Physical fitness characteristics
Physical fitness characteristics discriminate between elite and sub-elite field
hockey players
S illa D., Rodríguez F.A.
Institut Nacional d’Educació Física de Catalunya, Universitat de Barcelona, Spain.
Introduction
Modern field hockey is a fast, physically and technically demanding sport. Success in field hockey is ultimately
depending on a cluster of factors among which we may include different components of physical fitness such as
speed, endurance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, etc. Many coaches include fitness testing among their
training control strategies to detect strong and week points both at an individual and group levels. On the other hand,
very little information about the physical fitness levels of senior elite players has been published. The main objective
of this study was to test the hypothesis that even simple physical fitness tests performed using a non-specific battery
(Eurofit) can discriminate between players of different competitive level.
Methods
Thirty one competitive Catalan-Spanish field hockey players of national and international calibre participated in the
study: 3 goalkeepers, 10 defenders, 9 halves, and 9 forwards. They belonged to senior competitive teams of different
category that we will note as elite (n= 16) and sub-elite (n= 15) (“Honor Division”, and “First National Division”,
respectively, according to Spanish official categories). 12 players were also members of the National Spanish senior
or under-21 teams, 5 players were members of the Spanish Olympic team who competed in Barcelona 1992 (5th
place), and Atlanta 1996 (2rd place). The following tests and measurements from the Eurofit fitness test battery
(Council of Europe 1988) were used: anthropometry, endurance shuttle-run 20 m x 1 min, standing broad jump, right
and left-hand plate tapping, sit-ups in 1 min, shuttle run 10 x 5 m, and sit-and-reach. Sit-ups in 30 s, as well as 30
and 50 m sprints were performed in addition. Unpaired t-tests were used to compare both groups (p<0.05).
Results
The following table summarizes the results on both groups of players in the different tests. Data are mean and
standard deviations (in parenthesis). Significantly higher values are in bold. No significant differences were observed
between players in relation to their position in the field.
Factor Measurement, units Elite players (n = 16) Sub-elite players (n= 15) Differences
(p-value)*
Anthropometry Age, y 22.7 (2.9) 19.8 (2.2) 0.009
Height, cm 175.0 (6.8) 176.2 (6.0) ns
Body mass, kg 74.3 (6.3) 70.3 (10.2) ns
Body fat, %BM 8.4 (1.3) 8.7 (1.8) ns
Muscle mass, %BM 51.6 (2.4) 49.3 (1.3) 0.03
30-m sprint, s 4.27 (0.25) 4.59 (0.29) 0.004
50-m sprint, s 6.59 (0.21) 7.09 (0.24) 0.0001
Running speed
10 x 5 m shuttle run, s 16.21 (1.20) 16.17 (0.32) ns
Aerobic endurance Shuttle run 20 m x 1 min, 12.31 (1.28) 10.93 (1.13) 0.002
Explosive strength Standing broad jump, m 2.44 (0.13) 2.33 (0.09) 0.019
Speed of limb movement Right-hand plate tapping, s 9.49 (1.30) 8.93 (0.70) ns
Left-hand plate tapping, s 10.28 (1.17) 11.12 (1.70) ns
Abdominal muscular strength Sit-ups 1 min, n 62.81 (6.79) 44.47 (4.94) 0.0001
Sit-ups 30 s, n 34.31 (3.46) 28.33 (4.58) 0.0001
Flexibility Sit-and-reach, cm 24.25 (6.86) 18.64 (7.29) ns
* ns = non-significant differences (p> 0.05)
Discussion
The elite players were older and more muscular, and showed higher levels of aerobic endurance, explosive strength
and abdominal muscular strength as compared with the sub-elite players. These were comparatively faster in 30 and
50 m sprints. The aerobic endurance level of our elite players was comparable to that of the Dutch National team in
1990 (Geijsel 1991) both measured using the shuttle run test. From these results, we conclude that the test battery
used, even if not specific to field hockey, has been able to differentiate elite from sub-elite players and may be useful
in establishing baseline reference data for field hockey players.
References
Council of Europe (1988) Rome: Council of Europe, CONI.
Silla D (1999) Unpublished doctoral dissertation. Universitat de Barcelona, INEFC.
Geijsel S, Jorritsma H, Kemper HCG (1991) The Haque Zuid-Holland Academy/College for Sports and P.E., p. 245.
Silla D, Rodríguez FA (2000) 5th Annual Congress of the ECSS, Jyväskylä,.p. 680.
