The aim of this cross-sectional study was to compare the body structure and physical
fitness of Finnish (n=26), Hungarian (n=42) and American (n=55) adolescents (N=123). Height,
weight, skinfolds, body fat percentages, circumferences and widths were recorded to define the
somatotypological characteristics and growth type of subjects. To define adolescents’ healthrelated fitness the Eurofit Fitness Test Battery was used. Differences between the ethnic groups in
terms of body composition and motoric performance were analyzed with ANOVA. The prevalence
of overweight was 9.3 % among Hungarians, 23.07% among Finns and 38.2 % among Americans.
PLX is lower (F=10.941, P=0.002) in the Hungarian group compared to the Finnish adolescents.
Finnish adolescents have higher VO2max in both sexes (34.98±4.08; 41.03±4.06 ml/kg/min)
despite the fact that they have higher body fat than Hungarians. Comparison between the different
ethnic groups suggests that adolescents need higher amount and intensity of training to achieve the
proper physical activity level.

The purpose of the present study was to examine the anthropometric parameters and cardiopulmonary functions of young handball players in different playing positions. 15 male handball players from first division (mean age: 16.06±0.63 yrs) participated in our research who were divided by their playing positions. First anthropometric parameters, body composition and pulmonary functions in rest were measured. Then physiological changes of the players were tested with Bruce protocol. We found that wings differed the most in morphological characteristics from other players. We did not find significant differences in pulmonary functions among positions. The highest values of Tidal volume in the vita maxima test were found in pivots (2.82±0.15 l) which is significantly higher than Tidal volume of goalkeepers (p=0.006). The highest mean value of maximal oxygen uptake was recorded (73.93±9.41 ml/kg/min) in wings. Altogether in our study important differences were seen in physique and in performance also among young handball players.