Anthropometric and Motor Performance Variables are Decisive Factors for the Selection of Junior National Female Volleyball Players

This study examined whether anthropometric and fitness tests might successfully predict selection of young female volleyball players for a junior national team. Sixty four female players (age: 14.4 ± 0.5 y, body height: 1.76 ± 0.05 m, body mass: 63.9 ± 6.4 kg) underwent a selection procedure for the junior national team. Anthropometric data and speed and power test results were obtained and players were graded for their performance in a volleyball tournament. Selected players differed from the non-qualified in body height (3.4%; p = 0.001), standing reach height (2.6%; p = 0.001), the sum of skinfolds (15.4%; p = 0.035), body mass index (BMI; 7.1%; p = 0.005) and spike jump and reach (SJR) (2.5%; p = 0.001). Selected players were classified in the 99.2 ± 1.6 percentile in body height and in the 51.4 ± 20.6 percentile in the BMI, which were significantly different from those of the non-qualified players (95.4 ± 7.0 and 66.7 ± 18.6, p = 0.02 and p = 0.004, respectively). Stepwise discriminant analysis yielded a discriminant function (p < 0.001, η2 = 0.78) that was highly loaded by height, SJR and the BMI (r = 0.79, r = 0.74 and r = -0.53, respectively). Cross validation results showed that selection was correctly predicted in 15 out of the 20 selected players (predictive accuracy: 75.0%) and in 35 out of the 44 non-qualified players (predictive accuracy: 79.5%). In conclusion, body height, the BMI and SJR height successfully discriminated between selected and non-qualified elite young female junior national team volleyball players. The equal vertical jump, sprint and agility of selected and non-qualified players, highlight the importance of body height and the BMI for selection of elite junior female volleyball players.