This document provides details on the analysis of sports performance at different levels. It examines talent identification, monitoring fitness levels, identifying strengths and weaknesses, performance assessment, injury recovery, health assessment, squad selection, goal setting, and the resources required. Resources include humans, facilities, time, equipment, financial support, scientific support, and safety measures. At the participation level, the focus is on fun and development, while at the elite level, the goal is optimal performance through specialized training and support.

1. Unit 11 Task 3
Analysis of Sports Performance
P5 Criteria Only

2. Unit 11 - Task 3 - P5
Explain the purpose and resources
required for analysing different levels
of sporting performance.
Pages 22-26 of the Electronic Text
Book will be very useful.

3. Task Context
• You are creating a resource for future coaches based
on your experiences in Unit 11 tasks 1 and 2.
• You need to choose two of the performer levels below
for you whole task to be based on.
– Foundation
– Participation
– Performance
– Elite
• You do not need to complete a comparison just explain
in detail each of the following factors.
• This resource should be able to support future coaches
start the work you have completed so far.

4. Talent ID
Level of Sports Performance Detailed explanation of purpose (‘why’ and ‘how’)
Participation Talent id can be used to discover athletes that are playing at a
lower level and that have the potential to exceed other players
and possibly compete to an extremely high standard. Talent id
is done by scouts watching the players at clubs and in schools
and identifying the children who have potential. They can
select them to go for trials at higher level clubs.
Elite Talent id can be used at an elite level to identify the athletes
who aren’t just extremely good at their sport but that can be
potential Olympic gold medalists. By identifying these athletes
early they can be trained harder and be given the extra help
they need boosting there chances of success. This can be done
by coaches looking at specific factors which will give an
advantage to an athlete that other athletes may not have.
They can look at height, weight, genetics, age and work ethic.

5. Monitoring current fitness levels
Level of Sports Performance Detailed explanation of purpose (‘why’ and ‘how’)
Participation Fitness levels at the participation stage are not crucial,
however if the athlete wants to progress to the next stage
they should be monitored. This will enable the athlete to
maintain a good fitness level and will increase chances of
advancing to performance level. There are different test that
can be used to monitor different factors. For agility at
participation level the Illinois test can be used, for speed a
simple sprint and for vo2 max the astrand test.
Elite At elite levels it is important to monitor fitness level
consistently. Its essential that athletes at such a high level keep
there fitness levels up and that they improve them. This will
make sure that when they compete they know they are
competing at their highest fitness level. This can be done with
specialist equipment in a laboratory that will produce precise
and accurate results. For example, a vo2 max text can be
carried out with an oxygen mask.

6. Identifying strengths and areas for
improvement
Level of Sports Performance Detailed explanation of purpose (‘why’ and ‘how’)
Participation It is important to be able to identify areas for improvements as
well as strengths. At participation level being able to identify
these means that the athlete can work on the skills they need
to improve in order to succeed to the next level. They also
need to be able to identify strengths so that they can alter
there game so that they opposition has to play to there
strengths giving them the upper hand. This can be done by the
coach watching the player and picking up on crucial points. It
can also be done by the players opinion on his/her own game.
Elite At elite level the athlete should have more strengths then
areas for improvement; it is important to identify these so
they can be worked on and sports performance can be
improved. At elite level identifying these will be done by high
technology video analysis and games watched in detail. More
than one coaches opinion should be used. It can also be
carried out by specific tests in important areas for that sport. It
is important these are found so the athlete can work
specifically on these areas.

7. Performance assessment
Level of Sports Performance Detailed explanation of purpose (‘why’ and ‘how’)
Participation Performance assessment is can be used to see how well the
athlete can perform in different scenarios. This can be
monitored at training when other factors are introduced such
as parents watching a game or in a social game to see if the
athlete performance changes when under pressure, is
watched by a large crowd or if the crowd acts in a more
aggressive manner. The coach will be able to judge the athlete
and whether these factors have an effect
Elite Performance assessment can be used to monitor the athletes
selective attention and whether they let pressures of a large
crowd effect there game. Video analysis may be used to look
back on the game and to compare to other games where
crowds may have been smaller or non existent. The coach and
the athlete can look at this together. The sports performce can
also be assed by high technology to see how the play
performs.

