Age Differences in the Manifestation of Endurance Ability of Boys Karate Athletes

Objectives. This research aims to determine the favourable age periods for endurance development among 7-11-year-old pupils who are engaged in initial karate training groups. Materials and Methods. The research involved 75 boys 7-11 years old, divided into five age groups: 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11 years old, with 15 participants per age group. The children's technical levels corresponded to the 10-9-8 Kyu (orange belt, orange with blue stripe, and blue). The children and their parents were informed about the features of the study and agreed to participate in the experiment. The study protocol was approved by the Ethics Committee of H.S. Skovoroda Kharkiv National Pedagogical University (Kharkiv, Ukraine). The following research methods were used: study and analysis of scientific and methodological literature, pedagogical observation, testing, pedagogical experiment, and methods of mathematical statistics. Results. Statistically significant differences in the manifestation of local static power endurance of the hand muscles were observed in the groups of 7-8 and 8-9 years old (p = 0.001; p = 0.007). Differences in local dynamic power endurance of the hand muscles were found in the 8-9 years old group (p = 0.001), and in abdominal press endurance in the 8-9 and 9-10 years old groups (p=,001; p=,01). General cardiorespiratory endurance differences were observed in the 9-10-year-old group (p = 0.001). Differences in all tests between values of specified parameters in the 10-11-year-old samples were statistically insignificant (р > 0.05). Conclusions. The favourable period for the development of general endurance in boys is between the ages of 8-9 and 9-10 years. At this age, it is important to start systematically and purposefully developing the aerobic abilities of pupils. Classes in the sports section of Kyokushinkai karate during extracurricular time will provide an opportunity to promote the development of general and special endurance and expand the range of motor skills.