adaptation of the classification system for wheelchair
basketball players in favour of the youth players
Introduction
Two seasons ago I participated with my team (Silverspokes Gent)
as a physical therapist at the preliminary and the final round
of the Brinkman Cup. When I observed the other teams at the
preliminary round in Tuzla (Bosnia) there was no other team that
used players younger than 20 years old. The age average of the
players that participated in this round was high. When you look
at the age average of the players in international competitions
of a comparable standing sport discipline (soccer, basketball,
volleyball,) you will see that the age average is reasonably
lower. In these sports you find many more youngsters who play at
the highest level.
On the trip back from the final round of the Brinkman Cup I had
the idea to propose an adaptation of the classification system
in favour of the youth players. Back in Belgium I spoke my idea
with referees, trainers, players,… about my idea. They found it
a very good idea and told me that I have it to write it down so
that I could send it commission that handles those matters.
Current situation
In the current situation it is very difficult for youth players
(younger than 18 years old) to participate in wheelchair
basketball. Especially when they want to play at an
international level. Except for the national youth teams, they
almost have no opportunity to play at an international level.
Youth players have some large disadvantages. They are not so
strong, they have little experience (certainly not at an
international level),… contrary to senior players. In
competition chances for them to compete at an international and
even at a national level are rather small. Their classification,
compared to that of an adult player, is too high to have a
chance to be lined up. When we compare a youth player with a
senior player of the same classification then we see that there
is a large difference between the two players in favour of the
full grown player.
In wheelchair basketball youth players have to be very good to
have a real chance for playing. When you have a high
classification, you take too many points off the total in
comparison with what you can contribute to the team. And when
you are a low pointer then your contribution to the team is too
low. This situation puts the youngest players off, they are good
but they need to stay on the bench. In other (valid) sports
there are youth teams and youth competitions where they can play
and compete with players of the same age and potential. In
wheelchair basketball the national youth team is almost the only
chance to play with players of their own age and not with
players of sometimes 40 and older.
Consequences of the current classification system
In the current situation top teams are not interested to have
youth players in their team because they can’t ‘use’ them in
their team. The young players have to start in small lower
division teams where chances to develop to a top level are often
less. A lot of these young players become discouraged in these
teams and choose an other sport.
It is not a challenge for a young athlete to team up with ‘old
guys’, knowing that it will be very difficult to participate in
the game. Because of this we miss/loose a lot of good young
players that can raise the level of the game.
Many top clubs buy the good players younger than 18 years old
away from teams that invest efforts in developing young players.
The development of those teams as a whole is thus jeopardised.
Some of these smaller teams have sometimes to stop because they
don’t have enough players anymore. Who will then train and
educate the youth players?
With an adaptation of the classification system more teams of
the higher level might pick up an interest in junior
development.
Reasons to adapt the classification system
There are several reasons to adapt the current classification
system in favour of the youth player. I divided them in two
groups: the scientific evidence and the other reasons.
Scientific evidence
When you want to compare youth and senior wheelchair basketball
players in an objective and scientific way then you have to
compare three factors: the aerobic capacity, the anaerobic
capacity and specific wheelchair basketball skills. This are
three factors that are easy to evaluate on a field test.
Vanlandewijck et co validated a field test to evaluate the
aerobic, anaerobic and wheelchair basketball skill
performances.
The increase in body size and the maturation of the endocrine,
nervous and cardiovascular systems that occur with increasing
chronological age are associated with improvements in sports
performances.
On Medline I found a review article where they describe the
physiology of growth and development in its relationship to
performance in the young athlete. In this review the authors
describe the physiology of growth and maturation; the aerobic
and anaerobic changes and the strength changes during growth and
maturation.
Growth and maturation
During puberty increases the body size rapidly en decelerates
toward zero around the age of 15 for girls and 17 for boys.
Aerobic capacities
When we look at the aerobic power changes during growth and
maturation we see that the maximal aerobic power (VO2
max) increase linearly from the age of 8 through the age of 16
for boys and between 8 and 13 for girls. This increase is the
result from increased muscle mass and haemoglobin concentration
and from cardiovascular changes (increase of the stroke volume
and decrease of the blood flow). To correct for increases or
differences in body size peak VO2 max is often
expressed as volume of oxygen consumed per kg body weight per
minute. When these relative VO2 max is compared
between different ages there is no difference between them.
Anaerobic capacities
Despites the several limitations to compare the data of the
anaerobic performances between children, adolescents and adults,
they show that the anaerobic power in children is lower in
children than in adults. There is al linear rate of increase in
anaerobic power of boys during childhood. With the onset of
puberty the anaerobic power again increases linearly, but at a
steeper slope than during childhood, and continuous to increase
until approximately 19 years of age. Girls also increase their
anaerobic power during childhood and adolescence, but the power
plateaus around the age of 15 years. Increased muscle mass, the
activity of phosphofructokinase, muscle composition and
testosterone concentration are the most important factors for
the increase in anaerobic power.
