Key result
Among 2,285 Russian elite ice hockey players, a high prevalence of the relative age effect was observed, with 65.5% born in the first half of the year compared to 34.5% in the second half.
Why the study?
Only a few studies have investigated the relative age effect in European elite ice hockey, prompting this evaluation of its prevalence in Russian elite ice hockey.
Cross-Sectional (n=2,285)
Yes
Absolute Event Rate: 65.5% vs 34.5%
A high prevalence of relative age effect exists in Russian elite ice hockey, with a bias towards players born in the first half of the year, though later-born players are present in elite adult leagues.
Relative age bias persists in elite Russian hockey selection; leaves open whether targeted interventions can reduce disadvantages for later-born athletes.
Bezuglov, E, Shvets, E, Lyubushkina, A, Lazarev, A, Valova, Y, Zholinsky, A, and Waśkiewicz, Z. Relative age effect in Russian elite hockey. J Strength Cond Res 34(9): 2522-2527, 2020-A considerable amount of literature has been published on relative age effect (RAE) in many sports; however, only a few studies have investigated this phenomenon in European elite ice hockey. The objective of this research was to study RAE prevalence in Russian elite ice hockey, which for years has been holding leading positions in global ice hockey. To estimate RAE prevalence, birthdates of recruits of leading ice hockey academies, players of the leading junior and adult teams, and most successful Russian-born National Hockey League (worlds' strongest ice hockey league) players were identified (n = 2,285). A high prevalence of RAE was identified. The number of players born in the first half of the year was higher than those born later in the year-65.5 and 34.5%, respectively. The RAE prevalence was high among all age groups of recruits of the leading Russian hockey academies and junior teams. In contrast to junior hockey, more players born in the fourth quarter of the year were identified in elite adult teams. The high prevalence of RAE in Russian hockey might be explained by the fact of a high level of competition among young players during recruitment to hockey academies. Moreover, the coaches aim to achieve immediate progress, thus selecting more mature players who are better physically developed. However, "later-born" are widely present in elite adult ice hockey leagues.
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Bezuglov et al. (2020) conducted a cross-sectional in Elite ice hockey players (n=2,285). Birth in the first half of the year vs. Birth in the second half of the year was evaluated on Prevalence of players born in the first half of the year. Among 2,285 Russian elite ice hockey players, a high prevalence of the relative age effect was observed, with 65.5% born in the first half of the year compared to 34.5% in the second half.
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