Acknowledgements
To Club Egara for their cooperation. This study has been partially funded by INEFC and Generalitat de Catalunya.
hockey players
S illa D., Rodríguez F.A.
Institut Nacional d’Educació Física de Catalunya, Universitat de Barcelona, Spain.
Introduction
Modern field hockey is a fast, physically and technically demanding sport. Success in field hockey is ultimately
depending on a cluster of factors among which we may include different components of physical fitness such as
speed, endurance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, etc. Many coaches include fitness testing among their
training control strategies to detect strong and week points both at an individual and group levels. On the other hand,
very little information about the physical fitness levels of senior elite players has been published. The main objective
of this study was to test the hypothesis that even simple physical fitness tests performed using a non-specific battery
(Eurofit) can discriminate between players of different competitive level.
Methods
Thirty one competitive Catalan-Spanish field hockey players of national and international calibre participated in the
study: 3 goalkeepers, 10 defenders, 9 halves, and 9 forwards. They belonged to senior competitive teams of different
category that we will note as elite (n= 16) and sub-elite (n= 15) (“Honor Division”, and “First National Division”,
respectively, according to Spanish official categories). 12 players were also members of the National Spanish senior
or under-21 teams, 5 players were members of the Spanish Olympic team who competed in Barcelona 1992 (5th
place), and Atlanta 1996 (2rd place). The following tests and measurements from the Eurofit fitness test battery
(Council of Europe 1988) were used: anthropometry, endurance shuttle-run 20 m x 1 min, standing broad jump, right
and left-hand plate tapping, sit-ups in 1 min, shuttle run 10 x 5 m, and sit-and-reach. Sit-ups in 30 s, as well as 30
and 50 m sprints were performed in addition. Unpaired t-tests were used to compare both groups (p<0.05).
Results
The following table summarizes the results on both groups of players in the different tests. Data are mean and
standard deviations (in parenthesis). Significantly higher values are in bold. No significant differences were observed
between players in relation to their position in the field.
Factor Measurement, units Elite players (n = 16) Sub-elite players (n= 15) Differences
(p-value)*
Anthropometry Age, y 22.7 (2.9) 19.8 (2.2) 0.009
Height, cm 175.0 (6.8) 176.2 (6.0) ns
Body mass, kg 74.3 (6.3) 70.3 (10.2) ns
Body fat, %BM 8.4 (1.3) 8.7 (1.8) ns
Muscle mass, %BM 51.6 (2.4) 49.3 (1.3) 0.03
30-m sprint, s 4.27 (0.25) 4.59 (0.29) 0.004
50-m sprint, s 6.59 (0.21) 7.09 (0.24) 0.0001
Running speed
10 x 5 m shuttle run, s 16.21 (1.20) 16.17 (0.32) ns
Aerobic endurance Shuttle run 20 m x 1 min, 12.31 (1.28) 10.93 (1.13) 0.002
Explosive strength Standing broad jump, m 2.44 (0.13) 2.33 (0.09) 0.019
Speed of limb movement Right-hand plate tapping, s 9.49 (1.30) 8.93 (0.70) ns
Left-hand plate tapping, s 10.28 (1.17) 11.12 (1.70) ns
Abdominal muscular strength Sit-ups 1 min, n 62.81 (6.79) 44.47 (4.94) 0.0001
Sit-ups 30 s, n 34.31 (3.46) 28.33 (4.58) 0.0001
Flexibility Sit-and-reach, cm 24.25 (6.86) 18.64 (7.29) ns
* ns = non-significant differences (p> 0.05)
Discussion
The elite players were older and more muscular, and showed higher levels of aerobic endurance, explosive strength
and abdominal muscular strength as compared with the sub-elite players. These were comparatively faster in 30 and
50 m sprints. The aerobic endurance level of our elite players was comparable to that of the Dutch National team in
1990 (Geijsel 1991) both measured using the shuttle run test. From these results, we conclude that the test battery
used, even if not specific to field hockey, has been able to differentiate elite from sub-elite players and may be useful
in establishing baseline reference data for field hockey players.
References
Council of Europe (1988) Rome: Council of Europe, CONI.
Silla D (1999) Unpublished doctoral dissertation. Universitat de Barcelona, INEFC.
Geijsel S, Jorritsma H, Kemper HCG (1991) The Haque Zuid-Holland Academy/College for Sports and P.E., p. 245.
Silla D, Rodríguez FA (2000) 5th Annual Congress of the ECSS, Jyväskylä,.p. 680.
Acknowledgements
To Club Egara for their cooperation. This study has been partially funded by INEFC and Generalitat de Catalunya.
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