When I looked on the internet (Medline) for articles that
examined the anaerobic differences between children, adolescents
and adults I found many articles that found a difference in the
aerobic capacities. Most of the articles that examined the
anaerobic capacities found that there is a difference between
children, adolescents and adults with children the smallest
capacity and adults the largest. Even when the relative
anaerobic capacities where compared have the children the
smallest anaerobic capacity.
Muscle strength
In the last part of the review they describe that all the
different types of muscle power increase during maturation. The
mean factors are that cause the increase of the muscle power
are: changes in muscle size, neuromuscular changes and the
maturation.
Wheelchair skills
About the third part of the field test from Vanlandewijck I
couldn’t find any specific article that examined the difference
between children and adult in wheelchair skills. I found an
article that examined the limitations of kinematics in the
assessment of wheelchair propulsion in adults and children with
spinal cord injury. They found that there was a significant
difference in speed between children and adults. There where
also significant differences in angular kinematics between the
children and the adults. The children have less shoulder
abduction that comes from they have to stretch more because they
have shorter arms. The shoulder and elbow extension is larger
than the adults. This would be caused by the differences in
muscle strength.
Other reasons
The current system is adapted for the female player. When the
coach lines up a female player than can he line up 1.5 points
for every female player he puts on the field (16 in stead of
14.5 for 1 female player; 17.5 in stead of 14.5 for 2 female
players;). The difference between youth and adult players is
similar like the difference between male and female players. Why
shouldn’t be the classification system adapted to the youth
player like it is adapted to the female player?
In the small countries there is no national youth team therefore
have youth players a very small change to play international
games. With the adaptation of the classification system it is
possible for them to get international experience and become a
better player. They would have an alternative for the national
youth team.
Adaptation of the classification system
The classification system for wheelchair basketball players is a
system that is based on the functional capacities of the player
during the game. The functional capacities during the game are
largely influenced by the age. The current system does not take
age in to account. With an adaptation of the classification
system for wheelchair basketball players it should be possible
to solve this problem.
In the Belgian competition there already is an adaptation to the
system in favour of the youth. When a team lines up a player
younger than 18 they can use 1 extra point for every player
younger than 18. This is the same system as used for the female
basketball player.
The ideal system would be a different system. When a coach lines
up a player younger than 15 years old on the field, he may put
1.5 points extra on the field; player younger than 16 years, 1
point extra; player younger than 17, 0,5 point extra and when
the player is 18 or older than he plays with his real
classification and there are no extra points to use. This system
would be ideal because the disadvantage of a youth player become
smaller when they become older an finally they are fully-grown
with the disappearing of the differences.
The adaptation of the classification in practise
In practise it would be very difficult for the table officials.
Therefore I propose 1.5 point extra that the coach may line up
for every player younger than 19 year old. The female player
keeps the 1.5 point extra that the team can line up (cfr.
current situation when a female player is lined up. The 1.5
point extra for a male youth player that can be lined up
disappears the season that the player becomes 19 year old.
How can we bring this adaptation in practice? Therefore it
would be essential to introduce a youth pass. This is a pass for
the player younger than 19 year old. This card is largely the
same as the current. The identity card could remain the same but
the classification card could get an other colour so that they
catch the eye of the table officials. The season that the player
becomes 19 he/she gets the ‘normal’ classification card.
Advantages of the new classification system
For the sport it can only be advantageous that we have very
young players because the earlier you can start playing and
getting a good training the better player you can become. It
takes some time to become a good player.
The higher the level of matches that you can play the better
player you can become. Players can’t learn very much when they
win easy, they need close games at a high level to become
better.
An other advantage is that the youth players will have the
possibility to learn from the experienced players who can give
them a lot of useful tips and tricks.
An other consequence of the adaptation will be that the older
players will feel the pressure from the younger player so they
have to train more to keep there level or even improve there
level.
This change makes is also possible to recruit a lot of new
players who will stay with the wheelchair basketball because
they have now the opportunity to play when they ‘re young.
With an adaptation of the classification system more teams of
the higher level might pick up an interest in junior
development.
Some remarks
It wouldn’t be the sport alone that has advantages of the
adaptation of the classification system but the players could
also have large advantageous. Their rehabilitation and social (re)integration
could become easier, better, faster,… through the sport that
they playing and like playing.
An other group that have disadvantages are the people who become
handicapped when they are already adults. These people trail
behind the other players certainly the first years that they
play. 1 point bonus for every player lined up the first two year
he’s playing basketball would make their disadvantages smaller.
Once they play 2 years they play with there normal
classification and there are no extra points to be lined up.
In the short period that I’m in contact with wheelchair
basketball I have some problems with the 1.5 point extra that
may be lined up for every female player. I find this adaptation
very good but I think that the 1.5 extra is a little bit to
much. I don’t know on witch criteria is decided that 1.5 points
extra may be lined up but to my feelings and experience and
feeling is 1 point extra for every female enough to make
disappear the differences between a male and female.
Conclusion
I think that there are only advantages with the adaptation of
the classification. When making it a rule that the players
younger than 19 year have a fair chance to participate in the
games that we will raise the level of the game and it will make
the image of the sport also younger and more dynamic.
|