Enter your details:
Name:
E-mail:
 
Thank you for subscribing.
Subscribe to our newsletter!


Bahri Gjinovci1, Besnik Morina1, Goran Sporiš2, Valon Nikqi1, Onur Akman3, Damir Jurko4, Arta Osmani1, Maki Grle5, Ivana Grle5, Jerko Prlić6

1University of Pristina “Hasan Pristina”, Faculty of Physical Education and Sport, Pristina, Republic of Kosovo
2University of Zagreb, Faculty of Kinesiology, Department of General and Applied Kinesiology, Zagreb, Croatia
3University of Bayburt, Faculty of Sport Science, Bayburt, Türkiye
4University in Split, Faculty of Kinesiology, Split, Croatia
5University Clinical Hospital Mostar, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina
6University Clinical Hospital Mostar, Department of Orthopedics, Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina

EUROFIT Reference Values of 7-11 Aged Children in Urban Areas of Kosovo: Relations between Age and Gender

Sport Mont 2025, 23(1), 73-78 | DOI: 10.26773/smj.250211

Abstract

This study establishes EUROFIT reference values for physical fitness and anthropometric measurements in children aged 7-11 years in urban Kosovo. Analyzing data from 500 participants, the study examines age- and sexbased variations in motor abilities and morphological traits. Data was collected over three months, from April through June 2023, in a typical school setting during regular physical education class times. This environment was typically utilized by students to reduce performance variability caused by external conditions. Results reveal age-related increases in height, weight, and strength measures, consistent with growth trends during childhood. Boys showed higher performance in strength and power tests, while girls exhibited greater flexibility. The EUROFIT battery proved effective for assessing physical fitness across age groups. This research fills a data gap in Kosovo, providing valuable reference values for educators, coaches, and policymakers aiming to promote children’s health and physical activity.

Keywords

physical fitness, EUROFIT, motor abilities, children



View full article
(PDF – 107KB)

References

Adam, C., Klissouras, V., Ravazzolo, M., Renson, R., Tuxworth, W. Kemper, H., …. Van Lierde, A. (1988). Eurofit: European test of physical fitness. Rome: Council of Europe, Committee for the development of Sport. https://openlibrary.org/books/OL1966631M/Eurofit

Al-Shammari, M. A., Elbilgahy, A. A., Attia, B. M., & Elfeshawy, R. (2024). Assessing the accuracy and reliability of linear growth measurement techniques in children: A comprehensive investigation. International Journal of Advanced Community Medicine, 7(3), 142–51. https://www.comedjournal.com/archives/2024.v7.i3.b.336

Asmussen, E., Klissouras, V., Tuxworth, B., Lofi, A., & Leger, L. (1983). Sport testing physical eurofit. In F. Karaesk (Ed.), TESTING PHYSICAL FITNESS EUROFIT Experimental Battery (pp. 1-83). Strasbourg Council of Europe.

Avornyo, E. A., & Wolf, S. (2024). Relative Contributions of Mothers, Fathers, and Other Caregivers’ Cognitive and Socioemotional Stimulation on Ghanaian Children’s School Readiness. Early Education and Development, 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1080/10409289.2024.2425591

Batez, M., Milošević, Ž., Mikulić, I., Sporiš, G., Mačak, D., & Trajković, N. (2021). Relationship between Motor Competence, Physical Fitness, and Academic Achievement in Young School-Aged Children. BioMed Research International, 2021, 6631365. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1155/2021/6631365

Berisha, M., & Cilli, M. (2017). Comparison of Eurofit Test Results of 11-17-Year- Old Male and Female Students in Kosovo. European Scientific Journal, ESJ, 13(31), 138. https://doi.org/10.19044/esj.2017.v13n31p138

Cameron N. (2021). The measurement of human growth. In: Elsevier eBooks; p. 317–45.

Ekelund, U., Steene-Johannessen, J., Brown, W. J., Fagerland, M. W., Owen, N., Powell, K. E., … Lancet Physical Activity Series 2 Executive Committe, & Lancet Sedentary Behaviour Working Group (2016). Does physical activity attenuate, or even eliminate, the detrimental association of sitting time with mortality? A harmonised meta-analysis of data from more than 1 million men and women. Lancet (London, England), 388(10051), 1302–1310. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(16)30370-1

Gemelli Against COVID-19 Post-Acute Care Study Group (2020). Post-COVID-19 global health strategies: the need for an interdisciplinary approach. Aging Clinical and Experimental Research, 32(8), 1613–1620. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40520-020-01616-x

Gontarev, S., Kalac, R., Velickovska, L. A., & Zivkovic, V. (2018). Physical fitness reference standards in Macedonian children and adolescents: the MAKFIT study. Estándares de referencia de aptitud física en niños y adolescentes de Macedonia: el estudio MAKFIT. Nutricion hospitalaria, 35(6), 1275–1286. https://doi.org/10.20960/nh.1881

Grgic, J. (2023). Test-retest reliability of the EUROFIT test battery: a review. Sport Sciences for Health, 19, 381-388. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11332-022-00936-x

Gulías-González, R., Sánchez-López, M., Olivas-Bravo, Á., Solera-Martínez, M., & Martínez-Vizcaíno, V. (2014). Physical fitness in Spanish schoolchildren aged 6-12 years: reference values of the battery EUROFIT and associated cardiovascular risk. The Journal of School Health, 84(10), 625–635. https://doi.org/10.1111/josh.12192

González, K., Fuentes, J., & Márquez, J. L. (2017). Physical Inactivity, Sedentary Behavior and Chronic Diseases. Korean Journal of Family Medicine, 38(3), 111–115. https://doi.org/10.4082/kjfm.2017.38.3.111

Ortega, F. B., Leskošek, B., Blagus, R., Gil-Cosano, J. J., Mäestu, J., Tomkinson, G. R., … FitBack, HELENA and IDEFICS consortia (2023). European fitness landscape for children and adolescents: updated reference values, fitness maps and country rankings based on nearly 8 million test results from 34 countries gathered by the FitBack network. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 57(5), 299–310. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2022-106176

Robinson, L. E., Stodden, D. F., Barnett, L. M., Lopes, V. P., Logan, S. W., Rodrigues, L. P., & D'Hondt, E. (2015). Motor Competence and its Effect on Positive Developmental Trajectories of Health. Sports Medicine (Auckland, N.Z.), 45(9), 1273–1284. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-015-0351-6

Sauka, M., Priedite, I. S., Artjuhova, L., Larins, V., Selga, G., Dahlström, O., & Timpka, T. (2011). Physical fitness in northern European youth: reference values from the Latvian Physical Health in Youth Study. Scandinavian Journal of Public Health, 39(1), 35–43. https://doi.org/10.1177/1403494810380298

Tomkinson, G. R., Carver, K. D., Atkinson, F., Daniell, N. D., Lewis, L. K., Fitzgerald, J. S., … Ortega, F. B. (2018). European normative values for physical fitness in children and adolescents aged 9-17 years: results from 2 779 165 Eurofit performances representing 30 countries. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 52(22), 1445–14563. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2017-098253

Yu, S., Lin, L., Liang, H., Lin, M., Deng, W., Zhan, X., … & Liu, C. (2022). Gender difference in effects of proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation stretching on flexibility and stiffness of hamstring muscle. Frontiers in Physiology, 13, 918176. https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2022.918176

Zemková, E., Mohr, M., & Malý, T. (2024). Editorial: A physiologically-based approach to study different types of locomotion in association with core performance. Frontiers in Physiology, 15, 1505881. https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2024.1505881