Renaat Philippaerts

Objectives To investigate possible persistent performance deficits after severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in elite athletes. Methods A prospective cohort study in three Belgian professional male football teams was performed during the 2020 − 2021 season. Participants were submitted to strength, jump, and sprin...

Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate the association between SARS-CoV-2 infection and muscle strain injury in elite athletes. Methods: A prospective cohort study in three Belgian professional male football teams was performed during the first half of the 2020-2021 season (June 2020-January 2021). Injury data were collected using...

Background COVID-19 substantially impacts cardiorespiratory functioning, potentially affecting physical performance of elite athletes. Objective To investigate the association between COVID-19 and physical performance in elite male football players. Design A prospective cohort study during the first half of the 2020–2021 season. Setting Belgian...

Background Because of the high injury rate currently seen in soccer players and the exceptional pandemic circumstances, the question arises to what extent this reported increase in injury incidence is associated with COVID-19. Objectives The aim of this study was to investigate the association between COVID-19 and muscle strain injury occurrence i...

The purpose of the study was to model the longitudinal development of knee extension (KE) and flexion (KF) strength in adolescent soccer players. A mixed-longitudinal sample composed of 67 soccer players aged 11.0–13.9 years at baseline was followed on three-to-five occasions over 5 years. Stature, body mass and several skinfold thicknesses were me...

This study aimed to examine longitudinal changes in isometric strength of the knee extensors (ImKE) and knee flexors (ImKF) at 30° and 60°. The sample was composed of 67 players aged 11.0–13.9 years at baseline over five years. Stature, body mass, skinfolds, and isometric strength (ImKE30°, ImKF30°, ImKE60° and ImKF60°) were measured. Fat mass and...

Background: The Tanner-Whitehouse radius-ulna-short bone protocol (TW2 RUS) for the assessment of skeletal age (SA) is widely used to estimate the biological (skeletal) maturity status of children and adolescents. The scale for converting TW RUS ratings to an SA has been revised (TW3 RUS) and has implications for studies of youth athletes in age-g...

An Online First version of this article was made available online at https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs40279-017-0799-7 on 29 October 2017. Errors were subsequently identified in the article, and the following corrections should be noted.

Motor coordination and physical fitness are multidimensional concepts which cannot be reduced to a single variable. This study evaluated multivariate relationships among morphology, physical fitness and motor coordination in 74 pre-pubertal girls 8.0-8.9 years of age. Data included body dimensions, eight fitness items and four motor coordination ta...

Background: Our aim was to investigate the association between different components of physical activity (PA) and health-related fitness in 10-to 14-year-old children. Methods: 241 children were recruited from 15 primary and 15 secondary schools. PA was assessed using the SenseWear Mini and an electronic diary. Health-related fitness was assesse...

An important but often ignored aspect of physical activity (PA) and sedentary behavior (SB) is the chronological succession of activities, or temporal pattern. The main purposes of this study were (1) to investigate when certain types of PA and SB compete against each other during the course of the day and (2) compare intensity- and domain-specific...

Objectives: We investigated the evolution and stability of anthropometrical characteristics and soccer-specific endurance of 42 high-level, pubertal soccer players with high, average and low yo-yo intermittent recovery test level 1 (YYIR1) baseline performances over two and four years. Methods: The rates of improvement were calculated for each perf...

The aim of this study was to investigate to what extent 9 to 11 year old children participating in a specific sport already exhibit a specific anthropometric, physical fitness and motor coordination profile, in line with the requirements of that particular sport. In addition, the profiles in children with a different training volume were compared a...

The aim of the this study was to investigate the development of explosive leg power by using 2 similar jumping protocols (countermovement jump and standing broad jump) in 555 Belgian, high-level young soccer players, aged between 7 and 20 years. The total sample was divided into 3 longitudinal samples related to growth and maturation (pre-teenchild...

to investigate levels of physical activity (PA) and sedentary behavior (SB) in 10-14 year-olds and to determine PA differences between week-weekend days, genders and school stages. 241 children were recruited from 15 primary and 15 secondary schools. PA was assessed for 7 days using the SenseWear Mini Armband and an electronic diary. Week-weekend a...

Although analysing software for eye-tracking data has significantly improved in the past decades, the analysis of gaze behaviour recorded with head-mounted devices is still challenging and time-consuming. Therefore, new methods have to be tested to reduce the analysis workload while maintaining accuracy and reliability. In this article, dwell time...

