... perfect distance runner's body, not a tight end's. Yet premature specialization can foreclose the possibility of finding that out and perhaps sour a kid on sports entirely. "Specialization should come after medical school, not when you're 10," says Thompson. "It leads to heightened expectations from parents and burnout ... player who has received a pass as defenders converge on her, and as coaches, parents and even teammates shout often-conflicting advice. Or what sports sociologist Jay Coakley calls "the beehive effect" in youth soccer, in which all the worker bees swarm after the quee...

• Word Count: 4179
• Approx Pages: 17
• Grade Level: High School