Talent Detection in Taekwondo Practitioners.

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Abstract

An overview is presented of characteristics of young taekwondo athletes that are believed to

contribute to performance. Findings from the scientific literature were summarized to high-

light the current knowledge regarding physical and psychological components that are

deemed important to be successful in competition. To increase the chances of taekwondo

youngsters in becoming adult champions, optimal infrastructure, well-educated coaches,

qualified sport scientists, and informed governing bodies are needed.

Talent Detection • Willy Pieter

Talent Detectionin TaekwondoPractitionersby Willy Pieter, Ph.D.

IntroductionResearch has shown that five-year-old boys display about 20-40% of the

potential motor skills they will possess as adults. In girls of the same age, it is40-60% (Matsudo, 1996). In other words, girls are closer to their adult perform-ance at a younger age than boys. The search for sport talent may be consideredone of the most demanding challenges faced by national sport governing bodiesin many countries. For instance, are we going to focus on one- or multi-dimen-sional talents? On one- or multi-sport talents? How about talents in progress? Ifthey are good at age 10, will they be good at 14, 16, or even older?

From a scientific perspective, talent detection in combat sports is in itsinfancy. Research has been conducted on talents in wrestling (Trzaskoma-Bicsérdy et al., 2007), while in judo and karate specific tests were developed toassist in identifying promising young athletes (Lidor et al., 2005; Villani et al.,2005). For instance, Villani et al. (2005) revealed that in beginning (2.5 years ofexperience on average) and intermediate (5 years of experience) boys (11-13years) there was no difference in consistency of executing punches and kicks.The authors suggested that for purposes of talent identification and develop-ment, maybe the level of experience is not as important as the speed with whichtechniques are performed.

Research on young taekwondo athletes (cae/cwondo-in) is scarce. As inmany other sport scientific endeavors, it started with profiling of these partici-pants, from recreational to elite levels. Several research groups have investigat-ed young taekwondo athletes utilizing various scientific disciplines. Some usedthis approach with a view to improve performance, while others sought to iden-tify characteristics to be used to select potential champions at an early age.

Journal of Asian Martial Arts • Vol. 19 No 2010

Natural Versus Scientific Approach

Talent detection is the combination of talent identification and talentsearch. Talent identification is done by means of so-called talent characteristics.A talent characteristic is a condition or variable that typifies a person as a talent(Borms, 1996). Talent characteristics must meet three requirements: 1) theymust be stable over the period of prediction, 2) they must be measurable, and 3)they must be relevant to performance (Borms, 1996). Examples of some of thesecharacteristics based on what is currently known in taekwondo are given below.

In general, two methods are distinguished when identifying talents. Thenatural approach is exemplified by the coach who recruits athletes for his or herteam based on how fast or powerful techniques are performed, for instance. Thescientific approach, on the other hand, uses sport science and sport medicine testbatteries to screen athletes. These batteries are often meant to test general motorabilities, such as endurance or strength. More taekwondo-specific test batteries,especially those to be used in a laboratory setting, are limited or nonexistent. Forinstance, our team recently developed the precursor to a taekwondo-specificanaerobic endurance field test (Ortega et al., 2009), which can be used by any-body and is an applied test, as opposed to a laboratory test, which can only bedone by trained personnel. Continued research is needed to refine the test thatwe developed and to include other taekwondo-specific characteristics as wasdone in judo (Lidor et al, 2005).

Talent search is the use of appropriate methods within infrastructural andorganizational constraints to find individuals in a specified group displaying tal-ent characteristics. This search may be done at the grade-school level and some-times even earlier. For this to happen, national and international taekwondogoverning bodies could initiate the drive to unearth talents. It could also be doneon a smaller scale, for instance at taekwondo clubs and schools.

Examples of Talent Characteristics

An often used talent characteristic is height. Height is mostly geneticallydetermined and considered a stable characteristic, although adverse nutritionalconditions may lead to stunted growth. Australian sports scientists, for instance,use height to help them identify talent. They found that soccer players do notdiffer much from the general population in height; i.e., there is a large overlap inheight between soccer players and the general population. On the other hand,there is less of an overlap for discus throwers; i.e., the latter are taller and thereis a smaller distribution range among them compared to the general population(Norton et al, 1996). At the 2004 Olympic Games, the medalists in the tae-

1° Talent Detection • Willy Pieter

kwondo competition, when collapsed over weight division, were taller (about 3

to 4 cm) on average than the nonmedalists, although it was not statistically sig-

nificant. However, in practical terms it certainly was (Pieter, 2004).

