Return to sport: the decision, the criteria, the evidence

ACL-specific consensus defining return to sport as a criteria-based continuum rather than a time point, and setting out testing and shared decision-making for clearance after ACL injury.

• Return to sport is a criteria-based continuum, return to participation, then return to sport, then return to performance, not a single date.
• Clearance should rest on objective testing (strength, hop, movement quality, psychological readiness), not time since surgery alone.
• The decision is shared between clinician and athlete, accounting for the sport's demands and the athlete's risk tolerance.

Our appraisal: Consensus via modified Delphi, so it sets the decision framework rather than validating any single test battery or cut-off. It is most useful as a reminder that a passed clock is not a passed knee; the specific thresholds still lack strong prospective validation.

Defines and operationalises 'return to sport' as a continuum (return to participation, return to sport, return to performance), with a shared decision-making framework (StARRT).

• Operationalises return to sport as a three-stage continuum applicable across injuries, not just ACL.
• Introduces the StARRT framework (Strategic Assessment of Risk and Risk Tolerance) for the return decision.
• Frames clearance as shared decision-making under uncertainty rather than a purely biological milestone.

Our appraisal: A foundational framework paper rather than an evidence synthesis. Its strength is a shared language for the return-to-sport decision: it tells you how to structure the decision, not what the pass criteria are, so pair it with injury-specific testing evidence.