Displaying publications 81 - 100 of 138 in total

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  1. Fulltext A machine learning approach of predicting high potential archers by means of physical fitness indicators
    Muazu Musa R, P P Abdul Majeed A, Taha Z, Chang SW, Ab Nasir AF, Abdullah MR
    PLoS One, 2019;14(1):e0209638.
    PMID: 30605456 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0209638
    k-nearest neighbour (k-NN) has been shown to be an effective learning algorithm for classification and prediction. However, the application of k-NN for prediction and classification in specific sport is still in its infancy. The present study classified and predicted high and low potential archers from a set of physical fitness variables trained on a variation of k-NN algorithms and logistic regression. 50 youth archers with the mean age and standard deviation of (17.0 ± 0.56) years drawn from various archery programmes completed a one end archery shooting score test. Standard fitness measurements of the handgrip, vertical jump, standing broad jump, static balance, upper muscle strength and the core muscle strength were conducted. Multiple linear regression was utilised to ascertain the significant variables that affect the shooting score. It was demonstrated from the analysis that core muscle strength and vertical jump were statistically significant. Hierarchical agglomerative cluster analysis (HACA) was used to cluster the archers based on the significant variables identified. k-NN model variations, i.e., fine, medium, coarse, cosine, cubic and weighted functions as well as logistic regression, were trained based on the significant performance variables. The HACA clustered the archers into high potential archers (HPA) and low potential archers (LPA). The weighted k-NN outperformed all the tested models at itdemonstrated reasonably good classification on the evaluated indicators with an accuracy of 82.5 ± 4.75% for the prediction of the HPA and the LPA. Moreover, the performance of the classifiers was further investigated against fresh data, which also indicates the efficacy of the weighted k-NN model. These findings could be valuable to coaches and sports managers to recognise high potential archers from a combination of the selected few physical fitness performance indicators identified which would subsequently save cost, time and energy for a talent identification programme.
    Matched MeSH terms: Athletes
  2. Fulltext Postural sway and shooting accuracy of skilled recurve archers
    Muhamad Noor Mohamed, Azrul Hisham Azhar
    Movement Health & Exercise, 2012;1(1):49-60.
    MyJurnal
    Postural movements potentially affect aiming stability in archery, thus contributing to chances of inconsistent hits. According to the expertisenovice paradigm, the factor that sets winners apart from ordinary athletes is the former’s ability to control minute changes in their performance. The
    present study seeks to determine the relationship between postural sway and shooting performance amongst Malaysian skilled recurve archers. Twenty one skilled Malaysian archers participated in this study, where performance level was measured by rank tournaments International Archery Federation (FITA) score. Postural sway was assessed in terms of anterior deviation (positive value) and posterior deviation (negative value) using ZEPHYR Bio-Harness. Postural sway was analysed at the following three phases; (i) setup, (ii) aiming, and (iii) release. Participants shot 12 arrows to a 30-meter target. Data yielded a significant relationship between postural sway and shooting performance. The correlation coefficients between shooting performance and postural sway value for skilled archers ranged between (r = -0.021 to 0.248) with the highest correlation recorded at the release phase, with the lowest at the aiming phase. The setup phase showed the only anterior deviation throughout the test. During the setup and release phases, correlation between postural sway with shooting performance was significantly noted (p < 0.001). Multiple regression analysis showed that postural sway during the setup and release phases were the significant indicators for shooting performance, accounting approximately 17% and 24% of the variances respectively. In sum, the results indicate that reducing postural sway
    during the release phase can increase shooting performance of skilled archery athletes, thus establishing a significant relationship between the postural sway value with shooting performance of skilled archers.
    Matched MeSH terms: Athletes
  3. Fulltext Incidence, patterns and risk factors of injury & illness among athletes during the Malaysian Higher Education Games (SUKIPT) 2018
    Muhammad Harith, R., Mohamad Shariff, A.H.
    JUMMEC, 2019;22(2):13-23.
    MyJurnal
    Background: Despite regularly participating in international and national level multisport events, there is still
    limited data on the pattern of injuries and illnesses and factors associated with injuries and illnesses in Malaysia.
    Such information is crucial to instil preventive measures because sustaining injuries during competition could
    hamper the athlete’s performance.

