TPCT Underwater Rugby Women (TPCT-UWRW)

March 5, 2026 updated by: Édison Andrés Pérez Bedoya, Federal University of Vicosa

Effects of a Tactical Programme for Critical Thinking (TPCT) on Tactical Efficiency in Elite Women's Underwater Rugby: a Randomised Controlled Trial

This randomized controlled trial evaluates whether adding a short, structured team-reflection protocol (Tactical Programme for Critical Thinking, TPCT) to regular elite women's underwater rugby training improves tactical efficiency. Both groups complete the same training content and time; the TPCT group uses brief guided discussion during recovery intervals, while the control group uses the same time for passive recovery. Tactical efficiency is assessed using video-recorded 3v3 scrimmages coded with the RUSTAC checklist at baseline and after 6 weeks.

Study Overview

Status

Recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

A parallel, two-arm randomized controlled trial will be conducted in an elite women's underwater rugby squad. Players will be allocated 1:1 to TPCT or an active control condition using a computer-generated random sequence. The intervention consists of 18 sessions over 6 weeks (3/week), 2 hours per session, delivered in an outdoor 4 m pool and a marked 10 m × 8 m underwater area. Sessions include a short coach introduction (~15 min), constrained small-sided games designed to elicit target tactical principles, and ≥60 min free-play (≥50% of session) to preserve representativeness and transfer. The TPCT condition embeds ~3 min structured reflection between small-sided bouts using a fixed 5-question protocol aligned to critical thinking operations; the control condition uses equivalent between-bout time for passive recovery/hydration.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

26

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Locations

  • Colombia
      • Medellín, Colombia
        • Recruiting
        • Tecnológico de Antioquia
        • Contact:

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Female elite underwater rugby players aged ≥18 years.
  • Officially rostered members of the participating high-performance team/squad.
  • Regular training participation (minimum 2 sessions per week) in the team's programme.
  • Able to complete study procedures at Baseline (Visit 1) and Post-intervention at 6 weeks (Visit 2), including standardized 3v3 scrimmage video assessment.
  • Willing and able to provide written informed consent.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Current injury, illness, or medical condition that prevents full participation in regular underwater rugby training during the intervention period.
  • Anticipated prolonged absence (e.g., travel/competing/other commitments) that would prevent meaningful exposure to the intervention dose (e.g., missing >20% of sessions).
  • Inability to complete the assessment procedures reliably (e.g., unable to participate in the standardized 3v3 assessment or comply with study instructions).
  • Declines participation or withdraws consent.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: TPCT (Structured Reflective Questioning) + Matched Tactical Training
Participants complete the same underwater rugby training dose and content as the control arm. In addition, they engage in brief, structured team reflection (~3 minutes) during recovery intervals between constrained small-sided game bouts, guided by a fixed TPCT questioning protocol targeting tactical critical thinking and collective decision-making.
Behavioral: Matched Tactical Training Programme (MTT)
Standardized underwater rugby tactical training delivered over 6 weeks (3 sessions/week; 18 sessions), ~2 hours/session. Sessions include structured warm-up and an identical tactical training dose across arms using constrained small-sided game bouts targeting pre-specified offensive and defensive tactical principles through constraint manipulation (e.g., space, numerical relations, rules). Free-play exposure is matched across arms. Between-bout intervals include passive recovery/hydration; any structured reflective questioning is delivered only via the TPCT intervention (when applicable).
Behavioral: Tactical Programme for Critical Thinking (TPCT) - Structured Reflective Questioning
A structured reflective questioning protocol embedded within regular training during recovery intervals between constrained small-sided game bouts. Delivered across the same 6-week period (3 sessions/week; 18 sessions) as MTT. During each recovery interval, the coach facilitates ~3 minutes of guided team discussion using a fixed set of prompts (e.g., intended objective, what helped/hindered, alternatives, and one collective adjustment for the next bout) to elicit interpretation, analysis, evaluation, and explanation of tactical decisions, supporting collective decision-making.
Active Comparator: Matched Tactical Training (MTT) Only (Passive Recovery)
Participants complete the same Matched Tactical Training Programme (MTT) dose and content as the experimental arm. Recovery intervals between constrained small-sided game bouts are used for passive recovery/hydration without structured reflective questioning or guided discussion.
Behavioral: Matched Tactical Training Programme (MTT)
Standardized underwater rugby tactical training delivered over 6 weeks (3 sessions/week; 18 sessions), ~2 hours/session. Sessions include structured warm-up and an identical tactical training dose across arms using constrained small-sided game bouts targeting pre-specified offensive and defensive tactical principles through constraint manipulation (e.g., space, numerical relations, rules). Free-play exposure is matched across arms. Between-bout intervals include passive recovery/hydration; any structured reflective questioning is delivered only via the TPCT intervention (when applicable).

