Effects of a 24 Week Multifaceted Sports Training Program on Some Physical Characteristics of 5 to 9 Year-Old Children

Abstract

This study was conducted to investigate the effects of a 24-week multifaceted sport training program on some physical and performance characteristics of 5-9 year old children. There are many researches about the necessities for children to start physical activity at an early age. According to the characteristics of different physical activities to be performed, children can endow with different developments. Multifaceted development in the motor properties of an unbranched individual will also benefit him/her in the branching phase. A branch that will be applied to children will develop the characteristics of that branch in the child. This study aims to determine the effects of the implementation of a training program consisting of the basic characteristics of different branches on the physical characteristics of children.

A group of children with a mean age of 6.4 (SD 1.34) (n = 98) residing in Ankara participated in the study. A training program including basic techniques of many sports branches was applied to children in the form of 2 lesson hours per day for 2 days in each week. Lessons are scheduled for 45 minutes. During the 24-week training period, children were tested and measured three times; at the beginning, in the middle and at the end of the study. All physical characteristics of the children within the scope of the study has improved, and the differences in the test of vertical jump, throwing medicine ball, right foot balance posture, left hand grip force, shuttle, horizontal jump and 10x5m running were found to be statistically significant (p<0.05).