    Methods: This cross-sectional study investigated the incidence, patterns and risk factors of injuries and illnesses
    among athletes throughout SUKIPT 2018, from the 2nd to the 10th of February 2018. All injuries and illnesses
    treated by tournament medical personnel were reported using a standardised online injury reporting form.
    This form was adapted from the injury surveillance form used by the International Olympic Committee.

    Results: A total of 6071 athletes from 80 contingents took part in SUKIPT 2018. During the nine days of
    competition 323 injuries and 48 illnesses were reported, resulting in an incidence of 5.3 injuries and 0.8 illness
    per 100 athletes. Approximately 6% of the athletes sustained at least one injury or illness.

    Conclusion: In summary, the incidence of injuries and illnesses among athletes during SUKIPT was 5.3 and
    0.8 per 100 athletes, respectively. Muscle strain/rupture/tear was the most common pattern of injury while
    collision with another athlete was the most frequent mechanism of injury. Meanwhile, the respiratory system
    was the most commonly affected by illness and infection was the most prevalent cause of illness.
    Matched MeSH terms: Athletes
  4. Serum neurofilament light chain level as a biomarker of neurodegeneration and predictor of white-matter abnormality progression
    Murthy JK, Das S
    Eur J Neurol, 2020 10;27(10):e55.
    PMID: 32526090 DOI: 10.1111/ene.14389
    Matched MeSH terms: Athletes
  5. Fulltext Review of factors influencing the coach‐athlete relationship in Malaysian team sport
    Murugeesan, Yokananthini, Nurul Ain Mohd Hasan
    Malaysian Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, 2016;1(3):83-98.
    MyJurnal
    Previous research has found that interaction processes between coach and athlete have always been the
    strongest factor for sports performance. Other researches have drawn conclusions to other factors in the
    coach-athlete relationship, such as culture and gender. Research has generally shown that effective
    communication required the development of trust and respect between coach and athlete (Yukelson,
    1984). The review focuses on an analysis of past literature on communication styles, culture, and
    gender as potential key factors influencing the coach-athlete relationship. This review paper examined
    studies specific to the empirical studies on athletes and coaches from the Western and Asian
    perspectives. In particular, the review analysed empirical studies on communication, gender and
    culture as potential factors influencing the coach-athlete relationship. The review concluded that while
    various studies on the coach-athlete relationship had been done, a majority of the empirical studies
    were within Western perspectives. Such empirical study is particularly under-researched in Malaysia.
    Therefore, the paper concludes by suggesting that future research which explores the aspects of
    communication styles, culture, and gender within the Malaysian context is timely.
    Matched MeSH terms: Athletes
  6. Fulltext A longitudinal analysis of injury characteristics among elite and amateur tennis players at different tournaments from electronic newspaper reports
    Musa RM, Hassan I, Abdullah MR, Latiff Azmi MN, Abdul Majeed APP, Abu Osman NA
    Front Public Health, 2022;10:835119.
    PMID: 36033746 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2022.835119
    The non-complexity of tennis, coupled with its health benefits, renders it appealing and encourages varying competitions at different levels of age, gender, and expertise. However, the rapid increase in the participation rates witnesses a surge in injury occurrences, prompting the need for in-depth analysis to facilitate immediate intervention. We employed a media content analysis technique in which tennis-associated articles published in the last 5 years were examined. A total of 207 news reports were gathered and screened for analysis. Subsequently, 71 articles were excluded from the study due to content duplications or summary updates of existing news articles, while 23 news articles were also excluded from the study due to inappropriateness. Finally, 113 news reports directly related to injury in tennis were coded and analyzed. We examined various types of injuries reported from the screened articles with respect to their status (fresh, recurrent, and recovery) across expertise levels i.e., elite, or amateur. Similarly, the incidence of injury occurrences based on the types of tournaments the players engage in was also investigated. A chi-square analysis was employed to achieve the objectives of the study. Occurrences of tennis-associated injuries are disseminated across expertise levels [ χ ( 18 ) 2 = 16.542; p = 0.555], with knee, hip, elbow, and shoulder injuries being highly prevalent in both elite and