The goal of this manuscript was twofold and a two-study approach was conducted. The first study aimed to expose the anthropometrical, physical performance and motor coordination characteristics that influence drop out from a high-level soccer training program in players aged 8-16 years. The mixed-longitudinal sample included 388 Belgian youth socce...

It was hypothesized that differences in anthropometry, physical performance and motor coordination would be found between Belgian elite and sub-elite level female volleyball players using a retrospective analysis of test results gathered over a five-year period. The test sample in this study consisted of 21 young female volleyball players (15.3 ± 1...

Purpose: The aim of the present study was to model developmental changes in explosive power based on the contribution of chronological age, anthropometrical characteristics, motor coordination parameters, and flexibility. Methods: Two different longitudinal, multilevel models were obtained to predict countermovement jump (CMJ) and standing broad...

Abstract The aim of the present study was to evaluate the Flemish Sports Compass (FSC), a non-sport-specific generic testing battery. It was hypothesised that a set of 22 tests would have sufficient discriminant power to allocate athletes to their own sport based on a unique combination of test scores. First, discriminant analyses were applied to t...

Although it is generally accepted that visual information guides steering, it is still unclear whether a curvature matching strategy or a ‘look where you are going’ strategy is used while steering through a curved road. The current experiment investigated to what extent the existing models for curve driving also apply to cycling around a curve, and...

The present study aimed to investigate positional differences in 744 high-level soccer players, aged 8 to 18 years. Players were assigned to six age groups (U9–U19) and divided into four playing positions (goalkeeper (GK), defender (DEF), midfielder (MF) and attacker (ATT)). MANOVA and effect sizes were used to examine anthropometrical and function...

The aim of the study was to investigate test reliability of the Yo-Yo intermittent recovery test level 1 (YYIR1) in 36 high-level youth soccer players, aged between 13 and 18 years. Players were divided into three age groups (U15, U17 and U19) and completed three YYIR1 in three consecutive weeks. Pairwise comparisons were used to investigate test r...

Objective: This longitudinal study investigated the interrelationship between children's weight status and level of gross motor coordination over time, taking baseline physical activity (PA) into account as a possible mediator. Methods: Baseline measurements were collected in 2517 children (5-13 years, 52.8% boys), including (1) body height and...

The present study aimed to model the development of soccer-specific aerobic performance, assessed by the Yo-Yo IR1 in 162 elite pubertal soccer players, aged 11 to 14 years at the baseline. Longitudinal multilevel modelling analyses comprised predictors related to growth (chronological age, body size (stature and weight) and composition (fat mass,...

This study compared visual search strategies in adult female volleyball players of three levels. Video clips of the attack of the opponent team were presented on a large screen and participants reacted to the final pass before the spike. Reaction time, response accuracy and eye movement patterns were measured. Elite players had the highest response...

Abstract The present study investigated the test-retest reliability from the Yo-Yo IR1 (distance and heart rate responses), and the ability of the Yo-Yo IR1 to differentiate between elite and non-elite youth soccer players. A total of 228 youth soccer players (11-17 years) participated: 78 non-elite players to examine the test-retest reliability wi...

The goal of this study was to investigate differences in physical fitness and sports participation over two years in children with relatively high, average and low motor competence. Physical fitness and gross motor coordination of 501 children between 6-10 years were measured at baseline and baseline+2 years. The sample compromised 2 age cohorts: 6...

Being relatively older and having an advanced biological maturation status have been associated with increased likelihood of selection in young elite soccer players. The aims of the study were to investigate the presence of a relative age effect (RAE) and the influence of birth quarter on anthropometry, biological maturity and anaerobic parameters...

Abstract It was the goal of this cross-sectional study to examine differences in maturity, anthropometry and physical performance between youth handball players across different playing positions (i.e. goalkeeper, back, pivot and wing). Multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA), accounting for biological maturation, was used to assess positiona...

Background & aims: This study examined the independent and joint associations of overall, intensity-specific and domain-specific physical activity and sedentary behavior with bioelectrical impedance-determined percent body fat. Methods: Physical activity was measured in 442 Flemish adults (41.4 ± 9.8 years) using the SenseWear Armband and an ele...