Our team also tested general motor abilities in taekwondo children in

Malaysia, who were 11-14 years old. Some of the variables included aerobic fit-

ness (peak VO2), vertical jump (V jump), and push-ups. These children were

subsequently compared to their older colleagues competing at the 2004

Malaysian Games. One female taekwondo athlete showed the profile depicted in

Figure 1. She was 14 years old and had been practicing taekwondo for about two

years at the time of testing.

She performed slightly better in the push-ups than those competing in the

Malaysian Games in her weight division (18 years with more than 5 years of

experience). She did much better in the vertical jump but needs some work on

her aerobic fitness. Based on these and other tests, it is possible to select candi-

dates for further training.

Figure I : Z-profile of a Malaysian female club taekwondo athlete compared

to female counterparts competing at the 2004 Malaysian Games.

-3.50 -3.00 -2.50 -2.00 -1.50 -1.00 -0.50 0.00 0.50 1.00

The talent-identification process typically starts with screening of chil-

dren. General screening could be considered the "foundation" to a more specific

approach. Remedial action may be taken if one or more components of the

general assessment reveal potential problem areas that would inhibit the devel-

opment of those screened (Bloomfield et a l , 1994).

Journal of Asian Martial Arts • Vol. 19 No. 3 • 2010 11

Maturity

It is common knowledge that so-called early maturers are taller, heavier,and stronger than their normal or delayed-maturing counterparts during theearly to middle teenage period. Because of their initial biological advantage,early maturers often neglect skill development while growing up (Bloomfield etal., 1994). When their normal and delayed-maturing colleagues catch up, theyhold the advantage, for they are now as tall and strong but with better-developedskills. The normal and delayed-maturing children had more time to work ontheir skills to try to keep up with the early maturers as they grew older(Bloomfield et al., 1994).

One method of maturity assessment that was found to be suitable formass testing is the use of the so-called Tanner stages. This is usually done bytrained medical practitioners, such as physicians or nurses. However, ourresearch on American artistic gymnasts revealed that children were able toassess themselves under supervision (Broekhoff et al, 1995). Once an assess-ment of maturity has been made, the sport scientist and coach will be able tobetter plan the future of talented young taekwondo athletes.

Research showed maturity-related differences in biomotor abilities withmore mature girls (Tanner stages 111 and IV), ranging in age between 11 and14 years, scoring better in the standing broad jump, trunk forward flexion, andthe 20-meter dash than those in stage II of the same age group. However, girlsin stages II and III performed better in the Cooper's aerobic endurance testthan those in stage IV (Malina et al., 2004). Maturation stages assessed by thisnoninvasive method typically range from I-V, with stage V being the adultlevel (Malina et al., 2004).

Research on maturity in taekwondo is scarce. Our own research showedthat of the total junior female taekwondo athletes tested (14.99 years), only4% of girls were premenarcheal (12.71 years). Of the total boys investigated(14.69 years), 15% were prepubertal (12.74 years) (Pieter, Unpublished data).Bercades et al. (1995) reported 32% of boys to be prepubertal (13.26 years)with 19% of girls to be premenarcheal (12.46 years). Pieter (2001) revealed nodifference in maturity between boys with fewer than five years of taekwondoexperience (median for pubic hair development: stage IV) and those with fiveyears or more (median: stage IV). The same was true for the girls (median:stage IV for both groups).

Maturity is related to increased strength in boys and more fat in girls(Malina et al., 2004; Rowland, 2005). Since boys and girls of the same age maydiffer in maturity, competition in full-contact taekwondo may benefit from a

' ' Talent Detection • Willy Pieter

review of the current competition rules according to which young taekwondoathletes compete based on age groups.

Of particular interest to coaches, athletes, and parents is the rate ortempo at which children mature (Malina et al, 2004). Although everybodygoes through the same developmental stages on the way to adulthood, the rateat which this happens varies greatly. In fact, an early maturing 12-year-old girlmay be developmentally as old as the most delayed-maturing 18-year old(Malina et al., 2004). In other words, chronological and developmental ageshould not be confused. These biological differences have repercussions forcompetition, especially in a contact sport such as taekwondo.

