Abstract

The main purpose of this study was to identify the proportion of flatwater canoeists who form part of the national sports training plan (PNTD) of the Royal Spanish Canoe Federation (RFEP) and those who win a medal at the World Championships and Olympic Games based on the quarter of the year in which they were born. We analysed the quarter of the year in which the 152 canoeists aged 16 who were selected to be part of the PNTD gatherings of the RFEP between 2009 and 2011 and the 76 Spanish canoeists who have to date won a medal at the World Championships and Olympic Games were born. The largest group of PNTD participants were born in the first quarter (37.5%) (x² = 18.68; p < 0,001). However, when analysing the canoeists who have been medallists at World Championships and the Olympic Games the greatest percentage is for those born in the fourth quarter of the year (35.1%) (x² = 13.756; p < 0,05). Therefore being born in the first quarter of the year is one of the determining factors in selecting canoeists to join the PNTD but not in achieving international successes later on. Hence the criteria for choosing the canoeists to be included in the PNTD should be restored to take into account factors such as the developmental stage of the individual.