131 Tracking talented swimmers during the junior-to-senior transition 6 high-performing seniors could support coaches in monitoring their swimmers’ progression towards the elite level. However, coaches should consider these findings as a starting point rather than an endpoint for further development, as performance levels are influenced by unique combinations of underlying characteristics in which relative weaknesses can be compensated with strengths. Furthermore, it is important for coaches to be aware that for swimmers who are close to achieving 100% scores on swimming tests, ongoing development is crucial. This development is necessary to effectively bridge the gap between performance in isolated tests and performance in actual competitions. As our findings show that differences between high- and lower-performing seniors manifest at least at late junior age (males aged 17; females aged 16), it would be interesting to further investigate the earlier stages of their junior years. This could help elucidate when these differences first emerge as well as the factors that facilitate or hinder swimmers’ performance and progression, such as biological and environmental variables (e.g.,, maturation, training and selection procedures).
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