amateur players. Nevertheless, it was noted that elite players suffered a staggering 72.60% of injury-related problems, while amateur players sustained 27.40% of injuries. Moreover, the status of injury spreads based on types of tournaments [ χ ( 4 ) 2 = 3.374; p = 0.497], with higher occurrences of fresh and recurrent injuries, while low recovery rates were observed. The findings further demonstrated that injuries are sustained regardless of tournament types [ χ ( 36 ) 2 = 39.393; p = 0.321]. However, most of the injuries occurred at international tournaments (85%). Whereas, only 5.30% of the injuries occurred at national/regional tournaments while 9.70% were unidentified. It could be deduced from the findings of this investigation that elite players are more prone to injuries compared with amateur players. Furthermore, the most common tennis-related injuries affect the lower, trunk, and upper regions of the body, respectively. A large number of the reported tennis injuries are fresh and recurrent, with a few recoveries. The international tennis tournaments are highly attributed to injury occurrences as opposed to the national/regional tournaments. The application of the media-based data mining technique is non-trivial in projecting injury-related problems that could be used to facilitate the development of an injury index peculiar to the tennis sport for prompt intervention.
    Matched MeSH terms: Athletes
  7. The utility of immature reticulocyte fraction as an indicator of erythropoietic response to altitude training in elite cyclists
    Nadarajan VS, Ooi CH, Sthaneshwar P, Thompson MW
    Int J Lab Hematol, 2010 Feb;32(1 Pt 2):82-7.
    PMID: 19170774 DOI: 10.1111/j.1751-553X.2008.01132.x
    Altitude training is sometimes employed by elite endurance athletes to improve their sea level performance. This improvement results from the increased red cell mass consequent upon the boost in erythropoietin (EPO) level that occurs as a response to the relatively hypoxic environment at high altitudes. We measured serum EPO levels together with various red cell and reticulocyte parameters including immature reticulocyte fraction (IRF) in eight national track-endurance cyclists, resident at sea-level, prior to and upon return from an altitude of approximately 1905 m. Reticulocytes and soluble transferrin receptor (sTfR) were significantly increased with reduction in ferritin levels immediately on return from high altitude indicating increased erythropoietic activity. IRF in particular showed a significant peak immediately on return but decline to sub-baseline levels by day 9, and recovery to baseline by day 16. Our results indicate that IRF is a sensitive marker of erythropoietic status in athletes undergoing altitude training and subsequent loss of EPO stimuli on return to sea level.
    Matched MeSH terms: Athletes
  8. Fulltext Preferred coaching styles of the Malaysian sports school athletes
    Nelfianty Mohd Rasyid, Shaharudin Abd Aziz
    Jurnal Sains Sukan & Pendidikan Jasmani, 2012;1(1):45-53.
    MyJurnal
    The purpose of this study was to identify the preferred coaching styles of the Malaysian Sports School athletes based on gender, age group, and types of sports they had participated. This study utilised the athletes preferred version of the Leadership Scale for Sport questionnaire (LSS). The subjects were the population of two Malaysian Sport School athletes (N = 854; Bukit Jalil Sports School = 409, Bandar Penawar Sports School = 445). The findings demonstrated that Training and Instruction (M = 4:09, SD = 73) was the most preferred leadership style by the athletes, followed by Democratic (M = 3.87, SD = .75), Social Support (M = 3.74, SD = .75) and Positive Feedback (M = 3:59, SD = .82). Autocratic behavior was the least preferred coaching style (M = 2.35, SD = 96). T-test analysis showed that there were significant differences between autocratic leadership style t(852) = 4.63, p
    Matched MeSH terms: Athletes
  9. Fulltext Radiological analysis of the medial epicondyle in the adolescent throwing athlete
    Ng WM, Chan CK, Takahashi N, Kawai N, Teh KK, Saravana R, et al.
    Singapore Med J, 2017 Feb;58(2):103-106.
    PMID: 26976222 DOI: 10.11622/smedj.2016061
    INTRODUCTION: Injuries to the medial structures of the elbow due to overhead throwing games are well documented. However, variations of medial epicondyles are not well described, especially in athletes with fused medial epicondyles. In this study, we evaluated variations in the medial epicondyle of baseball players who were aged 15-17 years and had fused epicondyles.

    METHODS: In this cross-sectional observational study, 155 skeletally mature baseball players with unilateral medial elbow pain and 310 elbow radiographs were reviewed by two independent reviewers. The medial epicondyles were categorised into three groups: normal, elongated or separated.

