Skill in sport

Characteristics of skills Skills range in complexity –Simple: can master on first try Lifting your hand, waving –Medium complexity: repeated practice, but not severely complex Walking (infant) Driving, swimming –Complex: repeated practice Some sport skills such as gymnastics routines, hitting a baseball

Skill Either be used to describe a specific action or the level of performance of an individual Implies that the movement has been learned and that through learning it you have acquired a predetermined success or outcome when executing the action

When discussing a “skill” it is assumed that it is not an action that a person can just naturally do. It is not just a movement, it is a movement with a goal attached. –Ex. Swinging arms or legs is not a skill –Swinging legs to kick a ball into a goal is a skill

Characteristics of a skill Goal oriented Meet the performance goal with maximum certainty. Ex. 90% free throw shooter Meet the performance goal with minimum outlay of energy. Ex. Skiing down a slope Learned through practice. Require some experience, repetition, and feedback usually from a teacher/coach

Types of skills Motor skills –Skill that requires mostly motor skills (emphasizing movement) and does not require much thinking. –Ex. Weight lifting, sprinting, boxing

Cognitive skills –Requires a lot of thinking This varies between activities such as Chess and carries through to activities such as sport events like soccer, basketball involving strategy and physical skill.

Perceptual Skill –Receiving information that will than enable you to react a certain way to perform optimally. Example of senses that assist in perceptual skill acquisition: vision, vestibular (balance and hearing) haptic (touch) and auditory. Ex. Golfer “reading” the green Ex. Catcher – giving the sign to pitcher

Perceptual motor skills –Skills involving the interpretation of environmental stimuli and the motor response to the sensory information. Important in sports that require the performer (athlete) to adapt to the environment. –Involve thought, interpretation, and movement –Ex. Soccer and basketball (dribble with a defender on you)

Characteristic and classification of skill Skills are classified according to their characteristics – this enables coaches to evaluate performance and provide feedback.

Skill classification criteria How unique is the skill (distinct) –Discrete motor skills (clear start and finish) Forward roll Bat swing –Serial motor skills (linking together of skills) Gymnastics floor routine Triple jump in track –Continuous motor skills (end of one movement is the start of the next) Swimming cycling

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Stability of the environment Relates to the way in which the environmental conditions affect the skill. Weather, obstacles, boundaries, teammates, opponents

Open skills Greatly affected by environment The conditions of environment can dictate the pace of movement Perceptual skills and perceptual motor skills are critical for open skills. –Ex. Jumping for a header in soccer, rebound in basketball

Closed skill Skill that are performed in a more stable and predictable environment. Usually internally paced by the performer. Set movement patterns and performed in the same way every time. Ex. Ballet performance, archery, free throw

Another factor is the muscles involved Gross motor skills – movements that involve large muscle groups –Arms/legs Walking, jumping, running Fine motor skills – smaller muscle groups and fine movements –Intricate precise movements, high level of eye hand coordination Playing musical instruments, catching a ball

Interaction Continuum Some skills vary in the way and context in which they are performed. Sometimes they are closed performed alone, and other times they are performed alongside other skills

Individual skills – performed in isolation –High jump, archery Coactive skills – performed with someone else, but no direct confrontation –Swimming, running Interactive skills – directly involved and can involve confrontation. Active opposition that directly influences the skill (most athletic games) contact and non contact sports.

Skill classification For the following sports place them in the appropriate categories. –Open, closed, fine, gross, discrete, serial, continuous, motor, cognitive, perceptual skill, perceptual motor skill –Dribbling a ball –Shooting a gun at a target –Basketball Free throw (shooter) –Volleyball serve (server) –Golf t off –Golf sand trap hit –Volleyball set (setter) –Volleyball dig (receiver) –Football lineman (o line, d line) –Cross country 3 mile race –Tennis volley –Swimming laps –High jump –Shot put –Wrestling –Soccer penalty shot (shooter) (goalie) –Rock climber –Hang glider –dancer