8. Recovery after injury
Level of Sports Performance Detailed explanation of purpose (‘why’ and ‘how’)
Participation Recovery after injury for participation level performers can be
slow. For minor injuries, such as a sprain, the athlete will most
likely have to first ice and elevate the injured part and then
just rest. It is important that the athlete doesn’t put added
stress on the injury. For major injuries the athlete will have to
seek there own medical advice and go to a doctor themselves
who may recommend them for physiotherapy however this is
rare.
Elite Injury recovery for an elite athlete will be relatively quick. The
clubs will have there own specialist doctors which will see the
to the athlete immediately and have the highest level of
knowledge of how to speed up recovery. They also will have
specialist equipment and will be able to receive the top
treatments such as physiotherapy. It is important that the
athlete recovers quickly in order to be able to maintain fitness
and get back to training.

9. Assessment of health status
Level of Sports Performance Detailed explanation of purpose (‘why’ and ‘how’)
Participation An assessment of health is important because it makes sure
that the athlete is in a fit state to exercise and compete. If they
are not the coach needs to know in order not to put the
athlete at risk of further injury. An assessment of health that is
used at participation level is a PAR-Q. This can be shown to a
doctor who will confirm whether the athlete is fit enough to
be able to play and train.
Elite At an elite standard it is important that the athlete is free from
injury, illness and disease. This is so they can make sure they
carry on training and maintain a high level of play. At this level
specialist equipment can be used and health checks can be
conducted regularly. Using high technology little things can be
picked up that may not be obvious and these can be sorted
quickly and easily so the athlete can be on top form.

10. Squad selection
Level of Sports Performance Detailed explanation of purpose (‘why’ and ‘how’)
Participation At participation there is usually a large selection to chose
from. In badminton it is important that athletes are able to
practice playing in different pairs to find the ones that work
most efficiently together. The coach can then select the squad
based on who he thinks has the highest chance of success.
Elite At an elite standard, athletes will already have set pairings.
This makes the process slightly longer for choosing the squad.
The coach has to look at how the pairs play and pick based on
a set of factors. These can included how they play
together(powerful or technical), how the opposition play, the
importance of the game, and which pair may be able to deal
with the pressures the best.

11. Goal setting
Level of Sports Performance Detailed explanation of purpose (‘why’ and ‘how’)
Participation Goal setting is an important factor in improving sports
performance, this is because it gives the athlete
something to work towards. Often the coach will chose
a goal to improve, that he thinks is important and this
should be achieved within a set amount of time. In
participation levels usually goals aren’t specific to the
individual but are set as a team.
Elite At elite levels goals are more specific to the individual
performer. Coaches have a smaller amount of players
to train and this enables them to be able to focus on
that athlete and highlight individual goals. Goal setting
can be monitored with high tech equipment as well.

12. Human
Level of Sports Performance Detailed explanation of resources (‘why’ and ‘what’)
Participation Humans at participation level are more likely to be
playing for fun. They will not have a skill set yet and will
be there to enjoy the game. Some will want to advance
further but others will enjoy the social aspects of the
sport. At this level there is the opportunity to try out a
wider variety of sports to find the one which they feel
most comfortable with.
Elite At an elite level humans will have chosen there
selected sport and developed a specific skill set
required to play it at such a high standard. They will be
determined and healthy. Humans are also used to
make sure the athletes are healthy as well as being able
to train the athlete in areas they need to improve.

