The effect of 12-week basketball training on some physical fitness parameters of children with Down syndrome

The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of 12 weeks of basketball training on the physical fitness levels of children with Down syndrome. The study sample consisted of children with Down syndrome residing in the Yalova city center. Ten children with Down syndrome residing in the Yalova city center participated in the study. The training sessions were conducted twice a week for 12 weeks, lasting approximately 45 minutes per day. A pretest-posttest experimental design was employed in the study. Skinfold measurements and the Sit-Reach Flexibility Test were administered to the study group as a Test Battery designed to assess physical fitness. Statistical analyses of the data were conducted using the IBM SPSS 20.0 software package. Overall, male participants showed greater physical changes in the measurements. However, a result closer to statistical significance (p = .092) was obtained in the flexibility changes of female participants. No measurement exceeded the statistical significance level (p < .05). Keywords: Down syndrome, Basketball, Physical Fitness