AIM： The aim of this study was to examine the stress-coping capacity of young elite athletes in Japan. We assessed the sense of coherence (SOC) among the prize winners of the Inter-High School Championships and compared it with those of control groups.

METHODS：Data was collected from track-and-field events during the 2017 Inter-High School Championships in Japan. Structured questionnaires were used to collect data from the prize winners (1st-8th place) of the competitions. There were 166 valid respondents of the 424 participants. The questionnaires included the grade in school, gender, over-training, stress fractures, and a 13-item version of the Sense of Coherence (SOC) scale based on the Antonovsky salutogenic model.

RESULTS：The SOC scores of the prize winners were higher than those of general high school students (P<0.01), and general adult control groups in their 20 s (P<0.01) and 30 s (P＝0.01).

CONCLUSION：In this study, it was found that young elite athletes have a greater stress-coping capacity than general students. The SOC and salutogenic model may indicate a new perspective related to the growth and health on young athletes.