    RESULTS: Among the 155 patients, 65 (41.9%) had normal epicondyles, 41 (26.5%) had elongated epicondyles and 49 (31.6%) had separated epicondyles. The medial epicondyle was larger on the dominant arm for 125 (80.6%) patients; the mean surface area on the dominant arm was 222.50 ± 45.77 mm2, while that of the non-dominant arm was 189.14 ± 39.56 mm2(p < 0.01). Among the three categories of medial epicondyles, separated epicondyles had the largest surface area, followed by elongated and normal epicondyles.

    CONCLUSION: Medial epicondyles in adolescent throwing athletes can be categorised into three different groups according to their shape (normal, elongated and separated). We observed a correlation between the shape and the surface area of the medial epicondyle in adolescent throwing athletes, with separated medial epicondyles having the largest surface area. Further studies and follow-up are needed to determine the prognostic value and clinical significance of these morphological variations.

    Study done in Japan
    Matched MeSH terms: Athletes*
  10. Fulltext Rapid weight loss practices among elite combat sports athletes in Malaysia
    Ng, Qi Xiong, Choe, Yee Xian, Amutha Ramadas, Haemamalar Karppaya, Chai, Wen Jin
    Malays J Nutr, 2017;23(2):199-209.
    MyJurnal
    Introduction: This study aimed to (i) determine rapid weight loss (RWL) practices among Malaysian elite combat sports athletes and (ii) examine the relationship between the characteristics of athletes, self-reported history of weight loss, perceived influence on weight loss and RWL practices.

    Methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted at the Malaysian National Sports Institute among elite combat sports athletes (n=40) recruited via a convenience sampling method. The athletes completed a self-administered validated Rapid Weight Loss Questionnaire. Each response was provided a score and the total RWL score corresponded to the aggressiveness of weight management methods. Partial correlations were used to assess the relationships between total RWL score and independent variables.

