Context: Badminton requires open and fast actions toward the shuttlecock, but there is no specific agility test for badminton players with specific movements. Purpose: To develop an agility test that simultaneously assesses perception and motor capacity and examine the test`s concurrent and construct validity and its test-retest reliability. Method: The Badcamp agility test consists of running as fast as possible to 6 targets placed on the corners and middle points of a rectangular area (5.6 × 4.2 m) from the start position located in the center of it, following visual stimuli presented in a luminous panel. The authors recruited 43 badminton players (17-32 y old) to evaluate concurrent (with shuttle-run agility test—SRAT) and construct validity and test-retest reliability. Results: Results revealed that Badcamp presents concurrent and construct validity, as its performance is strongly related to SRAT (p = 0.83, P < .001), with performance of experts being better than nonexpert players (P < .01). In addition, Badcamp is reliable, as no difference (P = .07) and a high intraclass correlation (ICC = .93) were found in the performance of the players on 2 different occasions. Conclusions: The findings indicate that Badcamp is an effective, valid, and reliable tool to measure agility, allowing coaches and athletic trainers to evaluate players` athletic condition and training effectiveness and possibly detect talented individuals in this sport.
© Copyright 2016 International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance. All rights reserved.