The document outlines a training module focused on talent identification (talent ID) and selection processes in sports, detailing the differences between these concepts and their implications at various levels of coaching. It emphasizes the need for effective policies, diagnostic tests, and a culture of excellence to improve athlete selection and development, supported by examples and insights from global practices. Additionally, it provides strategies for implementing and evaluating talent ID and selection plans, addressing the gaps in Canadian 7s rugby preparation for the Olympics.

1. Talent ID & Selection
Training & Competitive Readiness – TCM2
First Year NCI
Facilitator – Beth Barz bethbarz@gmail.com

2. Goals for TCM2 Module
 Increase understanding of Talent ID and
Selection in your sport context
 Realize the positives and negatives to the Talent
ID and Selection process
 Use time to create a plan for your portfolio entry
for this module
Self Task
Group Task

3. Talent ID vs Selection
 What’s the difference?
 Talent identification for coaches is generating a pool of athletes who
may have the genetic make up (physical, mental, tactical, technical
and lifestyle) that you are looking for
 Selection is choosing from this pool
 Another definition of Talent identification is “that process by which
children are encouraged to participate in the sports at which they
are most likely to succeed, based on results of testing selected
parameters. These parameters are designed to predict performance
capacity, taking into account the child's current level of fitness and
maturity” (Peltola, 1992).

4. Talent ID: within or without?
 Development of talent that is within your sport
system
 Bringing in new athletes that are not currently in
your sport system
 How will you determine your priority?
 What other factors besides anthropometric
markers are important?

5. Talent ID and Selection
Across the Globe
 It’s happening everywhere, and
not just in a sporting context
 Recent data and articles:
 Bahrain
 Australia
 Haiti
 Zimbabwe
 Zambia
 Germany
 USA
 England
 Canada
 Northern Ireland
 India
 North Wales
 Scotland
 South Africa
 Trinidad & Tobago

6. Talent Decoded Symposium
 Share one insight you gained from the
presentations at the Symposium in the dialogue
box to the right
 Do you have an specific thoughts or questions
that have yet to be answered when you try to
apply Talent ID and Selection to your sport?

7. Resources
 Talent ID Working Group Resources
 SDRCC – Team Selection document and Selection Criteria
for Amateur Sport
 Kathryn Shaw, prof at Stanford – tons of resources online
 Various CSC presentations from across the country
 Books:
 The Rare Find by George Anders (on spotting talent)
 Talent is Overrated by Geoff Colvin (on developing talent)
 The Talent Code by Dan Coyle (on developing talent)
 Bounce by Matthew Syed (on practice)

8. Talent ID: Team vs Individual
Sport

9. Evidence Based Talent ID
Tests must be HIGHLY diagnostic to influence selection decisions.

10. Team Selection in
Rugby
Team sport selection – art or science?

11. Quick Overview
• Measurable vs non-measurable
characteristics
• Team balance and cohesiveness
• Team Position Skills Handbook
• General vs Position-Specific Skills
• Quantified Intangibles
• Final Selection
• Filling the need

12. How can I measure
performance adequately?
• Fitness tests – NSO similar?
• Skills competitions
• Game play
• Observation on & off field
• Specific need identified by
coach

13. Needs Assessment
Measurable
Non-
measurable
Team
Culture

14. Summary of Policy
• Cuts vs no cuts – high school or entry level
• Playing time?
• Attitude, Fitness and Skills – most levels
• At National level, players who have all of these plus
immediate adaptability
Can you summarize your selection
policy in a sentence or phrase?

15. Culture & Skills
• What is your team
culture?
• How can you effectively
coach skills and show
athletes what they should
be able to accomplish at
a certain level?
• What do you want to
accomplish now?

