AQA · A-Level · Physical Education
Course version: 7582 · Version from Sept 2016
The generic roles, purpose and the relationship between organisations in…
Full specification wording
Development of elite performers in sport: The generic roles, purpose and the relationship between organisations in providing support and progression from talent identification through to elite performance.
This topic examines how organisations collaborate to move a performer from talent identification to elite performance.
Checked against the AQA 7582 specification (opens in a new tab) on .
- Point 2 of 7
- 4 key terms
Study notes
From the checked teaching notes for this specification point.
The idea
This topic examines how organisations collaborate to move a performer from talent identification to elite performance. Generic roles include identifying talent through scouting, supporting development via coaching, and providing progression pathways like academies. The purpose is to create a coherent system so talented performers are not lost. The relationship between organisations is hierarchical and collaborative: schools and clubs identify talent, regional bodies develop it, and national bodies (like National Governing Bodies) select and support elite performers. For example, a young swimmer may be spotted at a club, join a regional squad, then enter a national pathway. Understanding these links explains how support and progression operate.
What earns the marks
- Identifies generic roles such as talent identification, development support and progression pathways.
- Explains the purpose of these roles: to ensure talented performers are identified, supported and progressed to elite level.
- Describes the relationship between organisations, e.g. schools/clubs, regional bodies and national bodies working in a hierarchy.
- Uses a specific example (e.g. a sport's talent pathway) to show how organisations link from identification to elite performance.
Common mistakes and how to put them right
Confusing talent identification with talent development.
Put it right by noting that identification is recognising potential, whereas development is the structured support that follows.
Assuming organisations work independently.
Put it right by explaining that they work collaboratively, with clear progression routes between them.
Believing elite performance is reached solely through individual effort.
Put it right by highlighting that organisations provide essential support and progression structures.
Exam tips
- Learn the sequence: identification → development → progression → elite performance, and link each stage to an organisation.
- Use a named sport to illustrate how the organisations connect, rather than speaking generically.
- In multiple-choice questions, eliminate options that confuse the roles of different organisations or skip a stage in the pathway.
Try the lesson
The start of the Development of elite performers in sport: The generic roles, purpose and the relationship between organisations in providing support and progression from talent identification through to elite performance. lesson, made from checked teaching notes for this specification point.
Have a go first
In the player pathway from first identification of talent to full elite performance, which organisation has the generic role of identifying talented young performers at local level and feeding them into regional and national squads?
Listen
This topic examines how organisations collaborate to move a performer from talent identification to elite performance. Generic roles include identifying talent through scouting, supporting development via coaching, and providing progression pathways like academies. The purpose is to create a coherent system so talented performers are not lost. The relationship between organisations is hierarchical and collaborative: schools and clubs identify talent, regional bodies develop it, and national bodies (like National Governing Bodies) select and support elite performers. For example, a young swimmer may be spotted at a club, join a regional squad, then enter a national pathway. Understanding these links explains how support and progression operate. A strong answer earns marks for these points. Identifies generic roles such as talent identification, development support and progression pathways. Explains the purpose of these roles: to ensure talented performers are identified, supported and progressed to elite level. Describes the relationship between organisations, e.g. schools/clubs, regional bodies and national bodies working in a hierarchy. Uses a specific example (e.g. a sport's talent pathway) to show how organisations link from identification to elite performance. A common slip: Confusing talent identification with talent development. Instead, noting that identification is recognising potential, whereas development is the structured support that follows. Exam tip: Learn the sequence: identification → development → progression → elite performance, and link each stage to an organisation.
Key words
Say what each word means before you turn the card.
Talent identification
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Development support
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Progression pathways
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Inter-organisational relationships
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See every definition
- Talent identification
- Recognising potential in a performer, carried out by schools and clubs through scouting.
- Development support
- Structured support that follows identification, provided through coaching by regional bodies.
- Progression pathways
- Routes such as academies that allow a performer to move from identification through to elite performance.
- Inter-organisational relationships
- Hierarchical and collaborative links in which schools and clubs identify talent, regional bodies develop it, and national bodies select and support elite performers.
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