From talent to a high level of performance: key requirements to access the excellence in handball

Abstract

Talent is a key requirement to access the excellence in a competitive sport and its identification is the first step of a long process of specialization that allows the correct selection of subjects. To understand what the most influent variables to achieve success are, a questionnaire was administered to 71 handball coaches ("Questionnaire to Handball Coaches - QTA"; MASSUÇA, 2007). The coaches were asked to rate the importance of each factor and performance indicator considering the success of the general male handball player (A) and to do exactly the same for each specific playing position (wing, P; backward left/right, L; backward centre, C; pivot, Pi; goalkeeper, GR). Results showed that there is not a handball athlete profile, but several. In conclusion, this versatility and number of profiles showed that handball is a sport game that enables the integration of individuals with different characteristics and that success can be achieved by athletes with very different features. Moreover, the obtained list of qualities necessary to experience high-level of performance can be a useful reference to the study and development of a talent selection model.