    Results: The prevalence of RWL among the athletes was high (92.5%). Training with rubber or plastic suits (62.2%) and meal-skipping (27.0%) were the most common RWL techniques practised by the respondents. Aggressive weight-cutting as depicted by a higher total RWL score that correlated with most weight ever lost, duration taken to lose weight, influence of training colleagues and coaches, BMI, current weight and post-competition weight regain (all p
    Matched MeSH terms: Athletes
  11. Fulltext Identification of elite performance characteristics in a small sample of taekwondo athletes
    Norjali Wazir MRW, Van Hiel M, Mostaert M, Deconinck FJA, Pion J, Lenoir M
    PLoS One, 2019;14(5):e0217358.
    PMID: 31150424 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0217358
    Along with the increasing popularity of taekwondo, there is a need of evidence-based talent identification (TID) and development programs based upon profiles of future elite athletes. This study first aims to investigate the differences between elite and non-elite taekwondo athletes in anthropometry, physical performance and motor coordination. The second aim is to demonstrate the applicability of z-scores in TID research. A total of 98 Taekwondo athletes between 12 and 17 years old were tested using a generic test battery consisting of four anthropometrical (Height, Weight, Fat Percentage, BMI), six physical performance (Sit & Reach, Sprint 5m, Sprint 30m, Counter Movement Jump, Squat Jump, Endurance Shuttle Run) and three motor coordination tests (Moving Sideways, Jumping Sideways, Walking Backwards). Based on the individual success at international competition level, 18 were categorised as elite athletes and 80 were considered as non-elite. T-tests (step 1) on raw test scores and MANOVAs on z-scores (step 2) were conducted to examine differences between the elite and non-elite taekwondo athletes for anthropometry, physical performance and motor coordination tests. Finally, z-scores were reconverted to raw scores to demonstrate practical significance for coaches. Overall, elite taekwondo athletes score better compared to the non-elite group. The MANOVA analysis better scores for elites on fat percentage (-0.55 versus 0.12;p = 0.006), BMI (-0.37 versus 0,08;p = 0.067) sprint speed 30m (-0.48 versus 0.11;p = 0.029), counter movement jump (0.79 versus -0.18;p = 0.000), squat jump (0.42 versus -0.11;p = 0.041), moving sideways (0.79 versus -0.18;p = 0.000) and walking backwards (0.54 versus -0.12;p = 0.006). This study confirms our knowledge on physical profiles of elite taekwondo athletes and expands our knowledge to the domain of motor coordination. This study showed how the z-score method can be used to distinguish between elite and non-elite athletes, the former being low in number by definition.
    Matched MeSH terms: Athletes
  12. Fulltext Relationship between hydration status, hydration knowledge and fluid intake behaviour among school athletes of selected Perak sport schools
    Normah Jusoh
    Jurnal Sains Sukan & Pendidikan Jasmani, 2014;3(1):11-19.
    MyJurnal
    Maintaining proper hydration status is crucial for sports performance and general well- being. Available data show that despite good knowledge in hydration, some elite and collegiate athletes did not practice proper fluid intake to maintain hydration, thus they may have risk of dehydration. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the relationship between hydration status, knowledge and fluid habit among school athletes. This study utilized survey questionnaires to assess hydration knowledge and habit and laboratory equipment to measure hydration status. The findings in this study show that there was no significant correlation (P>0.05) observed among hydration status, hydration knowledge and fluid intake behaviour among the participants. Besides, there were no significant differences (P>0.05) in terms of hydration status, knowledge and fluid intake behaviour between males and female participants. In conclusion, this study provides some new insight with respect to hydration status and knowledge among school athletes.
    Matched MeSH terms: Athletes
  13. Fulltext Goal orientation among KARISMA 2018 athletes
    Nurasiken Hanafiah, Daniyal Donny Man, Nur Khairunisa Abu Talip, Suhardi Kram
    Jurnal Sains Sukan & Pendidikan Jasmani, 2020;9(2):10-16.
    MyJurnal
    Goal orientation is a part of the psychological factors that needed by athletes to achieve a better performance in a competition. The aim of this study is to investigate the difference of goal orientation between gender and type of sports among Karnival Sukan Mahasiswa UiTM (KARiSMA) Perak athletes. Task and ego sport questionnaire (TEOSQ) was used to examine the goal orientation among athletes. There were four hundred (n=400) participants for this study. The results show that there was no significant difference between task orientation and gender. However, there was a significant difference observed between genders of athletes in terms of ego orientation. Furthermore, there was a significant difference in goal orientation between types of sport. In conclusion, if the athletes were able to set the goals in task orientation, the athletes can achieve better in sport.
    Matched MeSH terms: Athletes
  14. Fulltext Expert validation of a questionnaire on nutritional knowledge and supplement habits among disabled athletes in Malaysia
    Nurul Athirah Mohd Azhari, Norazmir Md Nor, Haidzir Manaf
    Movement Health & Exercise, 2018;7(2):145-150.
    MyJurnal
    Disability sport is becoming more popular worldwide as shown by increased participation from athletes. The increase participation exerted pressure on the athletes to achieve better sports performance. One of the factors in enhancing sports performances is nutrition. A proper diet is needed for athletes, as it is an essential component in optimizing physical development and sports performance. Identifying the nutritional knowledge and supplement habits among disabled athletes will help maximize the benefits of nutrition. Despite the importance of nutrition, there is no validated questionnaire for identifying nutritional knowledge and supplement habits among disabled athletes in Malaysia. Thus, this study aims to develop and validate a questionnaire on nutritional knowledge and supplement habits among Malaysian disabled athletes and to examine the reliability of the questionnaire. This paper intends to discuss the validation of the developed questionnaire specifically on expert validation. The target population of this study is Malaysian disabled athletes. Firstly, the questionnaire is developed and adapted from previous literature on both nutritional knowledge and supplement habits for disabled athletes. Then, the developed questionnaire undergoes translation process before proceeding with validation and reliability process. Expert validation requires a panel of experts in sports nutrition, nutrition and dietitian fields. The questionnaire will be analyzed in terms of content validity ratio (CVR). The expected result of this study is a questionnaire validated by an expert panel on nutritional knowledge and supplement habits among Malaysian disabled athletes. In future research, the reliability of the questionnaire will be tested on 23 Malaysian disabled athletes, and their nutritional status will be identified. Hence, this study will help to promote the growth of disability sports in Malaysia and enhance the sports performance of disabled athletes in Malaysia through nutrition.
