Backwards overhead medicine ball throw and countermovement jump performance among firefighter candidates

Abstract

Objectives: To examine the relationships between performance during a backward overhead medicine ball (BOMB) throw and measures of countermovement jump (CMJ) performance among firefighter candidates. Design: Cross-sectional study. Methods: Forty-three firefighter candidates volunteered to participate in this study (age = 28.1 ± 7.1 yrs; height = 180.6 ± 6.0 cm; weight = 88.6 ± 12.3 kg). Bivariate Pearson correlations were used to examine the relationship between BOMB throw performance (m/kg) and measures of CMJ performance, including: peak CMJ height (cm/kg), peak CMJ force output (N/kg), peak CMJ velocity (cm/sec/kg), and peak CMJ power output (W/kg). Results: Statistically significant (p < 0.05) correlations were identified between: BOMB throw and peak CMJ height (r = 0.693, p < 0.001), peak CMJ force output (r = 0.349, p = 0.022), and peak CMJ velocity (r = 0.477, p < 0.001). Although significant relationships were identified between BOMB throw performance and several of CMJ performance measures, BOMB throw performance accounted for little of the total variance between these measures (R2 = 7–48%). Furthermore, the relationship between BOMB throw and peak CMJ power output was not statistically significant (r = 0.292, p = 0.057). Conclusions: These results imply that the BOMB throw lacks criterion-reference validity to other standard field-based measures of power output. Thus, practitioners should exhibit caution when utilizing the BOMB throw to assess power out put among firefighter candidates. In addition, future research should examine the criterion-reference validity of other field-expedient assessments among firefighter candidates and active-duty firefighters.