A simple way for coaches and parents to monitor the growth of youngathletes is by taking their height every three months. For instance, heightcould be taken on the first day of March, June, September, and December.Ideally, monitoring of maturity should coincide with changes over time in thetraining program of the children. It should also concur with regular laboratoryor field testing (Bloomfield et al., 1994).

AU talent-identification programs are about unearthing those, who at anearly age, display the potential to become champions. This implies that knowl-edge of all aspects of taekwondo is imperative. It also implies that after the gen-eral screening, specific screening is in order, which should cover all compo-nents deemed important for taekwondo competition.

Physical Characteristics: PhysiqueCoaches, athletes, and the general public are aware that endurance (aer-

obic, anaerobic) and strength, to a varying degree, play important roles in tae-kwondo. Both laboratory and field tests have been developed to assess thesecharacteristics. Less well known are assessments of body build or somatotype,and yet physique has been shown to be a reliable performance predictor(Matsudo, 1996), depending on the level of competition. The higher the levelof competition, the more physique may play a decisive role in contributing toperformance.

Somatotype is a general physical dimension that will facilitate perform-ance but not in itself (Olds & Kang, 2000; Pieter et al., 2002). In other words,other characteristics have to be assessed as well before the decision can bemade that somebody is a talent. Somatotype is typically expressed in a three-digit format, representing, in order, relative roundness {endomorphy), relativemuscularity (mesomorphy), and relative linearity (ectomorphy). The numbers tospecify these body-type components may range from 0.5 to about 8 or 9, with

Journi.l of Asian Martial Arts • Vol. 19 No. 3 • 2010 13

a higher digit indicating more of a particular component present. Each sporthas specific requirements for the most suitable hody huild to enhance perform-ance at the highest level. For instance, to be successful in basketball requires adifferent body type than what is needed in artistic gymnastics.

During growth, somatotype changes are expected. For example, boys areknown to increase their muscularity as a result of a rise in their testosterone level(Malina et al., 2004; Rowland, 2005). Hence, any prediction about a boy's futuremesomorphy should probably be done when he has reached maturity stageIII-IV. Similarly, a girl's endomorphy component will also increase as she growsolder, which will have repercussions for her power/weight ratio (Rowland, 2005).

A comparison by way of a two-dimensional representation of the somato-types of American athletes assessed by our team is shown in Figure 2. Thephysique of the girls (15.1 years) was much closer to that of their adult counter-parts than that of the boys (15.2 years) in relation to their older colleagues(Pieter, 2001). As mentioned above, girls tend to be closer to the performancelevel of their adult counterparts at a younger age compared to boys. Successfulyoung athletes are suggested to have similar somatotypes to their successful oldercolleagues (Malina et al., 2004).

Figure 2: Somatotypes of young and adult taekwondo athletes.

Mesomorphy

14 Talent Detection • Willy Pieter

In Malaysian recreational adolescent taekwondo athletes, there was a 60%overlap between boys (18.63 years) and girls (18.10 years) in body build(Fadzliana et al., 2008), which is suggested to be related to their low level ofcompetition before physique may become one of the determining factors of per-formance. For instance, in American elite junior taekwondo athletes (boys:15.44 years; girls: 15.05 years), the overlap was 28% (Pieter, 2008). In younginternational elite wushu taolu (Chinese martial art forms) athletes competing atthe world championships (boys: 15.0 years; girls: 14.9 years), the overlap was26% (Pieter & Wong, 2009).

As alluded to above, the higher the level of competition, the more soma-totype may contribute to performance. However, Olds and Kang (2000) suggest-ed that experience may play a larger role in determining success in taekwondocompetition than physique-related correlates, which was confirmed by Pieter etal. (2002) in Filipino varsity taekwondo athletes (men: 20.10 years; women:19.52 years). As mentioned above, a multidimensional model including physio-logical, psychological, biomechanical, and nutritional components, in additionto any information on body build and composition, should be used to gain moreinsight in the exact performance correlates. Comparative somatotype data aredepicted in Table 1.

Table I Comparative somatotypes of junior male taekwondo athletes.

Country Age (years) Somatotype*

Pieter (2008)

Estevan et al. (2008)

Estevan et al. (2008)

Pieter (2001)

Pieter (1991)

USA

Spain

Spain

USA

USA

15.44

16

17

15.2

1489

International elite

International elite

National elite

National elite

International elite

2.19-3.96-3.83

2.07-6.09-3.38

1.98-6.14-3.0

2.3-4.2-3.5

2.02-3.96-4.26

Table 2 Comparative somatotypes of junior female taekwondo athletes.

