title: Critical evaluation of a badminton-specific endurance test.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To overcome the limitations of traditional 1-dimensional fitness tests in analyzing physiological properties of badminton players, a badminton-specific endurance test (BST) was created. This study aimed at analyzing the influence of various fitness dimensions on BST performance.
  
  
  METHODS
  18 internationally competing male German badminton players (22.4 ± 3.2 y, 79.2 ± 7.7 kg, 1.84 ± 0.06 m, world-ranking position [WRP] 21-501) completed a straight-sprint test, a change-of-direction speed test, various jump tests (countermovement jump, drop jump, standing long jump), a multistage running test (MST), and the BST. During this on-court field test players have to respond to a computerized sign indicating direction and speed of badminton-specific movements by moving into the corresponding corners.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Significant correlations were found between performance in MST and BST (individual anaerobic threshold [IAT], r = .63, P = .005; maximum velocity [Vmax], r = .60, P = .009). A negative correlation (r = -.59, P = .014) was observed between IAT in BST and drop-jump contact time. No further associations between performance indices could be detected. Apart from a small portion explained by MST results (IAT, R2 = .40; Vmax, R2 = .36), the majority of BST performance cannot be explained by the determined physiological correlates. Moreover, it was impossible to predict the WRP of a player on the basis of BST results (r = -.15, P = .55).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Neither discipline-specific performance nor basic physiological properties were appropriately reflected by a BST in elite badminton players. This does not substantiate its validity for regular use as a testing tool. However, it may be useful for monitoring on-court training sessions.
authors.affiliation: Inst of Sports and Preventive Medicine, University of Saarland, Saarbrücken, Germany.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fuchs
authors.forename: Oliver
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Faude
authors.forename: Melissa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wegmann
authors.forename: Tim
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Meyer
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D005080:Exercise Test; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009048:Motor Skills; D010807:Physical Endurance; D010809:Physical Fitness; D015865:Racquet Sports; D012044:Regression Analysis; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012420:Running; D013647:Task Performance and Analysis; D013997:Time Factors; D055815:Young Adult