Correlation of body composition with speed and agility of children aged 9-10

Purpose: Physical growth of children is measured by changes in body size and/or body composition, as well as by changes in motor skills. Motor skills can be affected by many factors, such as genetic predisposition, body composition, socio-economic conditions, and the like. Accordingly, the aim of the research is to determine the correlation between body composition with speed and agility of children aged 9 to 10 years. Methods: The sample included 40 participants (29 boys and 11 girls, 9.47 ± 0.5 years). Body height (BH), body weight (BW), body mass index (BMI) and body fat (BF), and basal metabolism (BMR) were determined to assess body composition. The BOT-2 subtest was used to assess speed and agility, which includes: Shuttle Run (1SAA), Stepping Sideways over a Balance Beam (2SAA), One-Legged Stationary Hop (3SAA), One-Legged Side Hop (4SAA), Two-Legged Side Hop (5SAA), and Total Speed and Agility (TSAA). Results: The results of correlation statistics indicated the existence of negative correlations between: height and 3SAA (r=-.353, p=.026); weight and 3SAA (r=-.422, p=. 007); weight and TSAA (r=-.359, p=.023); BMI and 3SAA (r=-.342, p=. 031); BMI and TSAA (r=-.333, p=.036); BMR and 3SAA (r=-.369, p=. 019); BMR and TSAA (r=-.363, p=.021). Conclusion: Based on the results obtained in this study, it can be concluded that there is a correlation between body composition and speed and agility. In addition to body composition, a correlation was found between body height and performance of one-legged stationary hop, as well as between basal metabolism, the one-legged stationary hop test and the overall results achieved in motor skill tests.