Background In the past decades, several public health guidelines concerning physical activity have been published. This study evaluated compliance with various physical activity guidelines and examined the associations between meeting the guidelines and socio-demographic characteristics. Methods Data were obtained from 357 Flemish men and women (4...

Although cycling is a widespread form of transportation, little is known about the visual behaviour of bicycle users. This study examined whether the visual behaviour of cyclists can be explained by the two-level model of steering described for car driving, and how it is influenced by cycling speed and lane width. In addition, this study investigat...

Abstract Longitudinal research provides valuable information about change and progress towards elite performance. Unfortunately, there is a lack of longitudinal research in handball. In this study, 94 youth handball players (oldest group: n = 41; age 15-17 and youngest group: n = 53; age 13-15) were followed over a three-year period. Repeated Measu...

Purpose: The aim of this study was to examine the associations of multiple, objectively measured parameters of physical activity and sedentary behavior with metabolic syndrome (MetS) and its individual components. Methods: Physical activity was measured in 370 Flemish adults (age = 41.7 ± 9.8 yr; mean ± SD) for 7 d using a SenseWear Armband. Met...

The purpose of the study was to evaluate the developmental changes in performance in a repeated-sprint ability (RSA) test in young soccer players of contrasting maturity status. A total of 83 regional level Portuguese youth soccer players, aged 11-13 years at baseline was assessed annually. Stature, body mass, 7x34.2-m sprint protocol (25-s active...

This study investigates the differential learning opportunities in 5 on 5 versus 3 on 3 basketball game play. Video-analysis of the game performance of thirty basketball players (10-11 years) resulted in significantly higher scores on all game performance components (GPCs: cognitive decision making component (DM), motor skill execution efficiency (...

Characteristics of 32 international and 41 local under-17 (U-17) (14.5–16.5 years) roller hockey players were considered in the context of discrimination by competitive level using training history, anthropometry, skeletal maturation, and several laboratory and field performance tests. More international (42%) than local (22%) players were advanced...

The aims of the study were to investigate the presence of a relative age effect and the influence of birth quarter on anthropometric characteristics, an estimation of biological maturity and performance in the Yo-Yo Intermittent Recovery Test level 1 in 606 elite, Flemish youth soccer players. The sample was divided into 5 chronological age groups...

Objectives In-depth analysis of the relationship between sports participation and stress among adult women and men.Design644 women and 783 men, 20–65 years, from the SPAH Flemish-Policy-Research-Centre, reported data on participation in favourite sports and mental health.Method Gender-specific multiple MANOVAs with stress appraisal and the stress r...

Background Although differences between paper-and-pencil questionnaires and accelerometers have been reported for overall physical activity and time spent in moderate and vigorous activity, few studies have looked at domain-specific behavior. This study compared estimates of domain-specific physical (in)activity obtained with the Flemish physical a...

Accurate data on domain-specific physical activity and sedentary behavior among normal-weight, overweight and obese adults are scarce. This study described a comprehensive physical (in)activity profile and examined variations in activity across the week. Physical activity was measured in 442 Flemish adults (41.4 ± 9.8 years) for 7 days using the Se...

The present study determined to what extent the variance in performance might be explained by chronological age, biological maturation, training load and anthropometry in 168 Belgian male handball players aged 14 years: anthropometric, strength, speed and sport-specific skills were assessed. MANOVA tested the effect of chronological age and biologi...

The relationship of childhood overweight (OW) and obesity (OB) with motor skill and coordination is gaining due attention; however, longitudinal evidence is currently lacking. OBJECTIVE: The dual purpose of this study was (1) to investigate the short-term evolution in the level of gross motor coordination according to children's weight status, and...

Gymnastics talent identification focuses on the identification of young gymnasts who display characteristics for potential success in the future. The aim of this study was to identify which current performance characteristics are related to performance in competition 2 years later. Twenty-three female gymnasts aged 7-8 years completed a multidimens...

Abstract We report the morphology (height, weight, body fat, body mass index), fitness (strength, speed, agility, flexibility), and soccer-specific (dribbling) and non-specific motor coordination skills (Körper KoordinationsTest für Kinder; KTK) of 78 Belgian international youth soccer players aged 15-16 years with varying biological maturity statu...

Socioeconomic status (SES) is often indicated as a factor that influences physical activity and associated health outcomes. This study examined the relationship between SES and sport participation, morphology, fitness and motor coordination in a sample of 1955 Flemish children 6-11 years of age. Gender, age and SES-specific values for morphologic d...

