RT Journal Article
T1 Body composition and physical performance in Under-17 and Under-19 rugby players: Differences and associations among forwards and backs
T2 Composición corporal y rendimiento físico en jugadores de rugby Sub-17 y Sub-19: Diferencias y asociaciones entre delanteros y backs
A1 Zabaloy, Santiago
A1 Gálvez González, Javier
A1 Alcaraz, Pedro E.
A1 Perira, Lucas A.
A1 Freitas, Tomas T.
A1 Loturco, Irineu
K1 Physical qualities
K1 Resistance training
K1 Team sports
K1 Youth athletes
AB This study aimed to compare body composition and physical performance between U-17 and U-19 rugby players (forwards and backs), and examine the correlations among body composition, relative strength, jump, and sprint performance in both playing positions. Fifty-two male adolescent rugby players (mean ± SD: age, U-17: 16.2 ± 0.6 and U-19: 18.09 ± 0.9 years) participated in the study. Players performed anthropometric, body-composition (∑3 skinfolds [SF], body fat [BF] and lean mass [LM]), vertical jump, 30-m sprint, and squat one-repetition maximum (1RM-SQ) tests. Significant differences were observed for body mass (BM) and body composition variables among playing positions for both categories (P: 0.05 to < 0.001; ES > 0.72). U-17 forwards showed significantly different performance across all variables when compared to U-19 backs (P: 0.05 to < 0.001; ES > 1.08). Likewise, U-17 forwards showed lower relative strength (P: 0.05–0.095; ES > 1.66) and higher 30-m sprint times (P < 0.024; ES > 0.57) when compared to U-19 forwards and U-17 backs. Overall, for the backs, BM and LM were significantly associated with all performance variables (r: −0.72 to 0.50; P < 0.05). Conversely, for the forwards, BF and SF were significantly correlated with vertical jump height and sprint times (r: −0.62 to 0.52; P < 0.05). Clear differences exist between backs and forwards irrespective of the age category, whilst no differences were observed between U-17 and U-19 backs. The present results suggest that practitioners should monitor different body-composition variables due to the magnitude of associations observed with sprinting and jumping abilities.
PB Cairn.Info
YR 2023
FD 2023
LK https://hdl.handle.net/10433/22557
UL https://hdl.handle.net/10433/22557
LA en
NO Zabaloy, S., González, J. G., Alcaraz, P. E., Pereira, L. A., Freitas, T. T., & Loturco, I. (2023). Body composition and physical performance in under-17 and under-19 rugby players: differences and associations among forwards and backs. Movement & Sport Sciences-Science & Motricité, 121(3), 73-83.
NO Rugby
NO Departamento de Deporte e Informática. Universidad Pablo de Olavide.
DS RIO
RD May 22, 2026