Correlation of Anaerobic Wingate Test with Performance in 35 m Sprint Running and Verical Jump

The anaerobic Wingate test (WAnT) has been used widely during laboratory testing to quantify anaerobic power. Additionally, the 35 m sprint running and vertical jump tests have been used during field testing to assess anaerobic power. PURPOSE: Aim of this study was to investigate the relationships among anaerobic power, explosive power and 35 m performance in soccer players. METHODS: Sixty five professional soccer male players (Greek soccer superleague) participated in this study (age 19.17 ± 4.03 years, mass 72.52 ± 9.30 kgr, height 176.62 ± 6.70 cm, and % of body fat 11.32 ± 3.13). All subjects completed Wingate tests on a Monark 324E mechanically braked ergometer (resistance: 7.5% body mass, starting cadence: 90 rpm), a 35 m sprint run test with standing start using a Brower electronic timing system and a vertical jump with an Optojump system. RESULTS: Relative peak power of WAnT (12.86 ± 1.11 watts kg-1) was significantly correlated with 35 m sprint run (4.87 ± 0.19 s) (r = -0.704, p< 0.001) and vertical jump (37.48 ± 4.93 cm) (r = 0.724, p< 0.001). Peak cadence of WAnT (208.22 ± 12.89 Hz) was significantly correlated with 35 m sprint run (r = -0.631, p< 0.001) and vertical jump (r = 0.567, p< 0.001). Additionally, relative peak power of WAnT was significantly correlated with Peak cadence of WAnT (r = 0.825, p< 0.001), where the 35 m sprint run was significantly correlated with the vertical jump (r = -0.670, p< 0.001). In order to predict 35 m performance the following equation was derived: (35 m) = 6.629 -0.051(relative peak power) -0.003(peak cadence) -0.014(vertical jump). CONCLUSIONS: It is concluded that relative peak power and peak cadence are highly correlated with sprint performance and explosive power in professional Greek soccer players and could be a useful tool to monitor anaerobic training adaptations.