    Matched MeSH terms: Athletes
  15. Fulltext Anthropometric measures and birth date distribution of student athletes in selected Malaysian state sports schools
    Ong, Kuan Boon, Hishamuddin Ahmad, Sanmuganathan Jegathesan, Lee, Ai Choo
    Jurnal Sains Sukan & Pendidikan Jasmani, 2015;4(1):17-24.
    MyJurnal
    Anthropometric measurements are widely used to determine body composition, size and weight, and proportions of the human body, especially in children. Our aim was to identify common physical characteristics of student athletes in selected Malaysia states sports schools. The ensuing analysis aimed to provide these states sports school athletes with a competitive advantage. Participants (n=317) were from student-athletes, aged between 13-14y and 15-16y staying in their school’s dormitory. These student-athletes comprise of 181 males (13-14y, n=138; 15-16y, n=43) and 136 females (13-14y, n=84; 15-16y, n=52). All subjects were measured on 26 anthropometric dimensions using measurements of four skin folds, six direct lengths, seven segment girths, six segment breadths, plus body mass, stretch stature and sitting height. The results showed significantly differences (p
    Matched MeSH terms: Athletes
  16. Physiological characteristics of elite and sub-elite badminton players
    Ooi CH, Tan A, Ahmad A, Kwong KW, Sompong R, Ghazali KA, et al.
    J Sports Sci, 2009 Dec;27(14):1591-9.
    PMID: 19967588 DOI: 10.1080/02640410903352907
    The aims of this study were to establish the physical and physiological attributes of elite and sub-elite Malaysian male badminton players and to determine whether these attributes discriminate elite players from sub-elite players. Measurements and tests of basic anthropometry, explosive power, anaerobic recovery capacity, badminton-specific movement agility, maximum strength, and aerobic capacity were conducted on two occasions, separated by at least one day. The elite (n = 12) and sub-elite (n = 12) players' characteristics were, respectively: mean age 24.6 years (s = 3.7) and 20.5 years (s = 0.7); mass 73.2 kg (s = 7.6) and 62.7 kg (s = 4.2); stature 1.76 m (s = 0.07) and 1.71 m (s = 0.05); body fat 12.5% (s = 4.8) and 9.5% (s = 3.4); estimated VO(2max) 56.9 ml . kg(-1) . min(-1) (s = 3.7) and 59.5 ml . kg(-1) . min(-1) (s = 5.2). The elite players had greater maximum absolute strength in one-repetition maximum bench press (P = 0.015) compared with the sub-elite players. There were significant differences in instantaneous lower body power estimated from vertical jump height between the elite and sub-elite groups (P < 0.01). However, there was no significant difference between groups in shuttle run tests and on-court badminton-specific movement agility tests. Our results show that elite Malaysian male badminton players are taller, heavier, and stronger than their sub-elite counterparts. The test battery, however, did not allow us to discriminate between the elite and sub-elite players, suggesting that at the elite level tactical knowledge, technical skills, and psychological readiness could be of greater importance.
    Matched MeSH terms: Athletes*
  17. Penggunaan daya tindak negatif di kalangan atlet Malaysia
    Parnabas VA, Mahamood Y
    Jurnal Psikologi Malaysia, 2009;olume 23:69-78.
    The purpose of this study is to identify negative coping strategies among athletes of various levels of performance (national, state, district, university and school), ethnicity (Malay, Chinese, Indian and others) and gender. Participants in this study were 908 Malaysian athletes, of which 502 were males and 406 were females. They were selected by stratified random sampling and had completed the Negative Coping Strategies questionnaire. The results show that male, district-level athletes who were of Indian ethnicity were the highest users of negative coping strategies. The results also showed that negative coping strategies enhanced performance. Contrary to previous research, the uses of negative coping strategies in this study were found to enhance performance in sport. Implications of these findings are also discussed.
    Matched MeSH terms: Athletes
  18. Fulltext Relative age effect in U-16 Asian Championship Soccer Tournament
    Pathmanathan K. Suppiah, Jeffrey Low Fook Lee, Abdul Muiz Nor Azmi, Hasnol Noordin, Rabiu Muazu Musa
    Movement Health & Exercise, 2020;9(1):1-8.
    MyJurnal
    Athletes born at the beginning of the year may present advantages in terms of physical characteristics, motor ability or cognitive knowledge that could increase their chances for selection against their peers. This circumstance could lead to the over-representation of older athletes in an age-defined competition, a phenomenon commonly referred to as relative age effect (RAE). Although, a number of studies have demonstrated that RAE is apparent in youth soccer, such studies rarely investigate the performance advantage that likely exists across the birth month of the athletes. The current study aims to determine the presence of RAE in the under 16 Asian Football Confederation Championship (AFC); investigate the effect of RAE on the team qualification success; as well as ascertain the existence of RAE in choice of playing position amongst the soccer players. Data for the 2018 AFC under 16 qualifications matches were obtained from the AFC. A total of 719 players from 32 countries participated in the qualification competitions. Chi-square for goodness fit is used to determine the existence of the RAE across the players’ month of birth while logistic regression is applied to analyze the differences of the quartiles’ distribution with respect to the quartile, qualification status (qualifier or non-qualifier) as well as the playing position of the players. The results demonstrate the presence of RAE in the AFC under 16 soccer tournaments [χ2(4) = 21.53; p < 0.001] with the largest number of older players dominating the qualified team. Likewise, a substantial difference is observed with regards to the quartile and various playing positions of the players at p < 0.05.
    Matched MeSH terms: Athletes
  19. Fulltext Latent profiles of elite Malaysian athletes' use of psychological skills and techniques and relations with mental toughness
    Ponnusamy V, Lines RLJ, Zhang CQ, Gucciardi DF
    PeerJ, 2018;6:e4778.
    PMID: 29780672 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.4778
    Background: The majority of past work on athletes' use of psychological skills and techniques (PSTs) has adopted a variable-centered approach in which the statistical relations among study variables are averaged across a sample. However, variable-centered-analyses exclude the possibility that PSTs may be used in tandem or combined in different ways across practice and competition settings. With this empirical gap in mind, the purposes of this study were to identify the number and type of profiles of elite athletes' use of PSTs, and examine differences between these clusters in terms of their self-reported mental toughness.

