Effects of the timing of entry into competition and sport experience on the competitive performance of college athletes

The purpose of the study was to determine the factors influencing college athletic performance by investigating when they began their athletic careers, when they felt their own performance improved the most, and their other sports experiences.The subjects were 690 college athletes (364 males and 326 females) who had played sports from their childhood to their college years.The survey was conducted from May to July 2023 in the form of a web questionnaire using Google Forms.The results show that many of the college athletes began competing by elementary school and realized their own peak performance during high school.Many of them perceived the start time as "appropriate" and recognized the importance of starting earlier in their athletic development.Three factors are shown to have an important influence on their competitive performance: "coaches," "teammates/rivals," and "training time/amount"; and these factors were shown to have a significant impact on both positive and negative aspects.The results provide valuable knowledge about the desirable future of athlete development.