THE IMPACT OF THE PANDEMIC ON THE MOTOR CAPACITY OF SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS

The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted most aspects of daily life. In the spring of 2020, the incidence rate of Sars-CoV-2 increased rapidly in Romania and throughout the world. During that period, the access points for physical activities (sports clubs, swimming pools, gyms, community centers) could no longer carry out their activity. For the next 2 years, schools were temporarily closed and social distancing measures were instituted to slow the spread of the Covid-19 virus. To avoid the negative effects of the lockdown, the education administration resumed face-to-face teaching for the 2020-2021 school year and made many changes, including rules and recommendations for a safe return to school. National and international organizations have issued basic principles and guidelines for the prevention of COVID-19 when educational institutions reopened. The decline in physical activity has been linked to Covid-19 restrictions, including social distancing, disruption of school hours, distance learning and increased sedentary time for children. These changes were seen as a real challenge in physical education. These social restrictions and the temporary closure of the school affected the physical condition of the children. In this research, we will analyse and compare how the Pandemic affected the motor capacity of the 6th grade students from the Bucharest Secondary School No. 2, respectively the 2020-2021, 2021-2022 school years.