Football the performance level of athletes with disabilities for the "fourth category" 7-a-side championship

Abstract

The work presented is important because it allows us to demonstrate the actual benefits, in this case concerning the physical sphere, of motor and sports practice on athletes with various disabilities. The study was conducted on 10 athletes belonging to a football school, each of whom has various types of diagnosed disabilities such as down syndrome, autism spectrum disorder, intellectual-cognitive disability, or motor disability, characterized by low functionality. Considering the problem, which is to adapt the performance level of the athletes to the performance model required for the "Fourth Category" 7-a-side football championship for disabled people, obtained by comparing it with the same, however, referred to 11-a-side football, they underwent an 8-week mesocycle of training, with the administration of motor evaluation tests both at the beginning and at the end of this period. The test results will then be compared with the statistical t test technique for dependent samples. From this comparison, significant differences emerged about endurance and sprint tests, and insignificant differences for the standing long jump. The conclusion therefore leads us to state that, through training, it is possible to increase the parameters of the performance level of disabled athletes to make them conform to the performance model and physiological commitment that the Fourth Category Championship requires.