13. Facilities
Level of Sports Performance Detailed explanation of resources (‘why’ and ‘what’)
Participation Facilities at participation level will be basic. This is
because they haven’t got the money to afford high
range facilities. They will enable the athletes to train at
a standard level. This can include an average gym or a
standard pitch.
Elite Facilities used for an elite standard are of a high
standard. They will be specialized to that specific sport
in order for the athletes to get the maximum out of
there training. This is so that the athlete has the
maximum chance of improving and being the best they
can be.

14. Time
Level of Sports Performance Detailed explanation of resources (‘why’ and ‘what’)
Participation Athletes at participation level usually use the sport as a
social activity and they have other commitments such
as work and family to balance. They may not have the
time to train constantly and improve there
performance, getting the whole team together to train
more than twice a week also may prove difficult. If the
athlete wants to improve they would have to dedicate
there own time to extra training
Elite At an elite level the athlete often has a lot of time to
train. They have dedicated programs which they must
stick to. This shouldn’t cause a problem as often the
sport they play is their job as well. Training is constant
and they will spend most of there time trying to
improve. The more time the athlete dedicates the
higher chances of success.

15. Equipment
Level of Sports Performance Detailed explanation of resources (‘why’ and ‘what’)
Participation Equipment at participation is of a standard level.
Football pitches and courts are basic and it is however
important that these are checked for pothole etc.
Things such as rugby balls and shuttlecocks will be of
an average standard and kit will be basic. Often the
athlete has to contribute money towards these things
and therefore they cant afford the best quality
boots/rackets etc.
Elite At an elite standard the equipment is of the highest
standard. It is constantly updated and the team will be
sponsored, this will enable them to have the top makes
and the latest equipment such as kit and balls available.
Having high starndard equipment will benefit there
performance as it will be specifically tailored to the
athletes needs.

16. Financial
Level of Sports Performance Detailed explanation of resources (‘why’ and ‘what’)
Participation At participation level the athlete will be required to pay for
themselves. This may cause the athlete to be at a
disadvantage as they may not be able to afford the best
resources. It can be come expensive with training, playing and
kit so this may put a talent athlete off playing the sport. If an
athlete requires an injury they would rely on the NHS to help
them out.
Elite At an elite level the athlete is usually played to
play/train/compete and well as being sponsored by big named
brands. This enables them to have the top kit and equipment
available to them. At an elite standard they usually have
private health care which will mean they get treated fast and
with higher quality equipment. The coaches will also be of a
higher standard as they are getting paid more to train top end
athletes, this means they too will be of a higher standard again
benefitting the athlete.

17. Scientific support and equipment
Level of Sports Performance Detailed explanation of resources (‘why’ and ‘what’)
Participation At participation level this is rare because this is
expensive equipment that requires a trained personal
to use it. It isn’t necessary for them to be tested in this
way as they are competing more for the fun and social
aspect.
Elite At an elite level high level technology is used to gain
precise measurements. For example in rugby they have
tags in there backs which can measure speed, distance
and the g-force in there neck. This can be used help
monitor how they play during a game. It is also used to
research neck injury's that they sustain during tackles.
By having scientific support researchers can also
monitor for example what food the athlete performs
best on as well as looking at precision and accuracy.

18. Safety
Level of Sports Performance Detailed explanation of resources (‘why’ and ‘what’)
Participation Safety checks are important to be carried out to help prevent
unnecessary injury to the athlete as well as making sure in
event of an injury there is a trained medical person on site
that is able to react to the situation. Safety checks should be
carried out on the coaches, this is to make sure they have no
criminal records etc, as well as on the equipment and halls
/grounds that the players use. It is important the correct
clothing is worn as this to will prevent injury, for example
correct footwear in badminton will prevent slipping.
Elite At elite level safety is important to the athlete as it is
important that they don’t get hurt by the other teams
supporters. There is often security in place to prevent this, as
well as CCTV and body guards. The grounds and equipment
should also be checked in order to prevent unforced injury. For
example potholes in the football grounds should be seen to
before a match.