Do all sports favor the big kids?

[Anonymous]

Soccer, lacrosse, hockey, football, basketball, baseball - do they all favor the biggest kids? As long as they have decent mechanics/skill will the edge always go to the larger kid?

[Anonymous]

I take it you don't have a daughter, because otherwise things like gymnastics that favor tiny but incredibly strong girls would immediately come to mind.

[Anonymous]

All other skills equal, the bigger kid is going to have an advantage in most sports. It’s easier to close the gap with skill and speed in some sports than others - like baseball or soccer vs basketball or football. There are a few sports where being small can be an advantage. Wrestling and gymnastics come to mind.

[Anonymous]

Maybe super early on, but once they get older, no. Soccer seems like a weird example to me. Most of the good soccer players I know at the high school level are average size, strong, and agile.

[Anonymous]

For sports where they favor smaller girls - like ice skating and gymnastics I worry about body dysmorphia. I have a friend who did very competitive dance. She didn't get her period till she quit when she was 15. She never weighed enough to get her period. And she talks about how she didn't eat full meals even - just snacked on yogurt and granola and fruit to keep her weight down.

[Anonymous]

Baseball don't care. Especially with modern stats analysis. Alejandro Kirk (Blue Jays catcher) case in point. If you watched the World Series last year, you might remember that the announcers spent the whole series making fun of how fat he is. And only 5'8".

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I take it you don't have a daughter, because otherwise things like gymnastics that favor tiny but incredibly strong girls would immediately come to mind.

Similarly, there aren't many figure skaters over 100 lbs who make it to nationals or international competitions.

[Anonymous]

For boys, judo/jiu jitsu/eventually wrestling is great for a smaller kid. You learn to use your opponent's size against them and for competitions you only are paired with people your own size.

[Anonymous]

Fencing

[Anonymous]

Plenty of smaller golfers.

[Anonymous]

So only team sport is baseball.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So only team sport is baseball.

Even if smaller players absolutely do make it in baseball (and softball for girls), youth coaches absolutely favor the taller / broader kids.

[Anonymous]

Wrestling is a team and individual sport.

[Anonymous]

Wrestling and sometimes rock climbing (it is good to have a wide wingspan but being strong and on the shorter side can work too). there are lots of great rock climbing teams in the DMV.

[Anonymous]

Horse jockey or cowboy, diving, aerial skiing, mogul skiing, freestyle skiing, rock climbing, figure skating, wrestling, golf is neutral, soccer has a place for smaller fast guys.