ANALYSIS OF THE DIFFERENCES IN THE SPEED, ACCELERATION, AND POWER OF VOLLEYBALL PLAYERS ON DIFFERENT PLAYING SURFACES

ABSTRACT Physical training of athletes on a sand surface is a method that is increasingly used in recent years. The present study analyzes how different surfaces affect students’ sprint power. The experiment used the “Running Anaerobic Sprint Test”(RAST)- 6 sprints of 35 m, with a break of 10 seconds between them by Mackenzie 2005. The participants conducted the test twice, in the sports hall and on dry sand. The study included 20 students (male) from the Medical University of Varna aged 19-23, training volleyball and beach volleyball. From the obtained results, the following indicators have been calculated: speed, acceleration, strength, and power. The results show that sand surface reduces the participants’ speed by an average of 10.66% which, is more than 0,5m per second. The average value of accelerations of all participants on the sand is 21.65% lower than indoor values. The difference in the ratio of the average values of the calculated powers is nearly 33%. The ability of students to maintain anaerobic performance on the sand is 1/3 lower than indoors. The results show that training on the sand increases requirements for physical capacity. As a result, students’ efforts for the same action are significantly greater. In conclusion, it can be stated that the training process on sand could improve the physical capacity of athletes practicing all kinds of sports, including hard surfaces. This can be used when planning training activities for each type of sport, as well as for all age groups.