SJFT Performance, Inhibitory Control, and Attention in Young Judokas

This study will examine the relationship between judo-specific physical fitness and cognitive performance in young male judo athletes and will evaluate the immediate effects of the Special Judo Fitness Test (SJFT) on attention and inhibitory control. Licensed male judo athletes who train regularly at least three days per week will be compared with male participants who do not actively participate in sports.

Judo athletes will complete a standardized warm-up followed by the SJFT, a judo-specific high-intensity fitness test involving repeated throws performed over three short exercise periods separated by brief rest intervals. Heart rate will be measured immediately after the SJFT and again one minute later.

Cognitive performance will be assessed using a computerized Flanker Task, which will measure reaction time and response accuracy while participants respond to relevant visual information and ignore distracting information. Judo athletes will complete the Flanker Task approximately one minute before and one minute after the SJFT. Participants in the control group will complete the same cognitive assessment twice over a similar time interval without performing the physical exercise.

The study will aim to determine whether judo-specific physical fitness and judo experience are associated with attention and inhibitory control and whether a single high-intensity judo-specific exercise session will produce an immediate change in cognitive performance.