Under-23 sport is a competitive age category grouping within

sports Sport pertains to any form of competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to spectators. Sports can, th ...

for athletes under the age of twenty-three. An extension of age categories found in

youth sports Youth sports is any sports event where competitors are younger than adult age, whether children or adolescents. Youth sports includes school sports at primary and secondary level, as well as sports played outside the education system, whether i ...

, the under-23 category is for adults who are still in a developmental stage within their chosen discipline. The intention of the grouping is to allow such adults to improve their skills against opponents of a similar standard, as opposed to elite level of competition found in open senior level competitions, where they may not receive competitive opportunities or may find their development hindered by significant ability differences. The under-23 category roughly corresponds with the age of athletes found competing in

college athletics College athletics encompasses non-professional, collegiate and university-level competitive sports and games. World University Games The first World University Games were held in 1923. There were originally called the ''Union Nationale des ...

, although in the latter grouping there is a required academic element for student-athletes and typically no upper age limit (in the case of

adult learner An adult learner or, more commonly, a mature student, is a person who is older and is involved in forms of learning. Adult learners fall in a specific criterion of being experienced, and do not always have a high school diploma. Many of the adult ...

s). The age group somewhat aligns with social definitions used outside of sport, such as the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

' definition of youth as "persons between the ages of 15 and 24 years".What do we mean by “youth”?
United Nation. Retrieved on 2017-01-02.

International competitions

Under-23 athletics Under 23 is a category of athletics in which athletes compete under from 20 to 22 years on 31 December of the year of the competition. Championships *European Athletics U23 Championships, organized by the EAA every 2 years * NACAC Under- ...

NACAC Under-23 Championships in Athletics The NACAC U23 Championships in Athletics is an under-23 athletics competition held between the member associations of the North American, Central American and Caribbean Athletic Association The North American, Central American and Caribbean Athlet ...

South American Under-23 Championships in Athletics The South American Under-23 Championships in Athletics (Campeonatos Sudamericanos de Atletismo de Sub-23) is an under-23 athletics competition held between the member associations of the South American Athletics Confederation (ConSudAtle). Rules an ...

European Athletics U23 Championships The European Athletics U23 Championships is a biennial athletics competition for European athletes under the age of 23, which is organized by the European Athletic Association. The oldest of the 'age-group' track and field events held by Europe ...

European Cross Country Championships The European Cross Country Championships is an annual international cross country running competition. Organised by the European Athletic Association, it is the area championships for the region and is held in December each year. The championships ...

(race) *Cycling **

UCI Road World Championships – Men's under-23 road race The UCI Road World Championships - Men's under-23 road race is the annual world championship for road bicycle racing in the discipline of time trial, organised by the world governing body, the Union Cycliste Internationale. The event was first run ...

UCI Road World Championships – Men's under-23 time trial The UCI Road World Championships - Men's under-23 time trial is the annual world championship for road bicycle racing in the discipline of individual time trial for men aged 23 or under, organised by the world governing body, the Union Cycliste Int ...

UEC European Track Championships (under-23 & junior) The European Track Cycling Championships (under-23 & junior) are a set of competition events held annually for the various disciplines and distances in track cycling, exclusively for European cyclists under the ages of 23 and 18, and regulated by ...

African Continental Cycling Championships The African Continental Cycling Championships are a series of cycling races held annually in Africa where the African cyclists decide who will be the champion for the year to come. They have been held since 2001. Editions Men Road Race ...

(section) ** Oceanian Cycling Championships (section) **

Liège–Bastogne–Liège U23 The U23 Liège–Bastogne–Liège or Liège–Bastogne–Liège Espoirs is a cycling race in Belgium, held eight days before the cycling classic, the Liège–Bastogne–Liège Liège–Bastogne–Liège, also known as ''La Doyenne'' ("The Ol ...

** Peace Race U23 **

Thüringen Rundfahrt der U23 Thüringen Rundfahrt der U23 was a bicycle road race held annually in the German state of Thuringia. It was a stage race reserved to athletes under the age of 23. Since 2005, it was organized as a 2.2U event on the UCI Europe Tour. After the 201 ...

Tour de l'Avenir Tour de l'Avenir ( en, Tour of the Future) is a French road bicycle racing stage race, which started in 1961 as a race similar to the Tour de France and over much of the same course but for amateurs and for semi-professionals known as independents ...

