Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on motor competence in children and adolescents : a systematic review

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Reilly, John J. and Glendenning, Lucy and Govan, Lucile (2026) Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on motor competence in children and adolescents : a systematic review. Journal of Sports Sciences, 44 (1). pp. 105-116. ISSN 1466-447X (https://doi.org/10.1080/02640414.2025.2555122)

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Abstract

This systematic review aimed to investigate COVID-19 impacts on motor competence (MC) in children and adolescents. SportDiscus, APAPsycInfo, CINAHL, Scopus, PubMed, Web of Science, Medline were searched in November 2024. Studies were included if they were in English; from 2015; measured actual MC pre and post COVID-19; in apparently healthy 3 to 19 year olds. Risk of bias assessment used the Effective Public Health Practice Project instrument. Eligible studies were synthesised narratively due to heterogeneity, and with Vote Counting to assess pre-post COVID-19 trend. Of 568 studies, 278,536 participants, mean ages 5-11 years, took part in 11 eligible studies (4 longitudinal, 7 cross sectional): from Europe (7), Asia (2) and South America (2). Ten studies found a reduction in MC following the pandemic (Sign Test p=0.01) with declines in: stability (one study, effect size, ES -0.30), locomotor domain (6 studies, ES -0.10 to -0.53), object control (3 studies, ES -0.07 to -0.25), composite MC (one study ES -0.65 in boys to -0.88 in girls). Seven studies were rated weak for selection bias, 8 for attrition and 6 for data collection methods. MC declined post-pandemic but there is a need for more global, evidence

ORCID iDs

Reilly, John J. ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6165-5471, Glendenning, Lucy and Govan, Lucile;
CORE (COnnecting REpositories)