In the world of sports, we have many examples of athletes who shone from a very young age in their respective disciplines. In the case of golf, Sergio García and Carlota Ciganda began to stand out internationally at 13-14 years old and continue to shine globally 15-20 years after their initial successes.

However, not all these promising young players who burst onto the scene with victories at an early age go on to have long and successful careers like Carlota Ciganda or Sergio García. In some cases, unfortunately, they are forced to retire prematurely, like Ángel Rebolo, who debuted in the ACB league with Breogán de Lugo in 1990 at the age of 15, and retired from basketball at 16.

At the beginning of the year we learned of the retirement of tennis player Carlos Boluda at the age of 27, who as a teenager was compared time and again to Rafa Nadal and ended his sporting career with his best position in the ATP Ranking being 254.

The importance of putting things into perspective

When a player shows promise at a young age, it's the responsibility of their closest circle to keep them grounded, not to inflate their ego or compare them to sports stars. What's needed at those times is to put their successes into perspective, no matter how important or significant they may be.

This same ability to put things into perspective is what should prevail in that same environment when results aren't so good and don't meet expectations. Magnifying or dramatizing is precisely what an athlete in training doesn't need, understanding training in a broad sense and not just in sports: personal and academic development.

It's quite normal for a teenager, lacking sufficient maturity and perspective, to be unprepared to handle the sudden successes they experience. Again, it's their closest circle who mustn't be dazzled by these achievements and must recognize that such sporting successes should be accompanied by common sense, responsibility, and obligations in all aspects of the teenager's life.

This environment closest to the player is also responsible for filtering all the expectations that may be created around their figure, such as comparisons or headlines in the media, comments and praise from other coaches, players or parents and, in general, from the entire sporting environment in which the player is immersed.

The most important thing for a golfer in training, whether or not they have achieved sporting success, is to remain focused on their progress as a player, on the process of improvement rather than on results, rankings or classifications.

He needs to focus on continuing to grow as a player, ensuring that his daily routine helps him develop his full potential, which is undoubtedly considerable given his early successes. To achieve this, a solid training plan tailored to his age and academic commitments is essential for his continued growth in all aspects of his life.

The risk of getting 'burned out'‘

If the priority is achieving results, victories, and short-term recognition, there is a risk that, little by little, that player will burn out due to an overload of tournaments when competing in higher-level competitions and those of their own category, either because of the level of demand they are subjected to, often by themselves and all the expectations created, and the fear of not living up to what they believe others expect.

Finally, one risk that must be avoided at all costs is that the adolescent's sporting successes and "quality of play" will relegate academic obligations to a secondary status. This is obvious, but competitive activity entails a different school calendar than that of the rest of their classmates. Absences, changes to exam dates, and other adjustments, which are necessary to balance academic and athletic development, cannot lead the adolescent to believe that studies are less important than sports.

Welcome to those young talents who bring us so much joy when we see them compete, and good sense to all the people around them who must guide the person and the player in their development process.

By Óscar del Río

RFEG Sports Psychologist