Soccer game or a soccer match includes functional movements that require complex muscular balance including stopping, walking, jogging, sprint with dribbling, shooting and passing (Eniseler, 1994; Boyle, 2004). Functional training contribute to the different systems of the body through functional exercises performed in different parts of the body (covering the whole body, improving universal motor skills, applied in multiple motion planes) through intensive, short and constantly changing sessions. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of functional training on some physiological and Biomotor Abilities in elite soccer players. Athletes were randomly divided into two groups as Traditional Training Group (TTG) and Functional Training Group (FTG). For eight weeks, TTG athletes were trained five days per week for classical soccer training while FTG athletes were trained with functional training two days a week in addition to this training. Table 4 shows that the effect of pre-test from post-test and present an adjusted post-test mean and determine the difference of the adjusted post-test mean of two groups. According to the ANCOVA results, differences were not found statistically significant (p>0.05). As a result, in this study, which aimed to investigate the effects of functional training on some physiological and bio-motor properties in elite soccer players, it was determined that functional training method had a positive effect on some physiological and bio-motor properties of pre- and post-test values in soccer players, however to determine the difference of the adjusted post-test mean of two groups, ANCOVA results show that differences were not found statistically significant.

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of agility training on reaction time in fencers. Accordingly, 48 athletes (24 females and 24 males) actively involved in fencing participated in the study. Fencers were divided into two groups as 24 fencers in the Agility Training Group (ATG: 12F, 12M) (aged 11.95 years, sports age 2.54 years, height 159 cm, body weight 48.08 kg and body mass index 18.81 kg/m²) and Conventional Training Group (CTG: 12F, 12M) (aged 12.12 years, sports age 2.20 years, height 156.54 cm, body weight 46.25 kg and body mass index 18.81 kg/m²). There was a statistically significant difference between the pre-test and post-test values in agility, vertical jump, simple reaction time and multiple reaction time tests in the ATG (p<0.05). There was a statistically significant difference between the pre-test and post-test values in agility and vertical jump tests in the CTG (p<0.05). There was a statistically significant difference in the pre-tests between the groups in the simple reaction time test (p<0.05). There was a statistically significant difference in post-tests between the groups in the agility, simple reaction time and multiple reaction time test values (p<0.05). Based on the results of the study, it was found that simple and multiple reaction time could be positively affected by active-reactive agility training applications.

The aim of this study is to examine the relationship between the psychological needs of athletes who attend gyms, the spirituality index of well-being, and motivation in sports, and to determine the mediating role of the spirituality index of well-being between psychological needs in sports and motivation in sports. Although sports spirituality is rapidly developing in the international literature, sports and spirituality have not been studied together in the national literature before. Therefore, this study holds the distinction of being one of the pioneering research efforts on the subject of spirituality in athletes in Türkiye. In this context, the data of 422 athletes, 176 women and 246 men, who have been attending gym facilities in Antalya for at least one year, were included in the research. Participants were administered a personal information form, Psychological Need States. It was found that the spirituality index of well-being is positively related to all satisfaction subscales and negatively related to all frustration subscales of psychological needs and that the life scheme is related to many subscales of sport motivation. Furthermore, it was also found that the spirituality index of well-being is a mediating variable between psychological needs in sports and motivation in sports. The data draw attention to the importance of sports spirituality. It is recommended to integrate spirituality into healthcare for athletes.