Author(s)

Ada Wai Wing Ma, Lily Han Qu

Department of Health and Physical Education, The Education University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China.

This study determined the relation between karate training and five specific motor abilities of primary school children with no previous karate experience. The motor abilities were tested before, at the end of, and one month after the intervention phase, during which subjects practiced karate dance or 5 minutes daily. Preliminary results showed that karate training improved children’s performance in the long jump and 4 × 5 m shuttle run, but that the improvements waned one month after the intervention. Bivariate correlations showed that most of the motor ability tests correlated with each other, which was confirmed in linear regression models with medicine ball throwing as the outcome and body weight, 4 × 5 m shuttle run, and long jump as significant predictors. Factor analysis extracted a single latent factor from all five motor ability tests. In conclusion, karate training contributes to motor ability improvements among primary school karate beginners.

Karate Training, Motor Abilities, Physical Activity, School Children

Ma, A. and Qu, L. (2017) Effects of Karate Training on Basic Motor Abilities of Primary School Children. Advances in Physical Education, 7, 130-139. doi: 10.4236/ape.2017.72012.