Country Age (years) Somatotype*

Pieter (2008)

Pieter (2001)

Pieter (1991)

USA

USA

USA

15.05

15.0

not reported

International elite

National elite

International elite

2.88-3.24-3.41

3.2-3.4-3.1

2.78-3.26-3.83

*Somatotype: the numbers refer to endomorphy-mesomorphy-ectomorphy in that order.


Physical Characteristics: Body CompositionBody composition is usually expressed in a percent of total body weight

and a so-called lean body mass component, which is the nonfat part of the body.Another way of expressing body fat is using the sum of skinfolds. On this occa-sion, only percent relative total body fat is reported here (see below).

In some cases researchers also use a weight-for-height ratio, which indi-cates how much weight a group of athletes has in relation to their height.Although the so-called body mass index (BMl, kg/m') is often used, a more com-mon indicator for athletes is the reciprocal ponderal index (RPI, cm/kg""').When used in conjunction with either percent fat or sum of skinfolds, it is pos-sible to qualify the weight-for-height indicator.

Table 3 displays comparative RPI values of young taekwondo athletes.The lower the value, the more weight for height the athlete carries. It is expect-ed that active males and females, especially at the elite level, may not apprecia-bly differ in the amount of weight they carry for their height. This weight couldconsist of less fat and more muscle or lean mass, so weight-for-height ratiosshould be viewed in addition to information about the fat component. An indi-cation of the amount of fat in young taekwondo athletes is displayed in Table 4.For more details on how percent fat was calculated, please refer to the originalpublications.

Table 3 Comparative reciprocal ponderal index (cm.kg"'") data in young taekwondo athletes.

Country/Level/Age Girls Boys

Razakouetal. (2010)

Pieter and Falcó (2010)

Erie and Pieter (2009)

Suzana and Pieter (2009)

Aiwa and Pieter (2007b)

Pieter (2008)


Pieter (2001)

Pieter (1991)

Greek elite (15-16 years)

Spanish elite (17 years)

Malaysian junior developmental (13 years)

Malaysian recreational (16 years)

Malaysian recreational (17-18 years)

American elite (15 years)

Malaysian elite (15-17 years)

American elite (15 years)

American elite (15-16 years)

44.27

42.95

42.61

—

41.45

43.70

42.95

43.22

44.27

44.57

44.15

43.19

41.69

43.48

44.27

43.46

43.78

44.87


Table 4 Comparative percent fat in young taekwondo athletes.


Razakouetal. (2010) - Sf*

Razakouetal. (2010)- BIA*


Noorul et al. (2008)

Aiwa and Pieter (2007b)

Erie et al. (2007)

Aiwa and Pieter (2005)






Malaysian recreational ( 17 years)


17.31

16.92

29.87

32.46

32.21

31.13

29.34

9.71

9.04

18.58

21.40

19.88

9.58

15.23

SF = skinfolds

BIA = bio-electrical impedance analysis.

Physiological Requirements of a Taekwondo MatchLittle research is available on the physiological requirements of competi-

tion in young taekwondo athletes. Bercades, Hilbert, et al. (1994) reported anexercise heart rate of 184 beats per minute (bpm) in a combined group of youngAmerican male (16 years) and female (15 years) taekwondo athletes in a simu-lated competition of three two-minute rounds with 30-second breaks in between.This was significantly higher than their recovery heart rate 10 minutes postcom-petition: 109 bpm. Their exercise blood lactate (6.55 mmol.L') was also higherthan at 10 minutes postexercise (3.35 mmol.L') (Bercades, Ferrin et al., 1994).The relatively low blood lactate was suggested to be due to the athletes' beingtested after having participated in a training-camp workout, which was alsoreflected in their relatively high baseline heart rate of 83 bpm.

In contrast, Malaysian female adolescent taekwondo athletes (18 years)recorded a lactic acid baseline of 1.96 mmol.L' and an exercise lactate value of10.78 mmol.L ' following an actual competition at the 2004 Malaysian Cames.There was no difference between winners and losers after the first preliminaryround (winners: 1.85 mmol.L' before and 11.31 mmol.L' after the match; losers:2.04 mmol.L' and 10.51 mmol.L', respectively) (W. Pieter, unpublished data).At a national championship in Italy, junior taekwondo athletes (boys: 14 years;girls: 13 years) were reported to spend about 65.4% of a match competing atheart rates (HR) in excess of 90% of maximal HR (Chiodo et al., 2009).


