Motor skills as predictors of applied route performance in Romanian Police Academy candidates

The purpose of this study was to investigate the contribution of different motor skills to final performance in the applied route of the Romanian Police Academy. The research included 32 candidates (male and female) preparing for admission, tested between February and March 2025 in Bihor County. The applied routeconsisted of 12 standardized obstacles, and performance was measured as total time including penalties. Descriptive statistics indicated a mean completion time of 160.29 ± 21.50 seconds, with Obstacle 12 (12 × 20 m shuttle run with cones) accounting for 52.7% of the total time. Moderate contributions were also observed for agility and coordination obstacles (Obstacles 3–9), while early elements such as Obstacle 1 had little direct influence. Pearson correlations showed that Obstacle 12 was strongly associated with total performance (r = 0.81, p < 0.01), whereas agility- and coordination-based obstacles presented moderate but significant correlations (r ≈ 0.40–0.43, p < 0.05). Anthropometric variables (height, weight, BMI) were not significantly correlated with results. These findings confirm that endurance, speed, and coordination are decisive in the applied route, while morphological factors are negligible. The study highlights the need for balanced preparatory programs that combine endurance development with agility, coordination, and technical drills, to optimize candidate performance and ensure operational readiness.