Relationships Between Strength, Sprint, and Jump Performance in Well-Trained Youth Soccer Players

Paul Comfort, Al Stewart, Laurence Bloom, Ben Clarkson
2014 Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research  
Research has demonstrated a clear relationship between absolute and relative strength and sprint and jump performance in adult athletes; however, this relationship in younger athletes has been less extensively studied. The aim of this study, therefore, was to determine the relationships between strength, sprint and jump performances in well trained youth soccer players. Thirty four young male soccer players (17.2 ± 0.6 years, body mass 72.62 ± 7.42 kg; height 179.27 ± 6.58 cm) performed a
more » ... ted maximal squat test, twenty metre sprints, squat jumps and countermovement jumps. Absolute strength showed the strongest correlations with 5m sprint times (r -0.596, p<0.001, power = 0.99), squat jump height (r 0.762, p<0.001, power = 1.00) and CMJ height (r 0.760, p<0.001, power = 1.00), whereas relative strength demonstrated the strongest correlation with 20m sprint times (r -0.672, p<0.001, power = 0.99). The results of this study illustrates the importance of developing high levels of lower body strength in order to enhance sprint and jump performance in youth soccer players, with stronger athletes demonstrating superior sprint and jump performances.
doi:10.1519/jsc.0b013e318291b8c7 pmid:23542878 fatcat:ya4axngmibghxnyw4l4n2x5awq