The Developmental Model of Sports Participation proposes two pathways towards expertise in sports between 6 and 12 years of age: early specialization and early diversification. This study investigated the effect of sampling various sports and of spending many or few hours in sports on fitness and gross motor coordination. Altogether, 735 boys in th...

Introduction. In volleyball, one can not interrupt the opponents game, so a volleyball team has to anticipate and be prepared to counter or defend an attack. Research on visual search in volleyball1,2 and other ball sports3 has suggested that, unlike non-experienced volleyball players, experienced players do not keep their eyes on the ball continuo...

The relationships between knee joint isokinetic strength, biological maturity status and body size were examined in 14-16-year-old basketball players, considering proportional allometric modeling. Biological maturity status was assessed with maturity offset protocol. Stature, body mass, sitting height, and estimated thigh volume were measured by an...

The reproducibility of day-to-day testing of isokinetic concentric and eccentric muscular actions among adolescent basketball players aged 14 to 16 years and relationships of mean within-subject variation in two isokinetic testing sessions with chronological age, biological maturation (estimated age at peak height velocity), training experience, bo...

Discussions of growth and motor performance of children are often set in the context of physical fitness. Although there is a clear theoretical concept or definition of fitness comprising motor coordination, the latter is not systematically considered. This study determined to what extent the variance in motor coordination might be explained by mor...

This study examined the stability of motor coordination and the relationship between motor coordination and organized sports participation over time. Longitudinal design. A total of 371 children between six and nine years of age at initial testing completed a test battery measuring motor coordination in three consecutive years and a questionnaire o...

Adolescence is characterized by increments in body size and physical performance. Short bursts of maximal intensity, requiring anaerobic metabolism, are important in many team sports including basketball. Variation of anaerobic power of adolescent basketball players (n = 93, 14-16 years) in relation to years before and after estimated age at peak h...

Talent identification in team sports is complex and requires a multidisciplinary approach. The purpose of this study was to examine differences between elite and non-elite handball players in three age groups: U14 (n=186), U16 (n=150), and U18 (n=92). A multidimensional test battery was assessed, taking biological maturation into account. Significa...

To examine sources of variance in objectively measured physical activity and to determine the number of monitoring days needed to quantify physical activity patterns reliably, 394 Flemish adults (41.1 ± 9.9 years) were monitored during 7 days, using the SenseWear Armband. Differences between weekdays, Saturday and Sunday were examined with repeated...

This study examined the relationship between the performance level as evaluated by expert coaches and the results on a multidimensional test battery in female gymnastics. 4 coaches assigned 168 female gymnasts aged 6-8 years into 2 groups (Elite-level potential, n=103 and Sub-elite-level potential, n=65) based upon their technical evaluation of the...

This study evaluates the validity and reliability of the line-drill (LD) test of anaerobic performance in 76 male basketball players 14.0-16.0 years of age. The Wingate Anaerobic Test (WAnT) was used as the reference for anaerobic performance. Wingate Anaerobic Test and LD test were moderately correlated (0.39 and 0.43, p < 0.01). Estimated age at...

Former research demonstrated that depression is associated with dysfunctional attentional processing of emotional information. Most studies examined this bias by registration of response latencies. The present study employed an ecologically valid measurement of attentive processing, using eye-movement registration. Dysphoric and non-dysphoric parti...

An adequate coordination level in children is important for their general development, but also for health, psychosocial, academic and well-being-related reasons. In this study, the suitability of the KörperkoordinationsTest für Kinder (KTK) as an assessment instrument for the gross motor coordination was evaluated in 2470 children from 26 elementa...

Adolescence is often viewed as a critical period for selection in youth soccer. The present study compared the characteristics of regionally selected and non-selected under-14 players (U-14) as a group and by position. Players were classified as local (n=69) and regional (n=45). Weight, height, skinfolds, functional capacities, soccer skills and go...

The purpose of this study was to investigate differences in gross motor coordination in healthy-weight, overweight, and obese children of different ages. Using a cross-sectional design, data were collected in 954 Flemish primary school children (500 girls, 454 boys) stratified in consecutive age groups (5-7 years, 8-9 years, 10-12 years). Weight st...

