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youth with disabilities, there is little hope that these athletes then participate in youth sports, as coaches' “attitudes towards accommodating individuals with specific needs and their abilities in handling inclusion resistance are critical determinants of successful inclusion” (Tsai et al., 2009, p. 164). However, this elitism and its influence on children with disability and their ability to participate in youth sports is not only limited to coaches and sports directors. Many parents of children with higher athletic skills also dissuade the inclusion of youth with disabilities in community sports programs to ensure their child excels in sports (Moran et al., 2010). While many children with disabilities may never have sought to be on an elite team, even more, recreational opportunities are dwindling due to the increased elitism of youth sports. According to the Aspen Institute’s 2015 report, “The flight to travel (and to the for-profit club) teams thins rosters and the number of teams that can be created… By the end of grade school, in some areas, in-town leagues in sports like soccer and basketball have lost enough participants that they are no longer viable” (p. 19). While individuals with disabilities may be able to find an opportunity to play in special sports programs, such as Special Olympics, the loss of in-town and recreational leagues often leaves children with disabilities with little or no options in rural or inner-city communities where funding, facilities, and experienced coaches are limited for these types of programs (Kleinert, et al., 2007). Coaching Coaching plays a large role in the overall athlete experience in sports. Given the large role a coach plays, the quality of a coach is crucial in ensuring positive experiences for athletes. Coaching education is one way to help coaches develop into quality coaches who can provide enjoyable and meaningful sports experiences. However, “less than 30% of youth coaches have been trained in the past year” (Aspen Institute, 2019, p. 2). This current trend of having untrained youth sports coaches is especially damaging for athletes with disabilities. Very few coaches have the pedagogical skills or would know where to look for resources to better serve an athlete with a disability unless that coach was or is a teacher (Vargas et al., 2019). As a result, athletes who do have a disability and are participating in youth sports may not receive instruction that demonstrates an understanding of the characteristics associated with their disability (Vargas et al., 2019). Some parents, as a result of coaches’ negative attitudes and discriminatory behaviors due to a lack of knowledge and understanding of athletes with disabilities, quickly give up on finding inclusive opportunities for their children (Tsai et al., 2009). Conclusion In conclusion, the discussion provided in this paper served to generate awareness for those hoping to create a positive impact and change in the youth sports experiences provided to athletes with disabilities. This paper discussed several key areas in which current youth sports trends are having especially negative

impacts on those athletes with disabilities, including the rising cost of sport participation, the increase in elitism in youth sports, and the lack of proper training for youth sports coaches. Working towards solving these problems that currently face youth sports will help create not only a more positive experience for children with disabilities but all children. References Anderson, D., Dumont, S., Jacobs, P., & Azzaria, L. (2007). The personal costs of caring for a child with a disability: A review of the literature. Public health reports, 122 (1), 3–16. doi:10.1177/003335490712200102 Aspen Institute (2015). Sport for all, play for life: A playbook to get every kid in the game. https://www.aspeninstitute.org/ wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Aspen-Institute-Project-Play Report.pdf Aspen Institute (2019). State of play 2019 . https://www. aspeninstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/2019_SOP_ National_Final.pdf Bandini, L., Danielson, M., Esposito, L. E., Foley, J. T., Fox, M. H., Frey, G. C., Fleming, R. K., Krahn, G., Must, A., Porretta D. L., Rodgers, A. B., Stanish, H., Urv, T., Vogel, L. C., & Humphries, K. (2015). Obesity in children with developmental and/or physical disabilities. Disability and Health Journal , 8 (3), 309-316. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dhjo.2015.04.005 Baxter-Jones, A. D. G. & Maffulli, N. (2003). Parental influence on sport participation in elite young athletes. Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness 43 , 250-255. https://www. researchgate.net/publication/10667773_Parental_influence_ on_sport_participation_in_elite_young_athletes Cô té , J. & Fraser-Thomas, J. (2006). Youth sports: Implementing findings and moving forward with research. Athletic Insight, 8 (3), 12-27. Cô té , J. & Fraser-Thomas, J. (2007). Youth involvement in sport. In P.R.E. Crocker (Eds.), Sport psychology: A Canadian perspective (266-294). https://www.researchgate.net/ publication/43501529_Youth_involvement_in_sport C t , J. & Strachan, L. & Fraser-Thomas, J. (2016). Participation, personal development and performance through youth sport. In N.L. Holt, (Eds.), Positive youth development through sport (34 45). https://www.researchgate.net/publication/292809657_ Participation_personal_developmede_and_performance_ through_youth_sport Jayanthi, N., Pinkham, C., Dugas, L., Patrick, B., & Labella, C. (2013). Sports specialization in young athletes: evidence based recommendations. Sports health , 5 (3), 251–257. https:// doi.org/10.1177/1941738112464626 Jung, J., Leung, W., Schram, B. M., & Yun, J. (2018). Meta analysis of physical activity levels in youth with and without disabilities. Adapted Physical Activity Quarterly, 35 , 381 – 402. doi:10.1123/apaq.2017-0123 Kleinert, H. L., Miracle, S., & Sheppard-Jones, K. (2007). Including students with moderate and severe intellectual disabilities in school extracurricular and community recreation

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