Characteristics of the somatotype of the players of the Boyacá Women's Under-21 Handball Team, by playing position

Abstract

Problem: Handball is one of the fastest team sports, involving frequent body contact, various high intensity actions, and altered body movements as part of the game in different positions. An adequate body composition for sport has different benefits, such as an optimal state of health, prevention of injuries and adequate muscular and joint balance that will result in an optimization of the athlete's competitive results. Objective: to characterize the somatotype of the players of the Boyacá Women's Under-21 Handball Team, by position. Method: descriptive study, with a quantitative approach and intentional sample, using materials such as ISAK protocol, Excel 2010 spreadsheet and somatochart. The population and sample of the study were 15 female players of the Boyacá Women's Team classified to national games in 2019, with an average age of 18 years and sports experience of two years. Results: the pivots were the heaviest players (with the highest percentage of fat mass), the center-backs the lightest and the wingers, together with the pivots, the tallest. Difference in Body Mass Index was observed between the pivots and the rest of the groups. In the somatochart there were no significant differences between the groups, being located in the endomorphic zone. Conclusion: from the results it can be affirmed that the anthropometric variables, the body composition data and the somatochart of the athletes confirm the basic morphological characteristics of the players for the position in which they perform on the playing field.