Physical fitness of children and adolescents practicing Soccer at a technical school in Mossoró (RN), Brazil.

Abstract

Assessing the motor performance of children and adolescents who practice soccer provides relevant information for monitoring physical and functional development, contributing to the planning of training programs that are more appropriate for the sport. This study aimed to evaluate the physical fitness of children and adolescents participating in a soccer training school in the municipality of Mossoró, Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil, using the tests proposed by the Projeto Esporte Brasil (PROESP-Br). This was a cross-sectional, descriptive, and observational study conducted between April and June 2022. A total of 33 children and adolescents of both sexes, aged between 8 and 17 years, participated in the study. The variables assessed were flexibility, agility, lower-limb power, and upper-limb power. The sample consisted predominantly of males (88%; n = 29), while females represented 12% (n = 4). Female participants showed higher mean flexibility values (62.25 cm vs. 51.06 cm) and longer agility test times (8.75 s vs. 8.41 s), indicating lower performance in this variable compared with males. A trend toward increased flexibility and greater lower- and upper-limb power was observed with advancing age. Regarding agility, a reduction in completion time was observed as age increased, indicating improved motor performance. According to the PROESP-Br classification criteria, participants achieved the best results in flexibility, with a predominance of the “very good” category (63.63%). In contrast, a high frequency of the “poor” classification was observed for upper-limb power (100%) and agility (100%). It can be concluded that the participants demonstrated satisfactory flexibility performance; however, lower results were observed in variables related to muscular power and agility, highlighting the importance of implementing training strategies specifically aimed at improving these physical capacities.