Evaluation of the 12 minute swim and the 12 minute run test performances in swimmers ages 10 to 15 years

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relationship between the 12-min swim and run as two field tests of cardiorespiratory fitness in non-elite young swimmers and to compare the results of those in boys and girls. Materials and methods: Thirty boys and 21 girls aged between 10 to 15 years who had at least two years swimming training were included in this study. Swimmers performed the 12-min swim and run tests as cardiorespiratory fitness tests. Results: Mean (±SD) the 12-min swim and run performances were 737.07 ± 112.93 m and 2293 ± 67 m respectively for boys, and 683.29 ± 81.63 m and 1988.57 ± 199.02 m respectively for girls. The correlations between the two test performances were r=0.74, p < 0.05 for boys and r=0.50, p < 0.05 for girls. The 12-min run performance of boys was found to be higher than girls (p < 0.05). However, no difference was found between boys and girls in the 12-min swim performance (p > 0.05). Conclusion: The results of this study demonstrate that boys had a stronger relationship between the 12-min swim and run test than girls and there were no gender differences for the 12-min swim performance in trained swimmers. Further research evaluating the 12-min swim test in more young swimmers is needed.