Basic motor competencies (BMC) are a prerequisite for children to be physically active, participate in sports and thus develop a healthy, active lifestyle. The present study provides a broad screening of BMC and associations with age, sex, body mass index (BMI) and extracurricular physical activity (PA) in 10 different European countries. The different country and regional contexts within Europe will offer a novel view on already established BMC associations. The cross-sectional study was conducted in 11 regions in 10 European countries in 2018. The motor competence areas, object movement (OM) and self-movement (SM), were assessed using the MOBAK-1-2 test instrument in 3758 first and second graders (age: M = 6.86 ± 0.60 years; 50% girls) during Physical Education classes. Children were questioned about their extracurricular PA and age. Their body weight and height were measured in order to calculate BMI. Statistical analyses included variances and correlations. The results showed significant differences in BMC levels between countries (OM: F = 18.74, p < 0.001, η2 = 0.048; SM: F = 73.10, p < 0.001, η2 = 0.163) whereas associations between BMC and correlates were similar. Boys performed significantly better in OM while girls performed better in SM. Age was consistently positively related to OM and SM with older children reaching higher levels of BMC than younger ones. While participation rates for extracurricular PA differed widely, participation in ball sports was correlated with OM and SM. Participation in individual sports showed a significant association with SM. In summary, BMC levels of children seem to depend on where they live and are strongly related to their participation in extracurricular PA. Therefore, education and health policies, in order to enhance motor competence development and PA participation, are recommended. Further research on country-specific Physical Education frameworks and their influence on BMC will provide more insights into structural factors and cultural characteristics of BMC development. On a school level, support tools and educational materials for teachers about BMC may enable children to achieve a basic level of motor competencies through Physical Education, contributing to lifelong participation in PA.

Basic motor competencies (BMC) belong to the key learning goals of Physical Education (PE) in primary school curricula in Europe. These competencies are necessary to participate in sports inside and outside of school. Children should therefore achieve age-adequate BMC in PE and any need for educational motor support should be identified at an early stage. Studies in German-speaking countries showed that various endogenous and exogenous factors are related to children’s BMC, but international studies are missing. In the present cross-sectional study, the two BMC areas object movement (OM) and self-movement (SM) as well as the associations with endogenous (age, sex, body mass index) and exogenous (participation in extracurricular sports) factors were investigated in 1721 8‑ to 10-year-old primary school children from nine European countries. Over 25% of the children showed need for educational motor support in OM and over 20% in SM. BMC levels differed significantly between the country-specific subsamples. In all subsamples, boys showed better performances in OM, while girls scored better in SM. Older children performed better in OM and SM than younger children. Higher body mass index predicted lower BMC scores in both competence areas. Participation in ball sports was positively associated with OM and SM, and individual sports participation was a significant predictor of SM. As exogenous and endogenous variables consistently predicted BMC in all subsamples, there must be other reasons for variation in BMC levels. Future studies should address country- and school-specific characteristics like content and amount of PE.

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Basic motor competencies (BMC) belong to the main learning goals of physical education (PE) in primary school and are needed to actively take part in the culture of sport and human movement. BMC levels between European countries differ widely and individual determinants like age, sex, and extracurricular physical activity participation consistently predict BMC levels (Wälti et al., 2022), but also structural aspects of PE are important factors of learning outcomes. In this study, we wanted to investigate if the weekly amount of PE accounts for differences in BMC levels across countries. We assessed BMC (object movement, self-movement), anthropometric data (sex, age, body-mass-index) and participation in extracurricular physical activity (ball sports, individual sports) in 3,069 6- to 10-year-old primary school children using the MOBAK-1-4 and structural aspects (amount of PE) in 179 teachers from eight European countries. Latent multilevel regression analyses were corrected for children’s sex, age, body-mass-index, extracurricular physical activity participation and region of assessment. Despite differences in the weekly amount of PE in the assessed samples, there were no significant associations between the amount of PE and object movement or self-movement in either the 6- to 8-year-old or the 8- to 10-year-old children. The covariates age, sex, body-mass-index and participation in ball sports were significant predictors of object movement in all children. Body-mass-index and participation in any kind of extracurricular physical activity were significantly associated with self-movement in children aged 6-8 years. In children aged 8-10 years, all anthropometric variables as well as participation in any kind of extracurricular physical activity were significant predictors of self-movement. Other country-specific or PE-related factors might be more crucial for the differences in BMC levels than the amount of PE (García-Hermoso et al., 2020). A focus on the quality and content of PE lessons as well as on the qualification and goals of PE teachers is suggested. Nevertheless, for children who do not participate in extracurricular physical activity, PE can be crucial for BMC development. References García-Hermoso, A., Alonso-Martínez, A. M., Ramírez-Vélez, R., Pérez-Sousa, M. Á., Ramírez-Campillo, R., & Izquierdo, M. (2020). Association of physical education with improvement of health-related physical fitness outcomes and fundamental motor skills among youths: A systematic review and meta-analysis. JAMA Pediatrics, 174(6), Article e200223. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapediatrics.2020.0223 Wälti, M., Sallen, J., Adamakis, M., Ennigkeit, F., Gerlach, E., Heim, C., Jidovtseff, B., Kossyva, I., Labudová, J., Masaryková, D., Mombarg, R., De Sousa Morgado, L., Niederkofler, B., Niehues, M., Onofre, M., Pühse, U., Quitério, A., Scheuer, C., Seelig, H., Vlček, P., . . . & Herrmann, C. (2022). Basic motor competencies of 6- to 8-year-old primary school children in ten European countries: A cross-sectional study on associations with age, sex, BMI and physical activity. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, Article 804753. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.804753