Dr.Hab., Professor V.L. Botyaev¹
Postgraduate student S.V. Botyaev²
Associate Professor V.K. Tulaev²
PhD, Associate Professor V.V. Apokin³
PhD, Associate Professor V.Yu. Losev^3
1Surgut State Pedagogical University, Surgut
²North Kazakhstan State University named after M. Kozybaev, Petropavlovsk, Kazakhstan
³Surgut State University, Surgut

Keywords: sports selection, coordination qualities, diagnostics, tests, technical fitness, physical fitness.

Background. Modern sports with their high performance standards, tight competitive schedules and highest stressors in the training and competitive processes urge coaches and research community give a special priority to the sport selection. More often than not coaches prioritize the beginners’ sport-specific gifts and qualities, which they tend to interpret [6] as the special combinations of inborn sporting abilities and natural skills. We believe that one of the main reasons for the recent failures of the national sports elite in a few competitions, doping issues and other negative trends is the still inefficient and non-standardized sport selection system. Closures of the sports schools associated with the invasion of commercial physical education and sport services in the national physical education and sport system only complicate the selection traditions and systems geared to find the most talented athletes with the highest resources for competitive accomplishments on the global sport arenas.

We feel, therefore, that it is a high time to develop and implement a well-designed and theoretically grounded sport selection system customizable to the actual institutional, scientific and socio-economic situation in the country [2, 4, 6]. Sport selection may be defined as the harmonized mix of institutional and practical actions with the relevant pedagogical, psychological and biomedical test methods to rate the children's inborn sport-specific gifts and resources for certain sport disciplines [3], with a special emphasis on the tests harmonizing aspect that, as we believe [1, 3], should secure the young prospect’s resource being rated on a most objective and fair basis.

The new sport selection of that kind requires, first of all, some traditional sport selection policies, theories and practices being revised [5, 6] to ensure the coordination qualities being thoroughly rated and analyzed in quantitative and qualitative terms with the relevant psycho-physiological function tests to probe the sensorimotor, proprioreceptive, sensory-perceptual, intellectual, mnemonic and other abilities collectively referred to as the coordination qualities.

Objective of the study was to develop, on a sound theoretical basis, and test benefits of a new coordination qualities rating model for objective sport selections of young prospects.

Methods and structure of the study. We tested and analyzed the technical fitness, physical fitness and coordination qualities in an artistic gymnastic sample (n=23) to find the test rates being correlated at low and moderate levels (see Table 1) – despite the fact that the sport-specific technical fitness / physical fitness standards and requirements to coordination qualities are very high.

Table 1. Correlations of the technical fitness and coordination qualities test rates in the junior artistic gymnasts’ sample (n-23)

Note: *statistically significant correlations

The coordination qualities were rated by a test battery (n=16) proved beneficial in our prior studies as verified by the reliability, stability and predictability ratios; with every individual coordination quality rated by a set of standard homogeneous tests as follows.

Response qualities were rated by the Response to Moving Object (RMO) test.

Movement harmonizing qualities were rated by (1) Gymnastic stick overstepping test; (2) Reverse plank walking test; and (3) Standing front and back jumps tests.

Kinesthetic qualities were tested by (1) Multidimensional angle reproduction test using a kinematometer (asymmetric test) system; (2) 50% maximal deadweight reproduction test.

Orienteering qualities were rated by (1) Target twist vault test; (2) Segment length reproduction test; and (3) Blind target vault test.

Statokinetic qualities were rated by (1) Balance platform rotation with back-to-start test; (2) Maximal-twist vault test; and (3) Angular velocity rating test.

Movement pacing/ tempo-and-rhythm control qualities were rated by: (1) Jump pacing/ frequency stepping test; and (2) Jump pace reproduction test.

And the body balancing/ equilibrium qualities were tested by (3) three 360° turns on the balance beam test; and (2) Romberg test on the balance beam.

