The relative age effect in olympic swimmers.
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Date
2017
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Abstract
The aim of this study was to investigate the relative age effect (RAE) on swimmers in the
Olympics 2012 by analyzing the differences between continents, genders and the achievement
of medals. Nine hundred and seventy-eight athletes (507 men and 471 women) were
stratified based on their birthdate. In quartile distribution, there was a higher percentage
of athletes born on the 1st and 3rd quartiles. As regards gender distribution, the RAE was
observed on females (χ² = 12.304, df = 3, p = .01) but not on males (χ² = 1.426, df = 3, p
= .70). Regarding the analysis of RAE according to performance and continent, there was
no significant relationship between the quarter of birth and winning medals; additionally,
the Asian continent was the only one where the RAE was identified. We concluded that the
RAE was present on swimmers from London 2012. Furthermore, it was representative in
women, was not related to winning medals and was found only in the Asian continent.
Description
Keywords
Swimming, Olympic games, Athletes, Relative age effect
Citation
FERREIRA, R. M. et al. The relative age effect in olympic swimmers. Revista Portuguesa de Ciências do Desporto, v. 17, p. 105-114, 2017. Disponível em: <http://www.fade.up.pt/rpcd/_arquivo/artigos_soltos/2017-S2A/08.pdf>. Acesso em: 05 abr. 2018.