Comparison of Albanian female volleyball player with anthropometric, performance and haematological parameters

Abstract

Bozo D, Lleshi E. Comparison of Albanian female volleyball player with anthropometric, performance and haematological parameters. J. Hum. Sport Exerc. Vol. 7, No. Proc1, pp. S41-S50, 2012. The purpose of this study was to investigate and compare, on a set of basic anthropometric characteristics, specific volleyball performance indicators and a number of haematological parameters, between elite and nonelite female volleyball players in Albania. A total of 39 subjects were assesses and analyzed for three sets of indicators: 5 anthropometric characteristics (BH, BW, BMI, %BF, and %LBM), 3 performance tests (Jump with one hand, Jump with two hands, Height of the Arm) and 11 haematological markers (WBC, Lymph, Mid, Gran, Hgb, RBC, Hct, MCV, MCH, MCHC, ERC). The obtained results show that physical parameters such as body height, height of the arm, body weight, %BF display generally better values in elite teams but special abilities could be found and appreciated also in a local team, although with less better starting anthropometric and physical characteristics. The physical parameters are collinearly correlated to jump performance tests in both teams but with better values in the local team, different from the expectations. Haematological profiling does not show evident differences between the team groups; however these markers signal for eventual health or performance related alterations especially those related to anemia, which is a predictable and expectable health problem for this gender and age group. The above parameters, alone and in combination with each other, would allow coaches and athletes to identify and assess the physical and performance characteristics specific to the age groups for purposes of professional evaluation, selection, monitoring and continuous development at both individual and team level.

Anthropometric characteristic and body composition of female students involved in volleyball training

“…The fat component of our study participants (16.4%), determined by the skinfold measurements, is close to the lowest values, reported both for the highskilled (14.9-28.9%) and college-level (13.99-25.6%) female players (Bozo and Lleshi 2012;Carvajal et al 2012;Buśko 2012). The thickness of skinfolds might indicate differences regarding the development of subcutaneous fat layer for examined players compared to highly qualified athletes.…”

“…Therefore, body mass observed among study participants corresponds to average values of top-level athletes and above average values of college players. The BMI of study participants (20.83) is comparable to those of other college players (20.0-22.5) and lower than BMI of elite players (22.0-23.2) (Bozo and Lleshi 2012;Buśko 2012;Carvajal et al 2012Carvajal et al , 2015. The larger values of BMI of the top-level players could be the result of higher development of skeletal muscles.…”

“…Consequently, the height of participant in our study falls within the upper range for college players, and the lower level for top-level athletes. The body mass of the elite players (63.7-79.0 kg) is also higher compared to players of college teams (59.7-71.3 kg) (Tsunawake 2003;Buśko 2012;Bozo and Lleshi 2012;Carvajal et al 2012). Therefore, body mass observed among study participants corresponds to average values of top-level athletes and above average values of college players.…”

Changes in Body Composition and Motor Fitness of Young Female Volleyball Players in an Annual Training Cycle

“…Although female players in senior teams achieve higher values of body height [5,[50][51][52][53], it should be assumed that the tested female athletes will achieve slightly higher values for this feature in subsequent years. It should also be pointed out that the greater body height of female volleyball players is largely the result of morphological selection [25,[54][55][56]. Comparison of examined female athletes with their non-training peers showed that their body height is definitely higher [57].…”