Johan Pion
Professor of Talent Identification and Development in Sports
Professor Johan Pion is professor of Talent Identification and Development in Sports. He has a highly regarded, long service record in the field of physical education and research into sports, exercise and health. His research group is primarily focused on research questions stemming from professional practice on the themes of Smart Sport Choice, Talent Detection and Talent Orientation, Talent Identification, and Effective Learning and Training.
Research Group in Talent Identification and Development in Sports
The Research Group in Talent Identification and Development in Sports is primarily focused on practical research questions around the themes of Smart Sport Choice, Talent Detection and Talent Orientation, Talent Identification, and Effective Learning and Training.
Tools for education, sports and the work field
Understanding talent identification and development is an important factor in increasing the performance level of sport and of talented athletes and elite athletes. The research group contributes to the professional field by developing knowledge and competence about how to better identify and develop talent. People involved with young athletes (trainers, coaches, teachers, managers or parents) receive practical tools for recognising and further developing talented athletes: measuring instruments, teaching and training programmes, and didactic principles.
The Flemish Sports Compass: From sports orientation to elite performance prediction
In 2015, Dr Pion earned his PhD in health sciences at Ghent University with his research: The Flemish Sports Compass: From sports orientation to elite performance prediction. It concerns an innovative concept in the search for talent that offers an updated vision of the opportunities for detecting and identifying talent.
Detection, identification and orientation of sports talent
The applied statistical models—including proprietary applications—in the Sports Compass have demonstrated their usefulness in predicting:
- Better movers – talent detection
- Better athletes – talent identification
- Most appropriate sports and (by extension) the most suitable position on the field – talent orientation
The role of motor skills in children’s choice of sport
Johan Pion, in collaboration with Katrijn Opstoel, researcher from HAN’s Institute of Sports and Exercise Studies, investigated a possible link between motor skills and the type of sport played by children between 9 and 12 years of age. This research was published in PLoSONE (2015): 'Anthropometric Characteristics, Physical Fitness and Motor Coordination of 9 to 11 Year Old Children Participating in a Wide Range of Sports'.
Sports, exercise and health
Professor Johan Pion has a highly regarded, long service record in the field of physical education and research into sports, exercise and health. He is also a research staff member at Ghent University in Belgium.
The interaction between science and top performance is the common thread in his career. He has extensive experience in education, research and service at three universities, within sports promotion and with the training of trainers (also at elite-sport level). This experience is combined with more than 25 years of training experience up to the highest level in the gymnastics discipline ‘tumbling’.
Related international courses
- Sports Performance Enhancement exchange course
Projects
- Talent Orientation & Smart Sport Choice
- Talent Identification
- Talent Development - Elite Programmes
Expertise areas
- Research investigating sports talent identification and development at different ages
- Focus on smart sport choice and talent orientation and talent transfer
- Predictive modelling in sports talent studies
Partners/network in research
- Ghent University, Department of Movement and Sports Sciences
- University of Groningen, Center for Human Movement Sciences UMC