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Overall tactical efficiency (RUSTAC overall index)
Time Frame: Baseline (Visit 1; up to 50 minutes) and Post-intervention at 6 weeks (Visit 2; up to 50 minutes)
Overall tactical efficiency derived from video-based coding of standardized 3v3 underwater rugby scrimmages using the RUSTAC checklist. The overall index is computed as successful tactical actions relative to total tactical decisions (expressed as successful actions per 100 decisions) across offensive and defensive phases.
Baseline (Visit 1; up to 50 minutes) and Post-intervention at 6 weeks (Visit 2; up to 50 minutes)

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Defensive coverage efficiency (RUSTAC principle-specific index)
Time Frame: Baseline (Visit 1; up to 50 minutes) and Post-intervention at 6 weeks (Visit 2; up to 50 minutes)
Defensive coverage tactical efficiency calculated from RUSTAC coding of standardized 3v3 scrimmages. The principle-specific index is expressed as successful defensive coverage actions per 100 decisions.
Baseline (Visit 1; up to 50 minutes) and Post-intervention at 6 weeks (Visit 2; up to 50 minutes)
Recovery efficiency (RUSTAC principle-specific index)
Time Frame: Baseline (Visit 1; up to 50 minutes) and Post-intervention at 6 weeks (Visit 2; up to 50 minutes)
Recovery tactical efficiency calculated from RUSTAC coding of standardized 3v3 scrimmages. The principle-specific index is expressed as successful recovery actions per 100 decisions.
Baseline (Visit 1; up to 50 minutes) and Post-intervention at 6 weeks (Visit 2; up to 50 minutes)
Penetration efficiency (RUSTAC principle-specific index)
Time Frame: Baseline (Visit 1; up to 50 minutes) and Post-intervention at 6 weeks (Visit 2; up to 50 minutes)
Penetration tactical efficiency calculated from RUSTAC coding of standardized 3v3 scrimmages. The principle-specific index is expressed as successful penetration actions per 100 decisions.
Baseline (Visit 1; up to 50 minutes) and Post-intervention at 6 weeks (Visit 2; up to 50 minutes)
Offensive coverage efficiency (RUSTAC principle-specific index)
Time Frame: Baseline (Visit 1; up to 50 minutes) and Post-intervention at 6 weeks (Visit 2; up to 50 minutes)
Offensive coverage tactical efficiency calculated from RUSTAC coding of standardized 3v3 scrimmages. The principle-specific index is expressed as successful offensive coverage actions per 100 decisions.
Baseline (Visit 1; up to 50 minutes) and Post-intervention at 6 weeks (Visit 2; up to 50 minutes)
Space management efficiency (RUSTAC principle-specific index)
Time Frame: Baseline (Visit 1; up to 50 minutes) and Post-intervention at 6 weeks (Visit 2; up to 50 minutes)
Space management tactical efficiency calculated from RUSTAC coding of standardized 3v3 scrimmages. The principle-specific index is expressed as successful space-management actions per 100 decisions.
Baseline (Visit 1; up to 50 minutes) and Post-intervention at 6 weeks (Visit 2; up to 50 minutes)

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Federal University of Vicosa

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Estimated)

May 1, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

July 1, 2026

Study Completion (Estimated)

September 1, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

March 2, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

March 5, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

March 9, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

March 9, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

March 5, 2026

Last Verified

March 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Other Study ID Numbers

  • TPCT-UWRW

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

IPD Plan Description

Individual participant data will not be shared publicly because the sample is small and drawn from an identifiable elite sports environment, meaning that de-identified records could still be re-identified when combined with contextual information. In addition, the source materials include video-derived measures, and participant consent was obtained for analysis and publication of aggregated results rather than unrestricted public release of participant-level data. Summary statistics and methodological details will be reported in publications; additional data may be considered on a case-by-case basis under a data-use agreement and applicable ethics constraints.

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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