    Methods: In this cross-sectional survey study, 285 Malaysian elite athletes (170 males, 115 females) aged 15-44 years (M = 18.89, SD = 4.49) completed measures of various PSTs and mental toughness. Latent profile analysis was employed to determine the type and number of profiles that best represent athletes' reports of their use of PSTs in practice and competition settings, and examine differences between these classes in terms of self-reported mental toughness.

    Results: Our results revealed three profiles (low, moderate, high use) in both practice and competition settings that were distinguished primarily according to quantitative differences in the absolute levels of reported use across most of the PSTs assessed in practice and competition settings, which in turn, were differentially related with mental toughness. Specifically, higher use of PSTs was associated with higher levels of mental toughness.

    Conclusion: This study provides one of the first analyses of the different configurations of athletes' use of PSTs that typify unique subgroups of performers. An important next step is to examine the longitudinal (in) stability of such classes and therefore provide insight into the temporal dynamics of different configurations of athletes' use of PSTs.

    Matched MeSH terms: Athletes
  20. Fulltext The effects of plyometric training on the muscle physical changes among long jumpers
    Prabhu Ragawan, Ruaibah Yazani Tengah
    Jurnal Sains Sukan & Pendidikan Jasmani, 2018;7(1):62-70.
    MyJurnal
    This study aim to examine the effectiveness of plyometric training on muscle physical changes. 24 long jumpers under 12 year old from Cameron Highland were involved in this study. 12 participants were in the control group and another 12 were assigned into treatment group. The training program was conducted twice a week for six weeks. Girth of thigh and calf muscles measurement were conducted during pre-test and post-test. The data were analyzed using descriptive analysis and two-way ANOVA test to determine the mean differences between groups, trial period and interaction of group and trial period. The findings showed that calf and thigh circumference show an improvement for both treatment and control group, in which the treatment group had gained significantly higher achievement. The two-way ANOVA test showed significant differences in enlargement of thigh muscle and calf muscle diameter between groups and trial period. As a conclusion, the plyometric exercises increased circumference of the thigh muscles and calf muscles among long jumpers. The implication of the study is that the proper plyometric training with an appropriate load for primary school athletes need to be implemented to achieve peak performance.
    Matched MeSH terms: Athletes
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