International Journal of Sports and Physical Education (IJSPE) Volume 6, Issue 3, 2020, PP 16-23 ISSN 2454-6380 http://dx.doi.org/10.20431/2454-6380.0603004 www.arcjournals.org International Journal of Sports and Physical Education (IJSPE) Page | 16 Anthropometric Characteristics of Elite U/18 Sevens Rugby Players: A Focus on Positional Status J. Hans DE RIDDER * , Pieter H. VAN DEN BERG, Andries ZANDBERG, Retief BROODRYK Physical Activity, Sport and Recreation Research Focus Area (PhASRec), Faculty of Health Sciences, North- West University, Potchefstroom, 2531, South Africa 1. INTRODUCTION Since its existence as a sport, rugby has become one of the main team sports on the planet, mostly because of the large number of participants competing and also the number of spectators attending the events. The rugby world cup is presented every four years and since its inception in 1987, this competition has established itself as one of the top international sporting events in the world [1]. At the Rugby World Cup in Japan in 2019, 1.84 million tickets were sold, in addition to more than 1.13 million people filling the official fanzones and over 400,000 international visitors enjoyed the incredible hospitality of the hosts, Japan. There was an estimated worldwide broadcast audience of 400 million with a record 437 billion Yen economic impact delivered for Japan [2]. Rugby consists of different codes such as Rugby Union, Rugby League and Sevens Rugby [3,4]. During recent years the latter increased in popularity and is now played at domestic and international level around the globe [5]. With the launching of the Rugby Sevens World Cup [6], the IRB World Sevens Series and acquiring Olympic status for the 2016 games, Sevens has become one of the fastest growing sport codes in recent years [4]. Sevens is seen as beneficial to younger players, because it serves as a development platform to progress to professional and international Rugby Union [7]. Both Rugby Union and Sevens Rugby are contact orientated team sports [3] and are subjected to large amounts of physical collisions such as tackling, hitting rucks and scrummaging [8]. It is possible that some physical characteristics may be deemed almost compulsory in order to achieve success, especially in collision type sports were deficiencies in anthropometric profiles may uncover weaknesses [6, 9]. Abstract: Background: The purpose of this study was to compile a profile of the anthropometric characteristics of elite u/18 Sevens Rugby players and to determine if any morphological differences exist between the different playing positions. Methods: Anthropometric data were collected from 164 male elite u/18 Sevens Rugby players (17.4 ± 0.7 years), competing in a 2 day South African schools’ rugby u/18 Sevens tournament. Players underwent an anthropometric assessment whereby each player’s stature, body mass, selected skinfolds, girths and breadths were measured. Results: On average the forward players indicated superior stature, body mass, BMI, fat mass (%) and muscle mass (kg) values compared to backline players. All-rounder players indicated a significantly bigger flexed arm girth (d≥0.9) and femur breadth (d≥0.8). Forwards were taller and heavier compared to the back line players. All playing positions yielded a dominant mesomorph somatotype among the players. Overall the Sevens Rugby players could be classified as endo-mesomorphs. The results from the current study, therefore, suggest that kinanthropometry differentiates between playing positions in under 18 elite Sevens Rugby and should therefore be considered when selecting and developing sevens players in specific playing positions. Keywords: Sevens Rugby, somatotyping, morphology, body composition, schoolboys Running Title: Anthropometry in schoolboy Sevens Rugby *Corresponding Author: J. Hans DE RIDDER, Ph.D. Director and Professor School of Human Movement Sciences North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus Potchefstroom, 2520 SOUTH AFRICA