Effects of a Visual Reaction Training System on Footwork Agility, Reaction Time, and Movement Performance in U12 Badminton Players

This study investigated the effectiveness of a Visual Reaction Training System (VRTS) for improving badminton-specific footwork performance in U12 players. Thirty-four participants were randomly assigned to an experimental group or a control group and completed a six-week training intervention. Training effectiveness was evaluated using star-footwork tests under fixed and random conditions, with reaction time and total movement time as outcome measures. Mixed-design ANOVA and ANCOVA were used for data analysis. The results showed that the experimental group achieved significantly greater improvements than the control group in both reaction time and movement performance. A significant group × time interaction was observed for fixed-mode reaction time (F = 12.26, p < 0.001, ηp2 = 0.28). Significant between-group effects were also found for fixed-mode movement time (F = 204.73, p < 0.001, ηp2 = 0.87) and random-mode movement time (F = 34.77, p < 0.001, ηp2 = 0.54). These findings indicate that VRTS-based training effectively enhances agility, visual reaction ability, and footwork execution in young badminton players. The system may serve as a practical tool for both training and performance assessment in youth badminton development.