Is My Child Talented?

Q. Is my eleven year old child a talented runner?
A. It is impossible to know. Is your child having fun with their running?
I am going to assume for the purpose of this article that the answer is yes. If it is no, then that is a whole different kettle of fish.

In my opinion, if that is the case, then we should aim to foster the love of running, and as difficult as it is, try and disconnect that from anything to do with performance. I am all for fostering competitiveness, though from a long term perspective it is my belief that this needs to be separate from the enjoyment of running.

You could replace the word running with sport. Either in general terms or relating to a specific sport.
 
All kids are talented. As far as identifying kids that are more talented, it is almost impossible to identify talent at a young age. Character, commitment and the environment to learn and grow will ultimately define success. My goal is for kids to be integrated into an awesome environment that allows them to learn, grow, develop and flourish. Wayne Goldsmith summarises this best in this video. 
 
My immediate thoughts for children of this age is that they should be focusing on:
Fun.
Fundamental Movement Skills.
Running Technique (not mutually exclusive from FMS)
Sport Specific Skills.
Speed.
Power.
Appropriate hormonal development.