To assess an athlete’s ability to cover short (acceleration performance) and medium (maximal speed performance) sprint distances within the quickest time possible.

A playing field or speed and agility based training area, and markers set at the appropriate distances away from a start line (5m, 10m, 30m).

A stopwatch or if available, advanced timing technology (e.g. timing gates).

The athlete positions themselves on the start line within a 3-point start with the coach positioned inline with the finish line. The athlete performs an effective RAMP warm up specific to acceleration performance.

The athlete accelerates as quickly as possible upon hearing the assessors auditory signal, at which point the assessor simultaneously starts to record the time on their timing device. Upon crossing the line, the assessor immediately stops the timing device and records the time.

If the athlete initiates the run before the assessor has given the auditory signal, then the test must be repeated. The test is completed three times, and the average calculated (rounded to the nearest 0.01 s).