Relative Age Effects in Women’s Ice Hockey: Contributions of Body Size and Maturity Status

Research on relative age effects (RAEs) in women’s ice hockey is lacking data on participant characteristics, particularly body size and maturity status. The purposes of our study were to investigate RAEs in women’s ice hockey players from two countries, and to determine whether RAE patterns could be explained by chronological age, body size, and maturity status. Participants were 54 Swedish elite and 63 Canadian university players. Birthdates were coded by quartiles (Q1–Q4). Weight and height were obtained, and body mass index and chronological age were calculated for each player. Players recalled age at menarche, and maturity status was classified as early, average, or late relative to population-specific means. Chi-square (χ2), odds ratios (OR), 95% confidence intervals (CI) and effect sizes (Cohen’s w) were calculated using population data across quartiles and for pairwise comparisons between quartiles. Descriptive statistics and MANOVAs were run by quartile and by country. Significant RAEs were found...