The Birthplace Effect in 14–18-Year-Old Athletes Participating in Competitive Individual and Team Sports

Abstract

The birthplace (the place where an athlete was born) effect (BPE) has been found to be one of the environmental variables associated with early talent development and the achievement of a high level of proficiency in sport. The purpose of the current study is twofold: (1) to calculate the BPE in 14–18-year-old athletes who participated in individual and team sports and (2) examine how coaches perceived this effect. The participants were 1397 athletes (390 females and 1007 males) who competed in 5 individual (gymnastics, judo, swimming, tennis, and track and field) and 5 team (basketball, soccer, team handball, volleyball, and water polo) sports, as well as 147 coaches who provided their preliminary thoughts about the BPE. Data analyses revealed that although the BPE was not found to be associated with cities of a similar size, it was observed that growing up in cities of small and medium sizes was more beneficial than growing up in towns or cities of other sizes. Most of the coaches believed that certain characteristics of the place or city where the athlete grew up (e.g., proximity to sport facilities) could contribute positively to the athlete’s development. We discuss how the BPE data can aid policymakers in developing a sport policy associated with early phases of talent development.