Based on the above test rates, the sample was grouped into the following four sport fitness groups: (1) Highly promising athletes (n=4); (2) Promising athletes (n=7); (3) Provisionally promising athletes (n=6); and (4) Unpromising athletes (n=6).

The test data were analyzed and ranked as provided by the prospective-prognostic coordination qualities test model and standards of our own design. On the whole, the sample was tested fairly high on the physical fitness test scales. The sample grouping by the tested gifts/ promise rates found neither athlete being unfit for the sport, with 4, 9 and 8 athletes qualified with the provisionally promising, promising and highly promising/ fit groups, respectively. It should be mentioned that every subject had a prior training at the health groups and was selected for further artistic gymnastics excellence trainings.

Results and discussion. The new coordination qualities test model testing experiment took one year followed by the qualification technical fitness and physical fitness tests. The technical fitness in this particular case was tested by an expert team of top-professional coaches and referees (n=5), with every test exercise scored on a 10-point scale followed by calculations of the concordance ratios: see Table 2.

Table 2. Post-experimental technical fitness test rates of the sample

The experimental test data and analyses showed Group1 and 2 being ahead in the gymnastics techniques and skill sets. The intergroup differences were testes statistically insignificant only in the vault tests, albeit the experts rated notably higher the Group 2 skills and muscular coordination qualities.

Conclusion. The new coordination qualities rating model for objective sport selections of young prospects was tested beneificial, with the extensive movement coordination qualities tests found successful as they help put the young prospects’ gifts and resource ratings and selections on a more objective and fair basis. The model testing experiment confirmed the prior assumption that the coordination qualities should be in top priority in the young gymnasts’ selection systems.

References

1. Antipov A.V. Comprehensive selection system applied in every training stage by football academies. Fizicheskaya kultura: vospitanie, obrazovanie, trenirovka. 2019. no, 5. pp. 20-22
2. Botyaev V.L. Selection and prediction in sport, place of coordination abilities in sports selection system. Surgut: SurSPU publ., 2016. 301 p.
3. Volkov, V.M., Filin V.P. Sports selection. M.: Fizkultura i sport publ., 1983. 175 p.
4. Guba V.P. Theory and practice of sports selection and early orientation in sports. M.: Sovetskiy sport publ., 2008. 302 p.
5. Issurin V.B., Lyakh V.I. Coordinating abilities of athletes. M.: Sport publ., 2019. 208 p.
6. Issurin V.B. Sports talent: forecast and implementation. M.: Sport publ., 2017. 364 p.

Corresponding author: vl_bot53@mail.ru

Abstract

Objective of the study was to develop, on a sound theoretical basis, and test benefits of a new coordination qualities rating model for objective sport selections of young prospects.

Methods and structure of the study. The subjects’ overall coordination fitness level was determined by means of the block of tests (n-16), piloted in our previous studies, where they were proved highly reliable, stabile and prognostic. Each particular ability was rated in a block of homogeneous tasks.

The testing enabled to divide (conditionally) all participants of the experiment into 4 fitness groups: promising athletes - 4 young female gymnasts; qualified athletes with good potential - 7 female gymnasts; conditionally suitable athletes, with questionable potential – 6 female gymnasts; unsuitable athletes – those with no potential - 6 female gymnasts.

The test results were evaluated according to the standards developed for prospective-prognostic models of coordination fitness.

Results and conclusions. The analysis of the experimental data showed that the female athletes assigned to the 1st and 2nd groups mastered the technical elements of the gymnastic exercises much more successfully. On one gymnastic apparatus only, horse vault, the level of the exercise execution mastery was characterized by the statistically unverified differences, while the experts noted that the female gymnasts of the 1st group, performing jumps, had demonstrated a more promising technique based on the fine intermuscular coordination.

The new coordination qualities rating model for objective sport selections of young prospects was tested beneificial, with the extensive movement coordination qualities tests found successful as they help put the young prospects’ gifts and resource ratings and selections on a more objective and fair basis. The model testing experiment confirmed the prior assumption that the coordination qualities should be in top priority in the young gymnasts’ selection systems.