Aerobic EnduranceAerobic endurance in the studies reviewed was assessed in the laboratory

or in the field. If it was tested in the laboratory, it is typically referred to as max-imum oxygen uptake (VO2 max). If a field test is used, it is called peak VO2 andis commonly lower than VO2 max. For instance, a combined group of Turkishmale and female elite junior taekwondo athletes (16 years) recorded a peak VO2of 43.59 ml.kg'.min' and a VO2 max of 51.79 ml.kg'.min' (Cetin et al., 2005).

The importance of aerobic fitness for taekwondo performance is related tofaster recovery by replenishing energy stores but also by aiding in the removal ofwaste products (McArdle et al., 2001 ). This will make it easier to compete in thefinal round of a match as well as over the course of a whole tournament. Table 5shows comparative data of peak aerobic endurance in ml.kg'.min ' in junior tae-kwondo athletes.

Table 5 Aerobic endurance (in ml.kg'.min ') in young taekwondo athletes.




Ene et al. (2007)

Aiwa and Pieter (2005)

Melhim (2001) (max VO2)

Malaysian junior developmental ( 13 years)




Jordanian recreational (13.8 years)

33.45

30.71

39.54

29.33

—

41.34

32.46

49.03

35.36

36.3

Anaerobic EnduranceThe first report on anaerobic endurance was on young American tae-

kwondo athletes (Pieter, 1991), followed by that of Bercades et al. (1995) onyoung American athletes as well. Anaerobic endurance refers to the kind ofendurance that requires maximal effort and that can only be sustained for a fewseconds, such as sprinting. In taekwondo competition, athletes typically willattack or counterattack for a few seconds, after which they return to a situationcharacterized by low activity. For instance, at a national competition in Brazil,taekwondo athletes were engaged in high-intensity techniques every 31 secondsinterspersed with low-intensity activity. The winners tended to perform morehigh-intensity activities (Matsushigue et al., 2009).


Table 6 shows the means for absolute peak and mean anaerobic power.Tible 7 displays anaerobic endurance relative to body weight. Power decline isalso included, which is expressed as a percentage of the lowest versus the high-est peak power. The lower the power decline is, the longer the athlete will beable to kick in a match without becoming fatigued, i.e., without accumulatinglactic acid, which impedes performance (Pieter & Heijmans, 1997).

Table 6 Absolute anaerobic pov/er in young taekwondo athletes.

Pieter (1991)

Girls (15.1 years)

Boys (16.5 years)

Bercades et al. (1995)

Girls (14.88 years)

Boys (15.32 years)

Melhim (2001)

Boys (13.8 years)

Pieter et al. (2010)

Girls (15.70 years)

Boys (15.43 years)

Peak (W)

435.5

675.8

462.06

642.19

422.0

521.27

748.30

Mean (W)

340.0

526.9

337.37

460.89

235.6

262.03

373.29

Decline (%)

40.0

42.6

43.90

47.03

—

135.22

121.60

Table 7 Anaerobic power relative to body weight ¡n young taekwondo athletes.

Peak (W.kg ') Mean (W.kg ') Decline (%)

Pieter (1991)

Girls (15.1 years)

Boys (16.5 years)

Bercades et al. (1995)

Girls (14.88 years)

Boys (15.32 years)

Melhim (2001)Boys (13.8 years)

Pieter et al. (2010)

Girls (15.70 years)

Boys (15.43 years)

8.410.7

8.89

11.24

8.1

521.27

748.30

6.6

8.4

6.53

8.04

4.5

262.03

373.29

—

0.85

0.87

—

—


Leg StrengthSimilar to other characteris-

tics, there is a lack of information onleg strength in young taekwondoathletes. Isokinetic strength (peaktorque) in young American high-performance taekwondo athletesshowed the boys (14.51 years) toscore higher than the girls (14.54

years) (48.69 vs. 37.32 Nm) when collapsed over extension and flexion of theleg at the knee joint. All girls except for one had entered puberty and thereforecarried more fat, so it was decided to express isokinetic strength relative to leanbody mass (LBM). However, the difference persisted: 1.05 Nm/kg LBM vs. 0.91Nm/kg LBM (Pieter & Bercades, 2005).

