Skeletal age has been studied and proved that for most elite athletes, it was coincident with the chronological ages when
they were young. In order to explore the application of skeletal age in selecting sports talent, 32 athletes (female,
chronological age 5-12 y) were chosen from the Gymnastics Training Base in this study. Their left hand-wrists were
photographed with X-rays, and then the skeletal ages were estimated by Chinese version of the Tanner-Whitehouse
Skeletal Maturity Assessment System. At the same time, their body shapes, functions, and sports ability were also
measured. Results showed that 71.88% of the skeletal age was proportional to their chronological age (± 1 y); while
18.75% of the skeletal maturity was retarded by 1- 2 year, 9.37% of those was advanced more than 1 year. On the other
hand, the body shape, functions and sports ability of the athletes were positively related with their skeletal maturity. This
study proved that the determination of skeletal maturity is a reliable evaluation for selecting sports talent. A further study
on the influence of gymnastics on the skeletal age is of great significance.
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