The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of 4-month basketball training on speed, agility and jump in youth male basketball players. A total of 14 male basketball players from the youth category participated in the study voluntarily. Before the research, parents' consent documents were obtained from the parents of the players. The study included players who continued basketball training for 4 months. Subjects performed basketball training 3 days a week (90 min every day). 20 m sprint, Illinois agility test, vertical and horizontal jump tests were applied in the research. Pre-, mid-, and post-test designs are used in measurements (First test, 2. month and 4. month), and they were carried out in three different test periods. One-way repeated measures analysis of variance was used to determine differences between measurements. The Holm-Sidak test was used to determine the differences between the groups (p < 0.05). There was a significant difference between the measurements in the body height, body weights and horizontal jump of the subjects. In addition, an improvement in vertical jump, 20 m speed and agility performances were observed at the end of the 4th month. It was found that 4-month basketball training caused a significant increase in physical and motoric features seen in youth male basketball players. It is thought that the significant increase in speed, agility and vertical jump performance will occur after longer training sessions. It should also be remembered that growing up can affect the positive increase in performance.

The aim of this study was to investigate the endurance performance in the male basketball players according to age categories. Totally 89 male healthy basketball players (age between 10-16 years) were voluntarily participated in this study. The age categories are determined as under 12 age (U12) novice, under 14 age (U14) little, under 16 age (U16) youth and under 18 age (U18) junior. 20 m shuttle-run test applied to determine the endurance performances of the subjects. VO2max, number of laps and total distance parameters are examined. It has been found that endurance performance increases with age. However, this increase was determined to be significantly different between the age categories (p<0.05). Although it was determined that endurance performance increased with age in male basketball athletes, there is no significant difference in endurance performance between U12 and U14. It is recommended to examine the lack of difference between novice and little teams in terms of adolescence and/or transition to adolescence.

The present study aims to investigate the relationship between speed and isokinetic knee strength applied at different angular velocities in female volleyball players. 11 female volleyball players from the senior category volunteered in the study (mean age : 20.2±3.9 years, mean height : 176.8±7.1 cm, mean weight : 66.6±5.7 kg). Isomed 2000 isokinetic dynamometer was used in order to measure the isokinetic strength of participants while 20 m sprint test was conducted in order to measure the speed. In measuring isokinetic strength, knee flexion and extension (H/Q) were measured separately on concentric/concentric dominant and non-dominant legs at 60°/sec angular velocity for 5 repetitions, at 180°/sec for 10 repetitions, and at 300°/sec for 15 repetitions. In data analysis, Spearman's correlation test was used for the relationship between isokinetic knee strength applied at different angular velocities and speed (p < 0.05). The highest peak torque value in participants was measured on both sides at 60°/sec angular velocity. This was followed by 180°/sec and 300°/sec angular velocities respectively. There was no significant relationship between isokinetic knee strength applied at different angular velocities and speed. In conclusion, there is not any significant relationship between speed and isokinetic knee strength in female volleyball players.

Background: Recent research has focused on the effects of different types of strength training on the performance and body profile of adolescent athletes. However, the effects of short-term plyometric and jump rope training on body profile and athletic performance in adolescent basketball players are a matter of curiosity. Objectives: The aim of this study was to examine the effects of short-term plyometric and jump rope training on body profile and athletic performance in adolescent basketball players. Methods: Twenty-two basketball players aged 13 - 15 were randomly divided into two groups as plyometric (n = 11) and jump rope training group (n = 11). All participants regularly completed to plyometric or jump rope training as 10 units for 4-weeks in addition to basketball training. Somatotype, body composition, push-up & sit-up test, sprint, agility (Illinois & hexagon), jump (vertical, squat, horizontal, plyometric) tests were measured before and end of the study. Results: The push-up (P = 0.049 vs < 0.001), sit-up (P = 0.20 vs < 0.001), squat jump (P = 0.010 vs 0.003) and horizontal jump (P = 0.028 vs 0.014) of the players were significantly increased after 4-weeks plyometric and jump rope training. In addition, plyometric jump (P = 0.007) and hexagon performance (P = 0.001) were significantly increased in jump rope training group. At the end of 4-weeks, body mass, endomorphy and ectomorphy scores of the lower limb plyometric training group, and body mass index, endomorphy & mesomorphy scores and quadriceps circumference of the jump rope training group were significantly increased. Conclusions: Short-term plyometric and jump rope training affect the body profile and athletic performance of the adolescent basketball players, but jump rope training has a more significant effect on athletic performance than plyometric training. Therefore, jump rope training is recommended for coaches who want to gain more athletic performance in a short-term.

The purpose of this research is to compare the elbow isokinetic strength applied at different angular velocities on the dominant and non-dominant side in elite male volleyball players. Fifteen elite volleyball players participated in the research. Isokinetic elbow flexion and extension strength were separately obtained on concentric/concentric dominant and non-dominant side as 5 repetitions at 60˚.s-1 angular velocity, 10 repetitions at 180˚.s-1 and 15 repetitions at 300˚.s-1. In the research, the peak torque (PT), peak torque/body weight (PT/BW), flexion/extension ratio (B/T), angle of PT, work and power parameters were compared between the dominant and non-dominant elbows. No significant difference was found between the dominant and non-dominant side in the elbow isokinetic strength parameters of the subjects at three different velocities. A significant difference was found at three different velocities only in the angle of PT flexion (p &lt; 0.05). It is thought that this difference may result from the muscle shortening that may occur on muscle length (longitudinal effect) as a result of the more concentric contraction of the muscle on the dominant side compared to the non-dominant muscle. Consequently, there is not any isokinetic strength difference between the dominant and non-dominant elbow in elite male volleyball players. Isokinetic elbow test can provide important information regarding the potential risk factors for elbow injuries. For this reason, it is recommended to include this test in the functional screening of volleyball players.