In recreationally active Malaysian taekwondo athletes, Aiwa and Pieter(2007a) revealed the boys to be stronger than the girls in absolute terms whencollapsed over angular velocity and movement (extension and flexion) of theleg: 116.05 Nm vs. 88.94 Nm. The difference became smaller when peak torquewas expressed in relation to height but still persisted: 41.54 vs. 35.87 Nm/m'.The authors also investigated the hamstrings-to-quadriceps (H/Q) ratio andfound no differences between boys and girls or between angular velocities(120^sec' and 300".sec') and movement of the leg (extension and flexion).

The hamstrings-to-quadriceps (H/Q) ratio is a measure of muscle strengthbalance. It is suggested that when kicking in the air, it would be advisable tohave as high a ratio as possible to help prevent potential injuries to the ham-strings, as well as to allow the quadriceps to extend the leg at the knee joint foras long as possible before the hamstrings start contracting to prevent hyperexten-sion of the knee. This would result in a more powerful kick (e.g., Pieter & Taaffe,1990; Pieter et al., 1989).

Pieter and Bercades (2009) showed that despite measurement limitations(isokinetic machine versus real-life kicking), there was a relationship betweenisokinetic hip flexion strength at 240".s ' and at 3OO'.s ', as well as force of theroundhouse kick in highly competitive 15-year-old boys but not in girls of thesame age. Nevertheless, the authors suggested working on core stability toenhance kicking force.

Explosive Leg PowerExplosive leg power is suggested to be related to taekwondo perform-


anee. For instance, Yiao et al. (2004) revealed successful female taekwondoathletes (18.77 years) to jump higher than their less-successful counterparts:39.10 vs. 35.13 cm. However, this relationship was not found in the boys(19.18 years). Table 8 shows comparative data for explosive leg power in youngtaekwondo athletes.

Table 8 Explosive leg power in young taekwondo athletes.

Study


Zar(2009)


Erie et al. (2007)


Cou ntry / Level /Age


Iranian elite (16 years)



Malaysian elite (15-17 years)

Psychological Profile

There is a tremendous lack of research on the Dsvcholoeic

Girls

35.61

—

34.04

26.0

36.11

Boys

41.95

53

52.07

35.6

56.14

al correlares of

performance in young taekwondo athletes. Using the Brunei Mood Scale(BRUMS) (Terry et al., 1999), Pieter et al. (2006) studied the prematch moodprofile of beginning young male (15.15 years) and female (13.99 years) Filipinotaekwondo athletes competing in the National Age Group Championship. Theboy winners had more general taekwondo (1.58 vs. 1.30 years) as well as compe-tition-specific experience (1.08 vs. 0.80 years) than their less-successful col-leagues. When controlled for both general and competition-specific experience,the winning boys scored higher on anger: 3.43 vs. 2.43. General taekwondoexperience and anger predicted 55.6% of the winners and 64.9% of the losers.

In the girls, the winners also had more taekwondo (1.58 years vs. 1.17years) and competition experience (1.10 vs. 0.66 years). The winners scored high-er on tension (7.00 vs. 5.48) as well as anger (3.50 vs. 2.34). Competition expe-rience and anger distinguished the winners from the losers: together they predict-ed 60.0% of the winners and 78.7% of the losers. Experience is hypothesized toplay a role in the way successful and less-successful taekwondo athletes perceivetheir opponents. It may be that less-experienced taekwondo athletes perceivetheir opponents as more difficult to beat (Coker & Mickle, 2000). It is suggestedthat heightened anger in young taekwondo athletes may have a positive effect onperformance, as was also found in adolescent (19 years) (Wong et al., 2006) andadult karate practitioners (McGowan et al., 1992; Terry & Slade, 1995).

Journal of Asian Martial Arts • Vol. 19 No 2010 21

Ampongan and Pieter (2004) sought to determine the effect of depressionon taekwondo performance in child taekwondo athletes (13 years) and its influ-ence on other mood states. Since only 3 out of 23 boys and 2 out of 22 girls couldbe categorized in the nondepressed mood group, it was decided to continue theanalysis on the depressed group only. There was a high positive correlationbetween depression and fatigue as well as depression and confusion in the win-ning boys. A positive relationship was found between depression and tension,while that between depression and vigor in the losers was negative: the higherthe depression, the lower the vigor and vice versa. In the girls, there was an asso-ciation between depression and tension in the winners. In the losers, there wasa correlation between depression and tension, as well as between depression andconfusion.

