Maturity Status Calculator

About the calculator

The Office of Sport in collaboration with Dr Shaun Abbott and Professor Stephen Cobley (The University of Sydney) has developed an online calculator to estimate the biological maturity status of developing athletes.

The Maturity Status Calculator and the estimations it provides serve as a guide to assist stakeholders in understanding an athlete’s maturational status and identifying suitable opportunities and support.

Developed for coaches, parents, teachers and sporting organisations, the calculator is useful to inform:

their understanding of the current physical maturational status of an athlete and their related capacity, capability, performance (such as physical and technical) and vulnerability
inclusive talent selection and confirmation opportunities and processes factoring in an athlete’s maturational status and future potential
the right match of training focus, prescription and load and competition for an athlete’s maturational status.

Before using the calculator

Before using this calculator, it is highly recommended that you read the Office of Sport's Biological Maturation Resource for Sporting Stakeholders (PDF 3.83MB) and watch the Future Champions Masterclass on Athlete Maturation featuring Dr Shaun Abbott and Prof. Stephen Cobley (The University of Sydney).

Based on world class evidence and expertise, the Maturity Status Calculator provides an estimate of an athlete’s Years from Peak Height Velocity and Percentage of Predicted Adult Height.

Years from Peak Height Velocity (PHV)

Note that, as the estimate is most accurate around the actual (observed) PHV event, it is recommended that the PHV equations are used between the ages of 12 to 16 years for boys and 10 to 14 years for girls (Abbott and Cobley, 2023).

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Years from Peak Height Velocity (YPHV) (Mirwald et al., 2002) – provides an estimation of the amount of time (in years) to or from where an athlete is at regarding their maximal growth rate (such as tempo = cm/year) in height (Abbott and Cobley, 2023). For example, an athlete who has a negative estimation (for example -2.0) has 2 years before reaching PHV whilst an athlete who has a positive estimation (for example +2.0) is 2 years after PHV.

For males only, another YPHV estimate is provided based directly on Fransen et al. (2018).

For more information regarding the implications of maturation and advice for effective management of the developing athlete, please refer to Chapter 3 (from page 23 onwards) of the NSW Office of Sport’s Biological Maturation Resource for Sporting Stakeholders (PDF 3.83MB).

Percentage of Predicted Adult Height

Note that this estimate is merely a prediction and as Abbott and Cobley (p. 44 to 45, 2023) state, there are variations in final adult height predicted values during peak growth periods (such as 14 to 15.5 years in boys and 11.5 to 12.5 years in girls are typically ± 3.1cm and 2.3cm respectively - Khamis and Roche, 1994).

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Percentage of Predicted Adult Height (%PAH) (Khamis and Roche, 1994) – provides an estimation of the amount of growth completed at the time of observation in relation to the total predicted mature adult stature (such as 100%) (Abbott and Cobley, 2023). For example, a higher percentage (for example 98%) suggests that an athlete is close to the predicted final adult height, whilst a lower percentage (for example 83%) suggests they are still a way off reaching their predicted final adult height.

Accuracy of the measurements

Measurements inputted into the calculator are of critical importance, especially with regard to sitting height. Large errors in measurement will lead to error in estimation.

Like any estimation method, it is important to acknowledge that these estimates do have some margins of error associated with them and the estimates should not be used in isolation to identify or select or deselect athletes.
Read the measurement protocols (PDF 15.63MB)

Use the Maturity Status Calculator

Resources

Webinars

Masterclass webinar - Watch the Future Champions Masterclass on Athlete Maturation presented by Dr Shaun Abbott and Prof. Stephen Cobley (The University of Sydney).
Growth and Maturation webinar - This webinar explains how to estimate an athlete's maturational status using the new Maturity Status Calculator.

Videos

The Office of Sport and Sydney University have developed a series of videos that demonstrate the measuring technique for the Maturity Status Calculator.

Infographics

The Office of Sport has developed simple infographics to assist in the development of athletes' maturation.

Contact Pathways and Development

Email: futurechampions@sport.nsw.gov.au

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