(since 2007) *Football **

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...

AFC U-23 Championship The AFC U-23 Asian Cup, previously the AFC U-22 Championship (in 2013) and AFC U-23 Championship (between 2016 and 2020), is a biennial international football competition organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) for the men's under-23 ...

AFF U-23 Youth Championship The AFF U-23 Championship is an international football competition contested by the national under-23 teams of the member nations of the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF). The inaugural edition was held in 2005. Background In 2005, the first ...

Africa U-23 Cup of Nations The Total Africa U-23 Cup of Nations (known as the CAF U-23 Championship until 2015) is the main international football competition for CAF nations, played by under 23 years old players. It is held every four years with the top three teams qualif ...

GCC U-23 Championship The GCC U-23 Championship is an annual international football competition organised by the Gulf Cooperation Council The Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf ( ar, مجلس التعاون لدول العربية الخليج ), ...

*Volleyball **

FIVB Volleyball Women's U23 World Championship The FIVB Volleyball Women's U23 World Championship was the world championship of volleyball for female players under the age of 23 organized by Fédération Internationale de Volleyball ( FIVB). The first edition was staged in 2013 in Mexicali an ...

FIVB Volleyball Men's U23 World Championship The FIVB Volleyball Men's U23 World Championship was the world championship of volleyball for male players under the age of 23 organized by ''Fédération Internationale de Volleyball'' ( FIVB). The first edition was staged in 2013 in Uberlândia ...

** Men's Asian U23 Volleyball Championship **

Women's Asian U23 Volleyball Championship A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female humans regardle ...

Men's U23 African Volleyball Championship The Men's U23 African Volleyball Championship is a sport competition for national teams with players under 23 years, held biannually and organized by the African Volleyball Confederation. History The first championship is currently being held in ...

Women's U23 African Volleyball Championship The Women's U23 African Volleyball Championship is a national teams continental sport competition for players under 23 years, held biannually and organized by the African Volleyball Confederation since 2014. Summary Teams reaching the top four ...

Men's U23 Pan-American Volleyball Cup The Men's U23 Pan-American Volleyball Cup is a bi-annual Continental Cup organized by NORCECA for under-23 teams from South, North and Central America, and the Caribbean. Results Medal table Teams by year MVP by edition *2012 – Rogéri ...

Women's U23 Pan-American Volleyball Cup The Women's U23 Pan-American Volleyball Cup is a bi-annual Continental Cup organized by NORCECA for U23 teams from all over America ( North-, South- and Central America, and the Caribbean) Results Medal table Teams by year Most valuable p ...

Men's U23 South American Volleyball Championship The Men's U23 South American Volleyball Championship is a sport competition for national volleyball teams with players under 23 years, currently held biannually and organized by the Confederación Sudamericana de Voleibol (CSV), the South America ...

Women's U22 South American Volleyball Championship The Women's U22 South American Volleyball Championship is a sport competition for national women's volleyball teams with players under 23 years, currently held biannually and organized by the Confederación Sudamericana de Voleibol (CSV), the Sou ...

*Other sports **

Bandy World Championship Y-23 The Bandy World Championship Y-21 is a Youth Bandy World Championship up to the age of 21 years. Usually, only the core bandy playing nations take part. The designation is sometimes given as U-21 instead of Y-23 or U-23, probably as a way to co ...

European U23 Judo Championships The European U23 Judo Championships are annual judo competitions organized by the European Judo Union for European judoka aged 23 and younger. The last contest took place in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. The next contest will be held in P ...

European U23 Wrestling Championships The European Wrestling Championships is the second oldest international wrestling competition of the modern world and the main wrestling championships in Europe. It predates World Wrestling Championships and other regional wrestling championship ...

** IWAS Under 23 World Games **

U-23 Baseball World Cup The U-23 Baseball World Cup is a biennial, professional-level, National Team, baseball world championship of the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC), replacing Baseball World Cup. The inaugural tournament was held in November 2014, in T ...

World Rowing U23 Championships World Rowing U23 Championships is an international rowing regatta organized by FISA The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 ("FISA" , ) is a United States federal law that establishes procedures for the physical and electronic sur ...

References

{{reflist

International competitions

See also

References