Backwards overhead medicine ball throw and countermovement jump performance among firefighter candidates

Abstract

Objectives:To examine the relationships between performance during a backward overhead medicine ball (BOMB) throw and measures of countermovement jump (CMJ) performance among firefighter candidates. Design: Cross-sectional study. Methods: Forty-three firefighter candidates volunteered to participate in this study (age = 28.1 ± 7.1 yrs; height = 180.6 ± 6.0 cm; weight = 88.6 ± 12.3 kg). Bivariate Pearson correlations were used to examine the relationship between BOMB throw performance (m/kg) and measures of CMJ performance, including: peak CMJ height (cm/kg), peak CMJ force output (N/kg), peak CMJ velocity (cm/sec/kg), and peak CMJ power output (W/kg). Results: Statistically significant (p < 0.05) correlations were identified between: BOMB throw and peak CMJ height (r = 0.693, p < 0.001), peak CMJ force output (r = 0.349, p = 0.022), and peak CMJ velocity (r = 0.477, p < 0.001). Although significant relationships were identified between BOMB throw performance and several of CMJ performance measures, BOMB throw performance accounted for little of the total variance between these measures (R 2 = 7-48%). Furthermore, the relationship between BOMB throw and peak CMJ power output was not statistically significant (r = 0.292, p = 0.057). Conclusions: These results imply that the BOMB throw lacks criterion-reference validity to other standard field-based measures of power output. Thus, practitioners should exhibit caution when utilizing the BOMB throw to assess power output among firefighter candidates. In addition, future research should examine the criterion-reference validity of other field-expedient assessments among firefighter candidates and active-duty firefighters.