In the boys, 70.0% were correctly classified as winners or losers, but thiswas not statistically significant. In the girls, 65.0% were correctly classified, but


this was also not statistically significant. Nevertheless, it is of concern that atsuch a young age, taekwondo athletes were found to be in a state of depressedmood, regardless of performance score. However, it is suggested that Asian com-bat-sport athletes are more open about their feelings than their counterparts inthe West (Wong et al., 2006). Coaches are advised to monitor young taekwon-do athletes for signs of potential depressed mood to help avoid early dropout fromthe sport (Ampongan & Pieter, 2004).

In girl taekwondo athletes (18.60 years), the precompetition depressed-mood group scored higher on tension (5.29 vs. 3.26), fatigue (2.67 vs. 0.96), andconfusion (2.88 vs. 1.17) at the 2004 Malaysian Games (Wong et al., 2005). Thewinners in the nondepressed mood group scored higher on vigor (11.67) thantheir losing colleagues (8.73). They also displayed more vigor than the winners(8.95) and losers (8.85) in the depressed group. In the boys (19.06 years), thedepressed group scored higher on tension (4.44 vs. 2.32), fatigue (2.53 vs. 1.00),and confusion (2.73 vs. 1.74) (Wong et al., 2005).

Stress under competition conditions was also investigated by Chiodo et al.(2009). The authors studied young male (14 years) and female (13 years) taek-wondo athletes who competed in the qualifying rounds of a youth event in Italy.The combined sample of boys and girls scored higher on anger and depressionbut lower on vigor after the match. These psychological changes were not relat-ed to any hormonal fluctuations.

Technique Analysis

Several studies have reported various aspects of kicking techniques inyoung taekwondo athletes. For instance, Tsai et al. (2004) reported reaction andmovement times as well as movement velocity of the axe kick in male andfemale high-school students (17 years). There was no statistical difference inreaction (0.523 vs. 0.493 second) and movement times (0.367 vs. 0.392 second)between boys and girls, respectively, but the former kicked faster (5.30 vs. 4.85m/second).

Vieten et al. (2007) have conducted the most detailed study to date onreaction time to a visual stimulus (light) in taekwondo athletes. The authorsinvestigated junior and senior taekwondo athletes from different skill levels andreported female national-team members under 18 years to have a foot-reactiontime of 0.37 second compared to that of their older female national-team col-leagues (^18 years) with 0.35 second, while recreational female taekwondo ath-letes (<18 years) recorded a foot-reaction time of 0.36 second. In the males,recreational taekwondo athletes younger than 18 years had a foot-reaction time


of 0.37 second, while those of the national team (>18 years) recorded a time of0.31 second. American junior taekwondo athletes recorded a foot-reaction timeto a visual stimulus of 0.490 second (girls, 15.44 years) and 0.427 second (hoys,14.46 years) when performing the roundhouse kick (Pieter & Bercades, 2007).

Velocity and force in American junior taekwondo athletes (males: 15.44years; females: 14.93 years) were investigated by Pieter (2007). The authorassessed velocity and force of the roundhouse {tollyo cKagi) and spinning backkicks (twit ch'a^). Collapsed over side of the body (left and right) and tech-nique (roundhouse and spinning back kicks), the boys (10.88 m/s) were fasterthan the girls (8.59 m/s). Collapsed over gender and side of the body, theroundhouse kick (12.46 m/s) was faster than the spinning back kick (7.29 m/s).The boys (98.53 N) generated more force than the girls (68.98 N), and thespinning back kick (92.73 N) was more forceful than the roundhouse kick(80.22 N). Even when force was expressed in terms of lean body mass, the boysstill kicked more forcefully.

What's Next?To get the most out of a talent-detection system, it is imperative to have

at least a national database of reference values to evaluate those who have beenassessed. Data on both the general population in the targeted age ranges in tae-kwondo are a must. This will take years to build up, so it might not be possibleto see immediate results of one's talent-detection efforts. It might be good tokeep in mind that it takes about 200,000 children to yield about 20 future inter-national champions (Matsudo, 1996).

Talent detection is only part of the picture. Once talents have beenunearthed, they need to be guided and developed. Talent development and guid-ance are important parts of well-conceptualized taekwondo programs and poli-cies. Optimal infrastructure, well-educated coaches, qualified sport scientists,and informed governing bodies all have their roles to play in these endeavors.

24 Tilent Detection • Willy Pieter

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