Abstract
Abstract Aim: The main purpose of the study was to investigate the height factor and player position concerning final team ranking in the three age categories, youths, juniors, and seniors. Height data were checked. Methods: Data was analyzed from 24 participating teams for seniors (n = 972, age = 27.3 ± 4.5), juniors (n = 622 age = 19.9 ± 1.0), and youths (1035 age = 18.8 ± 0.2) from official data from the selected last male World Handball Championships of 2013-2019. For each participating player, his position was noted too: backs (left and right), pivot (line player), goalkeeper, back (center), and wings (left and right). The final team ranking was recorded and the 24 teams were divided into 3 ranking groups of 8 teams. Results: The ANOVA test proved that mean heights were significantly different between the three age groups (seniors: 190.04 ± 7.33, juniors: 187.28 ± 8.13, youths: 186.84 ± 7.55, F(2,3095) = 61.1 p < 0.001). Effect size 0.039. In all ranked groups and all categories, the heights of the players were significantly different between different player positions. The discrimination ability of height in all three categories and player positions represented an overall percentage of around 70% classifying the three 8-team ranking tiers. Conclusion: Height is a factor that differentiates high-level performance for both players’ position and age categories. The practical results can help the national federations and coaches apply more effective strategies for player selection.
Highlights
Handball is in a state of continual development and holds an important position in the athletic world
The main purpose of the study was to investigate the height factor and player position concerning final team ranking in the three age categories, youths, juniors, and seniors
Anthropometric characteristics are fundamental to achieving the optimum development of athletic performance and can influence how well players respond to the demands of the specific game position
Summary
Handball is in a state of continual development and holds an important position in the athletic world. Handball has a long tradition in Europe and is making headway in other continents too It is an invasive team sport with a clear aim to score a goal and hinder the opponent from scoring[2]. Athletes under 21 years of age participate in the juniors’ events while in youths’ events the age is under 19 (International Handball Federation, regulations documents)[3]. These age categories are important as they form the pool of players that progress to the senior level and are vital for the development process of the sport in every country
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