The Canadian Sport for Life Resource Paper identifies seven (7) stages basic stages of athlete development as they apply to all sports.  Each sport has since been tasked with adapting these stages to their specific context as Speed Skating Canada has done in the On The Edge overview document.  The resource paper also identifies some of the key short comings and consequences of the current Canadian Sport System which need to be addressed in part or in full by all sports.  It is intended to provoke though as to how sport makes decisions and delivers programs today and provide suggestions as to how it could be improved.  In addition to the resource paper excellent reference material can be found in the appendices.

Poster - A multi-sport poster providing a general overview of the stages of development and quotes from several athletes

who have known success by training following LTAD principles.

***NEW*** Physical literacy resource paper for parents and clubs

The learning and practice of fundamental movement skills is the basic building block for the development of physical literacy.  Much like learning the alphabet and phonics are the fundamental skills needed to eventually read Shakespeare, or, identifying numbers and learning to add and subtract are the fundamental skills needed to eventually balance a cheque-book, the development of fundamental movement skills, and fundamental sport skills, is critical if children are to feel confident when they engage in physical activity for fun and for health, or for competition and the pursuit of excellence.

Physical literacy gives children the tools they need to take part in physical activity and sport, both for healthy life-long enjoyment and for sporting success; and is a key component of ’s Long-Term Athlete Development (LTAD) program.  This resource paper developed by the Canadian Sport for Life Expert Group explores how physical literacy can be developed with children between the ages of 0 and 12, as well as providing practical tools to evaluate the effectiveness of sport programs as a parent or club administrator. 

The Recovery and Regeneration Resource Paper addresses the critical area of recovery and regeneration as it applies to the stages of the Long Term Athlete Development Model, including specific suggestions for appropriately monitoring athlete fatigues based on their stages of development.  This resource paper provides many simple strategies that can be implemented at a very young age that will allow coaches and parents better monitor fatigue accumulated during sport and maintain a positive learning environment.

Competition is a Good Servant but a Poor Master.  This resource paper produced by the Canadian Sport for Life group takes a look at the critical area of athlete development, competitions.  It challenges sports to take a more strategic approach to the planning of competitions given the critical role that they play in athlete development.  This is a good read for everyone, but particularly relevant for sport administrators and coaches who make decisions as they pertain to competitions.