Reliability and validity of Yo-Yo tests in 9- to 16-year-old football

players and matched non-sports active schoolboys.

Pvoas SC1, Castagna C2,3, Soares JM4, Silva PM5,6, Lopes MV6, Krustrup P7,8. 2015
The purpose of this study was to examine the test-retest reliability and construct validity of three age-adapted Yo-Yo
intermittent tests in football players aged 9-16 years (n=70) and in age-matched non-sports active boys (n=72).
Within 7 days, each participant performed two repetitions of an age-related intensity-adapted Yo-Yo intermittent test,
i.e. the Yo-Yo intermittent recovery level 1 children's test for 9- to 11-year-olds; the Yo-Yo intermittent endurance level
1 for 12- to 13-year-olds and the Yo-Yo intermittent endurance level 2 test for 14- to 16-year-olds. Peak heart rate
(HRpeak) was determined for all tests. The distance covered in the tests was 57% (1098680 vs. 700272 m), 119%
(2325778 vs. 1062285 m) and 238% (1743460 vs. 515113 m) higher (p.016), respectively for football-
trained than for non-sports active boys aged 9-11, 12-13 and 14-16 years. The typical errors of measurement for Yo-
Yo distance, expressed as a percentage of the coefficient of variation (confidence interval), were 11.1% (9.0-14.7%),
10.1% (8.1-13.7%) and 8.5% (6.7-11.7%) for football players aged 9-11, 12-13 and 14-16 years, respectively, with
corresponding values of 9.3% (7.4-12.8%), 10.2% (8.1-14.0%) and 8.5% (6.8-11.3%) for non-sports active boys.
Intraclass correlation coefficient values for test-retest were excellent in both groups (range: 0.844-0.981). Relative
HRpeak did not differ significantly between the groups in test and retest. In conclusion, Yo-Yo intermittent test
performances and HRpeak are reliable for 9- to 16-year-old footballers and non-sports active boys. Additionally,
performances of the three Yo-Yo tests were seemingly better for football-trained than for non-sports active boys,
providing evidence of construct validity.

Validity of the Yo-Yo intermittent endurance test

in young soccer players
Pui-Lam Wong, Anis Chaouachi, Carlo Castagna, Patrick W. C. Lau, Karim Chamari & Ulrik Wislff
Pages 309-315 | Received 16 Sep 2009, Accepted 15 Aug 2010, Published online: 02 Sep 2011
The Yo-Yo intermittent endurance test is frequently used to assess aerobic endurance
performance in young soccer players but only the logical validity of the test has been
shown to date. The main ai m of this study was to assess the criterion (i.e. association with
maximal aerobic capacity, [Vdot]O2max) and construct validities of the test in young soccer
players. A secondary aim was to examine possible shared variance of the Yo-Yo
intermittent endurance test with other physical capacities. Sixty-two soccer players (age
13.70.5 years) from an Under-14 team participated. All players performed a battery of
fitness tests to assess [Vdot]O2max, aerobic endurance performance (Yo-Yo intermittent
endurance test), soccer dribbling endurance performance (Hoff dribbling test), and power
performance (maximal vertical jump, 30-m sprint with 10-m split time). Results showed that
the Yo-Yo intermittent endurance test was strongly correlated
with [Vdot]O2max (r=0.63, P<0.001), thereby showing the test's criterion validity. Players with
the best performance on the Yo-Yo intermittent endurance test had significantly
higher [Vdot]O2max (P<0.001, large effect), and significantly better soccer dribbling
endurance (P<0.001, large effect) and 30-m sprint times (P<0.05, medium effect). Logistic
regression (r=0.79, P=0.0001) showed that Hoff dribbling test performance (explained
variance=50.4%), [Vdot]O2max (explained variance=39.7%), and 30-m sprint time (explained
variance=14.4%) were significant independent parameters contributing to performance on
the Yo-Yo intermittent endurance test. Therefore, the Yo-Yo intermittent endurance test is
a valid on-field aerobic endurance performance test for young soccer players, which can
also be used to differentiate the maximal aerobic capacity, soccer dribbling endurance, and
30-m sprint performance of these players.

Reliability and validity of the Yo-Yo intermittent

recovery test level 1 in young soccer players
Dieter Deprez, Aaron James Coutts, Matthieu Lenoir, Job Fransen, Johan Pion, Renaat
Philippaerts & show all
Pages 903-910 | Accepted 12 Dec 2013, Published online: 30 Jan 2014
The present study investigated the test-retest reliability from the Yo-Yo IR1 (distance and
heart rate responses), and the ability of the Yo-Yo IR1 to differentiate between elite and
non-elite youth soccer players. A total of 228 youth soccer players (1117 years)
participated: 78 non-elite players to examine the test-retest reliability within 1 week, added
with 150 elite players to investigate the construct validity. The main finding was that the
distance covered was adequately reproducible in the youngest age groups (U13 and U15)
and highly reproducible in the oldest age group (U17). Also, the physiological responses
were highly reproducible in all age groups. Moreover, the Yo-Yo IR1 test had a high-
discriminative ability to distinguish between elite and non-elite young soccer players.
Furthermore, age-related standards for the Yo-Yo IR1 established for elite and non-elite
groups in this study may be used for comparison of other young soccer players.