16. General vs Position Specific Skills
General
Skills
Position
Specific
Skills

17. General vs Position Specific
Athletic, ball-
handling,
tackling,
running ability,
kicking ability
Passing left and
right with
accuracy, kick
accuracy,
cover defense,
tactical
decision-
making
Rugby Scrumhalf

18. Intangibles
Position
Specific
Skills
General
Skills

19. Intangibles…
• Coachable
• Listener
• Leadership qualities
• Killer Instinct
• Composure under pressure
• Parents
• Initiative
• Non-negotiables

20.  Team with a number of ‘particulars’
to fill
 Style of play vs players available
 Measureables vs non-measurables
 Females vs males on and off field
 Worst case scenario
 Best case scenario
Final Selection

21. Best Team Selection
Best team is the best collection of individuals who
are willing to put aside their individual choices for
the good of the team.
Keep this in mind when putting together your
selection policy and realize that mistakes will
happen – be aware and ready to deal with them
when they do.
Art AND Science of selection in teams…there is no
way to select teams without both processes.

22. Reflection on Team
Selection vs Talent ID
 What do each of these terms mean in your
sport?
 Are there larger implications for these terms as
you coach at different levels?
 How effective are your current policies on these
areas? NSO/PSO/club alignment?
 For those coaching individual sports that also
have a team component, how does this apply?

23. SDRCC Section
Identifying Policies & Practices

24. What is SDRCC?
 Sport Dispute Resolution Centre of Canada
 Proactive approach to dispute resolution and
offers education and information on possible
approaches
 Tribunal for disputes
 Available for NSOs and Multisport Service
Organizations

25. Links to SDRCC
 SDRCC homepage
 Team Selection
 Selection Criteria for Major Events in Sport

26. Miriam Chamilova
Case Study Application:
 How should Chamilova
proceed from here?
 While recognizing the bias of
the article, what “errors” does
Chamilova allege of
Gymnastics Canada?
 Are there other points we feel
are important to examine?
 Use SDRCC info to determine

27. Plan - Action Plan - Portfolio
 Identify normative data/guidelines used in/for Talent ID by NSO
 Identify how you select for teams and how you publicize/
communicate the selection criteria to stakeholders
 Example: Queen's Women's Rugby Selection Criteria
 Challenges of designing and implementing these policies are?
 How do/will you recruit to support your program?

28. How to follow SDRCC
policy?
 How will you follow the policy of SDRCC in your
team selection?
 How will you announce your team selection or
testing results?
 If an athlete disagrees with your assessment, how
will you address this disagreement?

29. Break

30. Action Plan
What criteria do you currently use for Talent ID and
Selection?

31. Group Task
 Form into groups based on team vs individual
sports
 Share the selection criteria you currently use in
your sport
 Brainstorm:
 Are there better criteria to use?
 If similar, what criteria can you “steal” from others?
 Are there grants available to help you?
 help each other to better select

32. Is your testing relevant?
 Is your testing in Talent ID or with your current group
of athletes relevant?
 How do you test for Talent and if you aren’t yet, how
can you test?
 Are your tests “repeatable” and “measurable”?
How?
 Do you provide goals/targets for athletes to
achieve?

33. Action Plan
Talent ID vs Selection

34. What is the difference?
 What is the difference between Talent ID and
Testing in your sport?
 How can you explain the difference to
participants?
 How do you currently implement these
processes?

35. Action Plan
Testing criteria, justifying team selection

36. If you…
 …could develop your own testing criteria and
money was not an object, what would you do?
 …did not have much money, what tests would give
you the most return on investment?
 …had the testing criteria of your NSO in front of
you, how would you make it better?
 …have an athlete protest your selections, how will
you justify the process?

37. Monitor Testing Methods
 When will you test and retest?
 How will you monitor the tests and know when to
modify if necessary?

38. New Zealand Talent ID
Development Report:
 “Successful talent identification consists of three
aspects: extensive knowledge of the
performance demands within a particular sport;
an accurate assessment of athlete capabilities in
relation to these demands; and the ability to
predict future performance levels based on
current athlete’s characteristics” (Grove, 2001).

39. U.S. Army Approach
 “Every few years, Army statisticians analyze the
candidate’s records from the Special Forces to
see if there is an easier way of identifying winners,
without churning up so many thousands of hours
of assessor’s time….There is no shortcut” (Anders,
2011).

