title: Direct-to-consumer genetic testing for predicting sports performance and talent identification: Consensus statement.
abstract: The general consensus among sport and exercise genetics researchers is that genetic tests have no role to play in talent identification or the individualised prescription of training to maximise performance. Despite the lack of evidence, recent years have witnessed the rise of an emerging market of direct-to-consumer marketing (DTC) tests that claim to be able to identify children's athletic talents. Targeted consumers include mainly coaches and parents. There is concern among the scientific community that the current level of knowledge is being misrepresented for commercial purposes. There remains a lack of universally accepted guidelines and legislation for DTC testing in relation to all forms of genetic testing and not just for talent identification. There is concern over the lack of clarity of information over which specific genes or variants are being tested and the almost universal lack of appropriate genetic counselling for the interpretation of the genetic data to consumers. Furthermore independent studies have identified issues relating to quality control by DTC laboratories with different results being reported from samples from the same individual. Consequently, in the current state of knowledge, no child or young athlete should be exposed to DTC genetic testing to define or alter training or for talent identification aimed at selecting gifted children or adolescents. Large scale collaborative projects, may help to develop a stronger scientific foundation on these issues in the future.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Sport and Exercise Science and Medicine (SESAME), University of Brighton, Eastbourne, UK.
authors.forename: Nick
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Webborn
authors.affiliation: MMU Sports Genomics Laboratory, Department of Exercise and Sport Science, Manchester Metropolitan University, Crewe, UK.
authors.forename: Alun
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.affiliation: College of Engineering, Swansea University, Swansea, UK.
authors.forename: Mike
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: McNamee
authors.affiliation: Human Genomics Laboratory, Pennington Biomedical Research Center, Baton Rouge, USA.
authors.forename: Claude
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Bouchard
authors.affiliation: FIMS Reference Collaborating Centre of Sports Medicine for Anti-Doping Research, University of Brighton, Eastbourne, UK.
authors.forename: Yannis
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Pitsiladis
authors.affiliation: Volga Region State Academy of Physical Culture, Sport and Tourism, Kazan, Russia.
authors.forename: Ildus
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Ahmetov
authors.affiliation: Clinical Genomics Service, Center for Inherited Cardiovascular Disease, Stanford University, Palo Alto, California, USA.
authors.forename: Euan
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Ashley
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Health Sciences & Medicine, Bond Institute of Health and Sport, Gold Coast, Australia.
authors.forename: Nuala
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Byrne
authors.affiliation: Department of Social Science, Health & Medicine, King's College London, London, UK.
authors.forename: Silvia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Camporesi
authors.affiliation: Department of Human Biology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.
authors.forename: Malcolm
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Collins
authors.affiliation: Aspetar-Qatar Orthopaedic & Sports Medicine Hospital, Doha, Qatar.
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Dijkstra
authors.affiliation: Institute of Sport, Exercise, and Active Living (ISEAL), Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia.
authors.forename: Nir
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Eynon
authors.affiliation: Graduate School of Health and Sports Science, Juntendo University, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Noriyuki
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Fuku
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatrics, Murdoch Childrens Research Institute, University of Melbourne, Royal Children's Hospital, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Fleur C
authors.initials: FC
authors.lastname: Garton
authors.affiliation: Coram Chambers, London, UK.
authors.forename: Nils
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Hoppe
authors.affiliation: School of Law, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK.
authors.forename: Søren
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Holm
authors.affiliation: Nuffield Department of Population Health, Centre for Health, Law and Emerging Technologies, University of Oxford, Headington, UK.
authors.forename: Jane
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kaye
authors.affiliation: Emeritus of Ergophysiology, University of Athens, Athens, Greece.
authors.forename: Vassilis
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Klissouras
authors.affiliation: Universidad Europea and Research Institute i+12, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Alejandro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Lucia
authors.affiliation: Elite Sport Unit, Netherlands Olympic Committee * Netherlands Sports Confederation (NOC*NSF), Utrecht, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Kamiel
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Maase
authors.affiliation: Physiological Epigenetics Research Group, University of Stirling, Stirling, UK.
authors.forename: Colin
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Moran
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatrics, Murdoch Childrens Research Institute, University of Melbourne, Royal Children's Hospital, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Kathryn N
authors.initials: KN
authors.lastname: North
authors.affiliation: International Federation of Sports Medicine, University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Fabio
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Pigozzi
authors.affiliation: FIMS Reference Collaborating Centre of Sports Medicine for Anti-Doping Research, University of Brighton, Eastbourne, UK.
authors.forename: Guan
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D001076:Aptitude / Q000941:ethics / Q000502:physiology*; D054874:Athletic Performance / Q000502:physiology*; D032921:Consensus; D008192:Deception; D000067108:Direct-To-Consumer Screening and Testing / Q000941:ethics / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence / Q000592:standards*; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine; D005820:Genetic Testing / Q000941:ethics / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence / Q000592:standards*; D023281:Genomics; D006801:Humans; D013178:Sports Medicine / Q000941:ethics / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence / Q000592:standards
keywords: Consensus statement