In athletics, strength plays a special role, given that its development is focused on improving the speed of movement. The main form of expressing strength in athletics is speed-strength (explosive strength, take-off), which is representative for sprinting, jumping and throwing. Specialised studies have revealed that one of the most effective training methods used to develop explosive strength, also called explosive power, is the training based on plyometric exercises, but studies regarding the use of this method for the prepubertal age segment in athletic training are scarce. The purpose of this research is to investigate the degree of improvement in explosive strength in preadolescent athletes with the help of weekly plyometric training as compared to the control group. The research was carried out at the School no. 190 between 20 February and 17 June 2017. In order to conduct the experimental research, 42 athlete subjects of both genders, aged 11 to 13 years, were investigated. The experimental group was made up of 20 athletes, members of the Municipal Sports Club in Bucharest. The control group included 22 athlete subjects of both genders, who were trained by other coaches. Both groups performed four training sessions per week for 17 weeks. Analysing the results of the experiment, we can conclude that plyometric workouts contribute to the development of lower body strength in preadolescent athletes.

Background: Individual differences in personality and resilience are related to a variety of social behaviors. The current study sought to answer the question of whether BMW drivers exhibit different personality profiles and resilience levels compared with drivers of other car brands. Participants and procedure: An international study was carried out in India, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, and Spain on a sample of 448 athletes using the 20-item Mini-IPIP and the Resilience Scale. The results of BMW drivers (n = 91) were compared with the results of drivers of other German car brands (n = 357). Results: BMW drivers were characterized by higher neuroticism compared with drivers of other German car brands. They also showed higher resiliency, both in terms of total score and scores on the subscales of: personal coping competences and tolerance of negative emotions, tolerance of failures and perceiving life as a challenge, and optimistic attitude towards life and capacity for self-mobilization in difficult situations. The greatest difference was observed for the factor of tolerance of failures and perceiving life as a challenge. Using the Dwass-Steel-Critchlow-Fligner (DSCF) pairwise comparison test, gender differences between athletes (as BMW drivers and drivers of other German car brands, respectively) were discussed. Additionally, the results of the main logistic regression analyses emphasized that neuroticism represents a better predictor of BMW preference in the case of athletes (as drivers) than the scores obtained for resilience. Conclusions: BMW drivers differed from drivers of other German car brands only with regard to neuroticism. A higher level of neuroticism can affect mental health and the overall quality of life in athletes; aggression and distress management are essential. Athletes (as BMW drivers) also showed differences in resiliency levels. Understanding the mechanisms of behavior among BMW drivers is possible through considering their personality and individual differences.

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We are being witnesses of a phenomenon involving a decrease in the average age of Olympic and World champions and implicitly a new trend of sports debut at an early age, because achieving performance at the world level requires at least 8 years of training. Globally, there is a trend to start selection at younger ages in most sports branches, which has determined a new perspective in athletics too, as regards the debut of selection and instruction. Because the athletic performance involves a long period of preparation and a high volume and intensity of exercise, the age of initial selection is recommended to decrease up to 6-7 years, so that to insure a gradual, progressive development of the systems and thus the biological factors required for performance can be raised to a superior level. Obviously, there have been enough controversies related to decreasing the age of debut in athletics. In this regard, the present study aims to investigate the possibilities of improving the motor and functional potential of children aged 6 to 9 years using the emulative-playful athletic means. The study was conducted in the school year 2012-2013 at the Elementary School no. 190 of Bucharest, on classrooms with an athletics sports profile. To assess the children's motor and functional potential, functional measurements and motricity trials were performed during initial, intermediate and final testing. Analysis of the processed results has revealed an improvement in the motor parameters of children aged 6 to 9 years, but not in the functional parameters.