Validity and reliability of the use of timers and video analysis to evaluate the Line Drill Test running time

Abstract

Objective: To ascertain the validity and reliability of intra and inter evaluators of the use of stopwatches and videos in order to record the runtime of Line Drill Test compared to a photocell system.

Method: 22 academic basketball and handball players performed the Line Drill Test in a single attempt. Photocells (gold standard) and evaluators with manual stopwatches recorded the runtime of the Line Drill Test simultaneously. At the same time, the test was videotaped in order to be analyzed by blinded evaluators. The following indexes were calculated: a) intraclass correlation coefficient, b) coefficient of variation, c) maximum absolute difference in the same test and d) typical error.

Results: there were no differences among equipment. Evaluators and equipments showed high and positive correlation (r = 0.993 to r = 1.000; p < 0.001 for all). The indexes between stopwatches and photocells were intraclass correlation coefficient = 0.995 (p < 0.001), coefficient of variation % = 0.85%, maximum absolute difference = 1.08 s and typical error = 0.13 s; and the indexes between videos and photocells were: intraclass correlation coefficient = 0.999 (p < 0.001), coefficient of variation % = 0.60%, maximum absolute difference = 0.52 s and typical error = 0.07 s.

Conclusion: the use of the low cost equipment (manual stopwatches and cameras) to measure the runtime of the Line Drill Test are both valid and reliable resources.