Test-retest reliability and criterion validity of a new taekwondo anaerobic intermittent kick test

International audienceBACKGROUND The aim of this study was to determine the relative and absolute test-retest reliability and criterion validity of a new Taekwondo Anaerobic Intermittent Kick Test (TAIKT). METHODS Twenty Tunisian elite Taekwondo athletes participated in this study (15 males and 5 females). Participants performed the TAIKT and the Running-based Anaerobic Sprint Test (RAST), twice (test and retest), on separate occasions three-week apart. Peak heart rate (HRpeak), blood lactate concentration [La], and rating of perceived exertion (RPE) were measured during each session. RESULTS There was no significant difference between the test and retest of TAIKT and RAST for all performances and physiological variables, except for the absolute mean power (Pmean) of RAST. Test-retest results showed that the TAIKT and RAST were reliable. All TAIKT and RAST parameters had an ICCandgt;0.90, SEMandlt;5%, with the smallest worthwhile change slightly higher than SEM, with very small limits of concordance. Strong significant correlations were found between TAIKT and RAST parameters (Ppeak (r=0.81; r=0.70), Pmean (r=0.72; r=0.60) in (W and W·Kg-67 respectively), fatigue index (r=0.81), [La] (r=0.89) and RPE (r=0.78) at Pandlt;0.01, and HRpeak (r=0.55, at Pandlt;0.05)). CONCLUSIONS The findings showed that the TAIKT can be considered as a valid and reliable specific test for assessing anaerobic power of Taekwondo athletes. © 2018 Edizioni minerva medica