Long-term athlete development (LTAD) is a unique concept that is gaining traction and picking up speed across the United States and into Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Asia. But, compared with these other programs in other countries, the U.S. is several decades behind in its development and implementation of a comprehensive LTAD program. The driving force behind the LTAD model is to improve the quality of sports programs with the belief that such emphasis will enable all participants to reach their full potential. 

Athletes Develop in Stages

LTAD is the planned, systematic and progressive development of individual athletes. It is also referred to as long-term participant development or long-term player development. As a concept, LTAD is designed to answer one fundamental question: What needs to be done at each stage of human development to give every child the best chance of engaging in lifelong, health-enhancing physical activity, and for those with drive and talent, the best chance of athletic success?

Sport Involvement is a Lifelong Endeavor

Effective long-term athlete development programs focus on what’s best for the participant throughout their life, rather than seek short-term gains, early success, and quick profits. Developing a comprehensive long-term athletic development program in the United States is critical and must focus on the youth level, ages 3–14 years. 

Emphasizing Athleticism and Physical Literacy

Athleticism is the result of athletic movement skills development that involves learning proper techniques for agility, balance, coordination, flexibility, metabolic training, power, reaction time, speed, strength, and strength endurance. The LTAD model goes much further when properly implemented, by providing a change in sports programs and identifying gaps, providing guidelines for movement problem-solving, improving performance, and developing physical literacy, physical fitness for life, and competitive athletics. A long-term commitment to physical literacy, proper training to improve athleticism, and sport skill development is vital to produce optimal athletic potential.

The Importance of Educating Coaches and Parents

To date, little has been done to provide youth coaches with knowledge of how to teach and develop proper movement techniques. Coaches are often left to choose between an excessive number of competitions, incomplete athlete development activities, and an emphasis on singular sports-specific skills. As a result, many athletes suffer systemic overuse injuries caused by improper training and repeated sub-maximal repetition stress, followed by inadequate recovery.

AYDF develops curricula, programs, services, activities and events that offer practical, functional, and sequential skills development to assist coaches with a “best practices” model that build physical literacy and movement skills that improve athleticism. 

"I believe in......sports.  But I do not believe in them if they degenerate into the sole end of any one’s existence.......character counts for a great deal more than either intellect or body in winning success in life.  Athletic proficiency is a mighty good servant, and like so many other good servants, a mighty bad master."

-- Theodore Roosevelt