Relationships between growth, maturation and maximal short-term power outputs were investigated in 94 youth basketball players aged 14-16 years. Data included chronological age (CA), skeletal age (SA), years of training; body dimensions, estimated thigh volume, a running based short-term exercise assessed by the line drill test (LDT), the Bangsbo s...

Among patients with breast cancer, few studies have examined the pattern of change of physical activity levels over time or the predictive factors for this change. Particularly sparse are studies comparing pre-surgical physical activity levels with those 12 months post-surgery. Patients with a primary operable breast cancer (N = 267) filled in the...

The present study compares the nutritional status of vegetarian (V) with non-vegetarian (NV) subjects. A three-day food record and a health questionnaire were completed by 106 V and 106 NV matched for following characteristics: sex, age, BMI, physical activity, tobacco use and alcohol consumption. Total energy intake was not significantly different...

The influence of maturity status on body size, functional capacities and basketball-specific skills was evaluated and multivariate relationships between domains of variables were examined in 80 male basketball players 12.0-13.9 years. Height, body mass and two skinfolds were measured. Stage of pubic hair (PH) was assessed clinically. Functional cap...

The main aim of the current study was to compare the anthropometrical and fitness profile of female soccer players by level and by playing positions. The second purpose was to explore correlations between kicking speed on the one hand and anthropometric features and explosive strength on the other. Female soccer players (N.=190) were tested divided...

The aim of the present study was to examine how explosive strength, kicking speed, and body composition are affected by a 12-week plyometric training program in elite female soccer players. The hypothesis was that this program would increase the jumping ability and kicking speed and that these gains could be maintained by means of regular soccer tr...

The relative age effect is an uneven distribution of birth date favouring subjects born in the initial months of a selection year. This study compared the birth-date distributions between several subgroups of Basque football players to identify whether the relative age effect is influenced by age and/or skill level. The study comprised 13,519 playe...

The start of a new Olympic cycle offers a fresh chance for individuals and nations to excel at the highest level in sport. Most countries attempt to develop systematic structures to identify gifted athletes and to promote their development in a certain sport. However, forecasting years in advance the next generation of sporting experts and stimulat...

The first part of this study examined in which basic morphological and fitness measures Under-14 (n=34) and Under-16 (n=47) male youth handball players differ from reference samples of the same age (n=430 and n=570, respectively). To help develop a talent identification model, the second part of the study investigated which specific morphological a...

Findings of previous studies suggest that the relationship between physical activity and mental health may change across different domains of physical activity, different dimensions of mental health, and different population subgroups. The present study examined associations between five types of physical activity with different contents: housework...

The aim of this study was to analyse differences in physical activity, cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) and muscle strength between normal weight, overweight and obese adults and to investigate the role of physical activity variables in the analyses of differences in CRF and muscle strength between these groups. A total of 807 men and 633 women (age...

The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of maturity on running economy in a population of young soccer players. 13 boys (mean age 14.3 years) active in soccer were divided into two groups: 6 early and 7 late maturers. Anthropometrical characteristics, respiratory exchange ratio, heart rate and maximal oxygen uptake were measured. Run...

Many children strive to attain excellence in sport. However, although talent identification and development programmes have gained popularity in recent decades, there remains a lack of consensus in relation to how talent should be defined or identified and there is no uniformly accepted theoretical framework to guide current practice. The success r...

The purpose of the present study was to analyse the lipid profile in men and women differentiated according to energy expenditure during sports participation (EE(SPORT)), energy expenditure during active leisure time (EE(ALT)) and overall energy expenditure (EE(TOTAL)). The subjects were grouped by sex, age, EE(SPORT), EE(ALT) and EE(TOTAL). Group...

The association of sedentary behaviour and leisure time physical activity with a validated continuous metabolic syndrome risk score was investigated in adults. A number of 992 adults (559 men) without cardiovascular disease or diabetes. Subjects reported time spent in leisure time physical activity and television watching/computer activities. A val...

The purpose of this study was to investigate the test-retest reliability and concurrent validity of the Flemish Physical Activity Computerized Questionnaire (FPACQ) in employed/unemployed and retired people. The FPACQ was developed to assess detailed information on several dimensions of physical activity and sedentary behavior over a usual week. A...

The authors examined the complex interactions between perception, cognition, and expertise by using a film-based decision-making test. They stratified 40 youth soccer players (aged 13.0-15.8 years) into groups by using a within-task criterion. They assigned the players to successful or less successful groups on the basis of their performance on a l...