40. FBI’s Multifaceted Approach
 “At the end of one drill, candidates were told to
gather sandbags strewn across a field….Some
sandbags were tiny and nearby. Others were
bigger and further away. Candidates might think
it didn’t matter which ones they hauled, but it
did. Assessors were standing by, watching to see
who took a fair share of the work, who did more
and who shirked work” (Anders, 2011).

41. “Talent That Shouts”
 Top of the “class”, used to winning, overachievers
 “those aren’t easy people to manage – and they can be
harder to assess. What seems like bountiful, overflowing
talent can turn into a minefield of petulance, frustration and
selfishness….The best strategies involve a tough love
approach” (Anders, 2011).

42. CEOs and Coaches
 “CEOs who are persistent and proactive get
things done. Those who are not, do not get things
done, even if they are good listeners, team
players, etc. And, if you don’t get things done,
the people working for you get frustrated and
leave, particularly the better ones.” (Kaplan)
 How can we be more proactive as coaches in
our current setting?

43. Break

44. Rugby Ontario
2012 7s Talent ID & Selection to 2016/2020 Games

45. The Rugby Ontario plan to 2016
 Announcement of 7s Rugby
in the Olympics in 2016
 Weaknesses of 7s rugby in
Canada:
 Funding (pay to play)
 Underdeveloped athlete
skills
 Lack of coaching and
refereeing experience
http://www.rugbyontario.com/Portals/214/Highway%20to%20High%20Performance%20Project%20Outline.pdf

46. HW2HP was a result of Gap
Analysis in Ontario
 No pathway for Ontario
athletes to get to 2016 in 7s
 No TID of HP 7s
 Limited 7s competitions
 No HP structure
 Underdevelopment of game
 Athletes need gains in
physical, mental, tactical and
technical areas
 Lack of coaches and referees
with 7s exposure
 No HP academies for 7s
 Need entry point for other
athletes due to Olympic
opportunity
 No clear selection guidelines
 No links to CSC-Ontario and
sport specialists

47. Highway to High Performance
- HW2HP
 Key strategies of plan:
 Create domestic 7s calendar & increase
competition
 ID national pool of 7s athletes age 16 and up
 Elite exposure opportunities
 Possible centralization, co-ed training
environments, coach & official development
 Culture of excellence
 ISTs focused on 7s specifically

48. HW2HP to close the gap
 TID targeting Train to
Compete athletes in 2011
 Coaches identified
 Referees identified
 S&C specialists identified
 Regional 7s academies
 Develop key tactical,
technical, mental and
physical capabilities
 Outcomes:
 Address IRB, Rugby Canada and
Rugby Ontario needs
 Expand athlete pool
 Develop coaches & referees
 Promote rugby in other areas
 Start HP pathway for athletes
 Provide depth chart for Ontario
athletes in Ultimate Perf stage for
PanAms and Olympics
 Culture of excellence through
training and competition

49. Specifics of HW2HP
 4 regions
 4 regional managers
 10 referees
 16 coaches
 ID camps to identify 500
Train to Compete athletes
 Camps in ~22 centres
 Total of 192 selected
athletes
 Academies run Feb 2012 to
April 2012
 Ontario Summer Games
competition August 2012

50. Time will tell for HW2HP…
 3 teams at OSG were separated based on A/B
splits
 1 team was split evenly
 Of the eight teams, the two even teams finished
4/5th, right in the middle of the pack
 2013 – inconsistent levels of commitment to
sustaining the program

51. Your Talent ID & Selection
 Will time prove your Talent ID and Selection?
 What quantifiable measures do you have to
know if you have been successful?
 Is winning the only statistic that matters in the
level in which you coach?

52. Action Plan
Share highlights of your plan with your peers.

53. Share with coaches…
 What are the highlights of your plan?
 What works best for you?
 What will you avoid?
 What were your “aha” moments today?
 What will you plan to do and when will you do it
once you leave here to finish this task?

54. Did We Meet Our Goals?
 Increase understanding of Talent ID and
Selection in your sport context
 Realize the positives and negatives to the Talent
ID and Selection process
 Use time to create your portfolio entry for this
module
 Create a plan to complete this module

55. Where will Talent
ID and Selection
lead for you?

56. Beth Barz
bethbarz@gmail.com
@bethbarz
BB